HR Practices in Eastern and Western Countries

Most human resource management theories, practices and literature originate in the Western countries. However, globalization and cross-cultural interaction increasingly highlights the differences in national cultures, and it is clear that Eastern and Western countries have different approaches, perspectives, norms and practices. Comparison of human resource practices in Eastern countries such as China and Japan and Western countries such as the United States and United Kingdom, therefore, reveals that they differ significantly in terms of organizational structure, motivational programs, communication and conflict resolution.

Organizational Structure -

Organizational structure, leadership styles and people-management philosophies differ in Eastern and Western countries because of the varying value systems. In Eastern countries, there is a strict adherence to organizational hierarchy, and the leadership style is mostly autocratic; in Western countries, organizations have flatter structures and leaders tend to be more democratic. However, because countries in the Far East such as China and Korea and the Middle East have collectivist cultures where the group takes precedence over individuals, employees are usually ideally organized into workplace teams.

Motivation Programs -

Western and Eastern countries differ in their views on motivation; whereas Western countries tend to place greater emphasis on individual rewards and compensation packages and personal career development, Eastern countries value collective rewards and steady progression. In the Western context, individual workers stand out when they exercise personal initiative and are duly rewarded through competitive remuneration and opportunities for growth. Conversely, in the Eastern countries, there have been various influences including Confucianism and Buddhism that emphasized long-term orientation, thrift, community harmony and respect for tradition. As a result, workers receive promotion and rewards on the basis of seniority, and rewarding high-performance teams rather than individuals works better as a motivational tool.

Communication -

Human resource practitioners in Eastern and Western countries adopt different modes of communication because of the various meanings attached to verbal and nonverbal interaction. In Eastern countries, communication is mostly contextual and indirect because of the need to save face, while in Western countries, verbally direct communication is the ideal practice. Effective human resource management also calls for observance of nonverbal cues such as facial expressions, punctuality and bowing etiquette. For example, in Japan, bowing is a sign of respect, and the depth of a bow communicates the esteem attached to the recipient. The use of email, networking forums and other management forums are also more highly valued in Western than Eastern countries where personal relationships are of the highest importance.

Conflict Resolution -

Conflict resolution is a major aspect of human resource management that Western countries practice more overtly than the Eastern ones. In Eastern countries, there is a tendency toward harmony and a holistic approach, and people resolve conflicts through accommodation and compromise. Western style of competing emphasize withdrawing or ignoring a conflict altogether. The holistic approach also advances that all people are part of a whole system and that each person has a definite role to play, which has the overall effect of minimizing instances of disagreements. The converse is true of Western cultures, where individuals are encouraged to explore and develop themselves and this has a greater capacity to cause conflict.

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