International Human Resource Management and Employment Relations

Convenor: Dr. Rebecca Gumbrell-McCormick
Assessment: based on one piece of coursework of around 2,500 words, worth 25% of the total mark, and one exam worth 75% of the total mark. The coursework deadline is 27th March 2012 (Absolute Cut-Off deadline – 17th April 2012).

Aims

This is a central module on the new MSc degree programme in HRM. It covers the theory and practice of employment relations and human resource management at the international level, working with other cultures and values, the practice of HRM in multi-national firms, and international regulation and governance. It will include the input of practitioners in MNCs in order to provide insight into international employment relations and HRM in practice. The material is an essential component in the programme as a whole.

Learning objectives

By the end of this module, students will be able:

• To understand the theory and practice in the study of international employment relations and human resource management.
• To be familiar with employment relations and HRM approaches in a number of countries and to understand their similarities and differences.
• To have a better grasp of the specific issues involved in working with people from other cultures and countries.
• To understand the specific issues involved in employment relations and HRM in multi-national firms, including recruitment and selection, training and development, and reward.

Main Text and Background Reading

There is no single set text for the course as a whole. Instead, we rely on a variety of readings from books and journals, and sometimes other sources, which will be available for download from Blackboard. For background reading, students are advised to consult Harzing, A-W and Pinnington, A H (2011) International Human Resource Management, 3rd edition, London: Sage.