highperformanceworksystempracticesin.doc

HIGH PERFORMANCE WORK SYSTEM PRACTICES IN FOREIGN SUBSIDIARIES OF AMERICAN MULTINATIONALS: A MULTICOUNTRY STUDY John J. Lawler Institute of Industrial and Labor Relations University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign jjlawler@illinois.edu Shyh-jer Chen Institute of Human Resource Management National Sun Yat-Sen University (Taiwan) schen@mail.nsysu.edu.tw Pei-Chuan Wu School of Business National University of Singapore bizwupc@nus.edu.sg Johngseok Bae College of Business Administration Korea University (Seoul) johngbae@korea.ac.kr Bing Bai School of Business University of Redlands bingbai@illinois.edu ? Copyright John J. Lawler et al. 2008 Abstract This study focuses on the utilization of high performance work systems (HPWS) by subsidiaries of American multinational companies (MNCs). It is based on the premise that American MNCs have a preference for HPWS utilization. However, institutional influences at the host-country level may limit the likelihood of HPWS implementation. This study examines HPWS implementation in a sample of subsidiaries across fourteen host countries in Asia, Africa, and Europe. The research provides considerable variability in host-country institutional environments. The model we propose is largely supported in the case of rank-and-file workers, though some anomalies are found in the case of managerial employees. The study of the diffusion of human resource management (HRM) practices across country borders has become increasingly important in international HRM research (Brewster, 2006). Research shows that the transfer of HRM practices from multinational corporations (MNCs) to their foreign subsidiaries may be contingent upon the country-of-origin of the MNC (Lau Ngo, 2001), institutional distances between the local and parent country locations (Gaur, Delios, Singh, 2007), and the institutional pressures embedded in the local environment (Bj?rkman, Fey, Park, 2007). Despite extensive evidence exists abou