International human resource management structures and their effect on the Australian subsidiary

This paper examines some aspects of the working experiences of the managing directors of Australian subsidiaries of European, UK and US multinational corporations in a sector of the healthcare industry. The study compares and contrasts the work experiences of two groups of subsidiary managers. One group reports into the multinational’s parent headquarters, while the other group reports into an Asia Pacific regional office. Evidence emerged from the study of a significant difference in the work experiences of the two groups of managers and suggests that a regional structure may not always be the optimal structure for the subsidiary. Key impediments to a successful regional structure seem to be attitudinal, because of cultural and language differences. This finding is in conflict with mainstream international human resource management research that maintains that a regional structure offers efficiency and contributes positively to globalisation through the process of value creation and enhancement. The paper goes on to address the need to provide an effective mechanism for improving the work experience and, in particular, the communication between inpatriate managers and their supervisors.