Now I will talk about managing human resources across culture.

Human resource management (HRM) emerged more than two decades ago in the context of the American labour market and is regarded, by many, as an American management tool. As we know, there are one world two minds, there are some differences between western countries and eastern countries. Today I will focus on the Peoples Republic of China and The Netherlands to show the impact of different cultures on work values. I think most Chinese people are familiar with the notion of the iron rice-bowl that is where people work for the same company for most of their lives and that company assumes responsibility for their health, social, housing and other needs over the course of their working life. This situation persists even today, as Chinese state-owned enterprises still employ the majority of Chinese workers who account for the largest part of the gross national product. The Chinese state-controlled industrial context is in direct contrast to the Netherlands. The Netherlands are a small western country that provided the origin for some of the worlds leading companies. In that country there is industrial democracy that emphasizes management through participation and collaboration with the workers. This is fundamentally different to the Chinese context where industry is centralized and controlled by the state. The workers have very little input into decision-making processes. We need to ask the question of how these different Chinese and Western perspectives affect work values. I need two volunteers from the audience for a role play one of you is going to be a Chinese worker, and the other of you is going to be a Western worker. Chinese worker My name is Lee Hon. I am 45 and have worked for the Hong Hai Technology Company for the last twenty years. I live in a company house and my family go to a company doctor. I do not have to make decisions because the company tell me what to do. I expect to stay with this company for the rest of my working life provided I do what I am told and follow the rules. Western worker My name is Bob Jones. I used to work on the production line in a factory but I saw that I could earn more money working in my own business. I own my own house and my income depends on how hard I work. I attend union meetings, and fight for workers rights. I expect to have many jobs during my working life provided I work hard and keep my skills up. So there we have it. The typical Chinese workplace is characterized by rules and is discipline-oriented, with the expectation that the worker will not challenge the company, A regular job with a stable income and low unemployment risk because you

work for state-owned enterprises. However, it is boring with little chance of change for the average worker. This contrasts with the typical Western workplace where workers still follow rules but have the right to challenge poor management decisions. Increased pay and career development are the expectation of workers who put in effort. But the risk of unemployment is higher. Now I would like to hand over to Angela who will discuss how national culture influences work values.