Hiring people from across borders and countries is the latest trend in the Human Resources industry. Getting an Indian or a Chinese National to work in the United States is as common as getting an European to work in any of the Asian countries.
However, when you recruit, not in all cases, values of the hired and the hiring Company match. Often conflicts arise and there are issues in terms of culture fitment, lack of motivation and lack of employee engagement, which ultimately leads to unhappiness on both sides.
This is exactly why a HR Manager or [tweetshare tweet=”Recruiter must hire keeping in mind culture fitment, value systems ” username=”#wBN6awAB!H2ZodP!o5m6fuZeH^L8uWl:1:1″] of the employee as well as work culture at the hiring Company.
For instance, if somebody from Asia is used to wearing a Saree to work every day, even a simple factor such as the dress could become a problem when the person is in the US. Similarly, communication in English may be a conflicting factor as well.
So then what must the HR professionals do to ensure culture fitment when they recruit? Here are some suggestions:
- Check with the prospective hire on how comfortable they are relocating to a new country or city. [tweetshare tweet=”Spend time asking them various questions on their family situation ” username=”#wBN6awAB!H2ZodP!o5m6fuZeH^L8uWl:1:1″] and global experience besides knowledge of foreign languages, before you decide to interview or recruit.
- Draft a strong policy for expatriates working in the organization. This should include all factors that would ensure that a person coming from another culture and background feels comfortable and involved in the organization and the job assigned[tweetshare tweet=”Conduct feedback sessions and first impression surveys to understand how expats feel ” username=”#wBN6awAB!H2ZodP!o5m6fuZeH^L8uWl:1:1″].
- Conduct feedback sessions and first impression surveys to understand how expats feel about working in another country. This will clarify how comfortable they find the new work environment.
- Introduce all new joiners, especially if they are from other countries, to all existing department heads and employees and assure them of help whenever they require, in terms of looking out for a home to stay, food to eat, or going out for recreation.
- Make communication in English mandatory for all and ensure that everyone from junior to senior levels follow the norm. This is so that new hires from other countries do not find the local language difficult to understand.
- Take the new joiners out for lunches and dinners and show them around in the new country so that they feel happy about having friends around themselves and for their families respectively.
Overall, it would be appropriate to say that culture fitment is not just to be analyzed when you recruit someone but is a continuous process wherein leaders and HR Managers need to make consistent efforts to make expats feel comfortable.
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