Transfer of HRM practices in French multinational companies: the case of French subsidiaries in China

Our research investigates the transfer of home country human resource management (HRM) practices to their overseas subsidiaries. We seek to figure out how three levels of factors (country, organisation and individual) from a host country affect the international transfer process. We identify the effects of culture, institutional interactions, entry modes and expatriates on this transfer. Based on a detailed case study of eight French multinational companies in China, we explain how the transfer of HRM practices is realised. Our empirical findings indicate that French subsidiaries tend to adopt the parent company's HRM practices to a considerable extent. Instead of focussing on cultural differences, the main contraints to the successful transfer of HRM practices are institutional interactions and entry modes. Additionally, we identify the role of expatriates in the transfer process.