Xu, T; Smith, N J and Bower, D A (2002) Improving the integration of international contractors in China. In: Greenwood, D (ed.) Proceedings of 18th Annual ARCOM Conference, 2-4 September 2002, Northumbria, UK.
Abstract
Many international contractors have entered the Chinese construction market but few of them have been successful in localizing and integrating staff. The cultural differences and local social and business systems have a larger influence on staff behaviour than international contractors expect. In order to become established in the Chinese market, a good understanding of localization issues is essential. This paper presents a profile of Chinese construction managers and professionals. It then goes onto analyse the current strategies for human resource management utilized by international contractors who operate in China, and highlights those that have made effective adaptations to suit Chinese customs and institutional requirements. A two step localization approach is proposed for the future, that is, collaboration between Chinese Design Institutes and international contractors and a more localized approach to recruitment.
| Item Type: | Conference Paper (Paper) |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | Chinese design institute; human resource localization; international contractor |
| Index terms: | localization, human resource, China, human resource management, collaboration, construction manager, construction market, strategy, cultural difference, integration, recruitment, adaptation |
| Subjects: | profession, urban planning, organizational analysis, user focus, management, market analysis, Geography, cross-cultural studies |
| Topics: | Roles and Professions, Human Resources, Design Practice, International Construction, Research Practice, Organizational Design, Business Strategy, Geographical Context, Governance |
| Descriptive scope: | 2 PC |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here