Human Resource Management’s Central Issues

Executive Summary

Human Resource Management emphasizes human resource potential through staffing and optimizing skill, talents, and capabilities for the fulfillment of the organization’s objectives. It deals with recruitment, selection, appraisal, policies, and philosophies. HRM enhances these skills and capabilities through training, performance management, and other human development programs for the strategic advancement of the organization.

HRM provides a playing field for the effective management of the staff, to enhance retention and turnover processes, selection of employees that fit with both the organizational strategy and culture, and cost effective utilization of employees through investment in identified human capital. As an outcome, the organization can have an increased performance, enhanced customer and employee satisfaction and shareholder value.

This paper aims to analyze HRM processes for a branch in Abu Dhabi. First, we will provide some literature review on recruitment, selection, staffing, and performance evaluation processes, philosophies and policies of the company for the establishment of a branch in the UAE. After that we will provide of an analysis of the country Abu Dhabi and apply other concepts of HRM on the establishment of a branch in the country.

The objective of HRM is to maximize human resource potentials for the advancement of the organization.

Human resource management is defined as “a strategic and coherent approach to the management of an organization’s most valued assets – the people working there who individually and collectively contribute to the achievement of its objectives” (Armstrong, 2006, p. 3).

“HRM emphasizes that employees are critical to achieving sustainable competitive advantage; that human resources practices need to be integrated with the corporate strategy, and that human resource specialists help organizational controllers to meet both efficiency and equity objectives” (Bratton, 1999, p. 11).

But Storey (1989) believes that HRM can be regarded as a ‘set of interrelated policies with an ideological and philosophical underpinning’. Storey suggests these following aspects that constitute the meaningful version of HRM: it is ‘a particular constellation of beliefs and assumptions; a strategic thrust informing decisions about people management; the central involvement of line managers; and a reliance upon a set of ‘levers’ to shape the employment relationship’ (Armstrong, 2006, p. 4).

There is a concept in HRM known as the traditional approach which focuses on the organization and environmental factors, and wherein almost all activities and events are geared towards the advancement of the business organization. Here the personnel are left behind. The alternative motive known as the contemporary approach focuses on competencies and the employees’ commitment to the organization.

The contemporary approach is more focused on the employees or the workforce. If the employees are happy, the organization progresses too. There is a link between the needs of the employees and the organization. Capabilities, to include talent or skill, of the employees are maximized and linked to the goals of the organization. The contemporary approach is also based on competence of the individual employees which are integrated into the organization. It is also based on the principle that the people are the organization’s greatest asset.

Human Resource Planning serves as the link between the strategic business planning and strategic HRM of the organization. HRP is part of the HRM cycle; thus it cannot be separated from business strategies. HRP specifies recruiting and selection goals, including the number and type of individuals to be employed. It also includes appraisal of performance and productivity. (Gold, 1999, p. 167)

In our study of HRM, we focused on selection and staffing and optimizing skill, talents and capabilities of human resource to respond to the needs of the organization. HRM is maximizing human resource potentials.

Requirements for a good HRM

Job Evaluation and Design Process

“HRM emphasizes that employees are critical to achieving sustainable competitive advantage; that human resources practices need to be integrated with the corporate strategy, and that human resource specialists help organizational controllers to meet both efficiency and equity objectives.” (Bratton, 1999, p. 11)

Human resource planning is concerned with identifying resources to the business needs of the organization. It meets human resource both in quantitative and qualitative approach by answering the questions: how many are needed in the organization and how many are needed for a particular project or business, and what particular skills and capabilities do the people should have? (Armstrong, 2006, p. 363)

Successful staffing means getting the right people on the right spots at the right time. A lofty staffing contributes to the manager’s hoarding people at the expense of the organization. These practices which display the traditional culture of cronyism and parochialism need to be overcome in order for the staffing process to be successful.

After determining the appropriate numbers and types of employees required to meet organizational goals, the next step is to determine where the labor supply should come from. Existing employees can be trained, developed, redeployed, transferred or promoted for future skill needs. New recruits will need to be sought out, attracted and carefully selected to ensure suitability for future positions.

The organization’s objectives play a critical role in the staffing process. Qualifications should play an important role in the selection of the right staff for certain job vacancies.

Specification of the qualifications, identification of persons possessing those skills, and moving people into the jobs should be emphasized in the organization’s staffing strategy (Miller, 1984, p. 58). Management should maintain employee morale and performance in order to nurture customer goodwill and to control costs.

According to Miller (1984, p. 68), ‘Approaching the staffing process from a strategic perspective requires an integrated interpretation of the relationships between the various levels of human resource concerns in the planning process. Identifying and choosing people who will best run the organization and its businesses in the long run requires a broad set of programs and activities required to find those people.’

Recruitment

Recruitment and selection are an integral part of an organization’s overall HRM strategy. HRM emphasizes the integration of traditional personnel functions including recruitment and selection and their management towards the strategic goals and objectives of the organization. (Compton et al., 2009, p. 2)

The method and effective ways of recruitment and selection will determine the kind of human resource the organization will attain. With efficient and effective personnel, the organization will surely outperform its rivals.

Recruitment includes planning. It involves ongoing environmental scanning and an analysis of organizational objectives, strategies and policies in order to ascertain the right quantity and quality of employees when and where necessary. This means forecasting HR needs to ensure that the organization has the right amount of human resources when they require them.

According to Armstrong (2006, p. 363), human resource planning is important to the organization’s achieving its strategic goals. Bulla and Scott (1994, cited in Armstrong, p. 363) define human resource planning as ‘the process for ensuring that the human resource requirements of an organization are identified and plans are made for satisfying those requirements.’

Top management is concerned with identifying and selecting persons capable of implementing the organization’s plans. The CEO should maintain the employee morale and performance, to nurture customer goodwill, and to control costs. The assignment of managers considered to be organizational failures or who are superfluous to oversee the divestment of a business unit has been a common staffing decision when, in fact, the opposite approach should be taken.

With HR planning, the organization can be benefitted with:

• The provision of clear linkages between human resource functions and organizational objectives
• Effective demands on labor markets
• Cost-effective recruitment and selection strategies, and
• Systematic and responsive human resource policies and practices in all areas. (Compton et al., 2009, p. 9)

Plans may be subject to a large number of unpredictable variables (employment levels, demographic aspects, skill variations, economic factors demanding multiple contingency strategies. (Compton et al., 2009, p. 9)

The need for recruitment is determined by forecasting the number of employees needed in the future and making allowance for labor turnover rates during that period. The technique of recruitment as a means of closing supply / demand gaps must be compared for effectiveness with other alternatives, such as increased human resource development, more rapid promotions, automation and (where there is difficulty obtaining suitable employees) the feasibility of reviewing plans to consider whether it is possible to operate without certain employees.

Compton et al. (2009, p. 9) says that when determining recruitment needs, it may be beneficial to use three separate categories of recruits:

• Those needed to account for labor turnover
• Those needed for short-term growth, and
• Those needed for long-term growth of the organization.

Apart from the need to closely link an organization’s recruitment plan with its business strategies, it is also important that the methods chosen to select the best applicants from its attracted labor pool are effectively linked as well. Selection techniques ensure that investments made in job design, advertising, career fairs and other recruitment activities bear fruit in the form of qualified, skilled and well-motivated new employees who will be able and willing to contribute to the objectives of the organization. (Compton et al., 2009, p. 12)

Training and Development

Training and development focuses on the design and implementation of training systems to successfully impact organizational performance. The strategic process begins with identifying the business strategy, and the strategic learning imperatives (strategic training and development goals) to support the strategy are identified. The strategic learning imperatives are then translated into specific training and development activities. These may include formal and informal training.

Training should be carefully planned, designed, and evaluated in support of organizational goals and objectives. Another important aspect is to evaluate whether training helped contribute to the goals of the organization utilizing appropriate metrics. With respect to needs assessment, the emphasis is on aligning training systems with an organization’s business strategy and operating constraints.

This first objective is on managers, so that they can deliver the necessary management techniques to the new employees in Abu Dhabi. The next line of concentration will be on the people or employees. Both managers and employees have to be prepared, and their preparation stem from their basic knowledge of their jobs and the organization, and the multitude of changes that will occur later on as the situation requires. Then the managers will have to adjust likewise, train and change whatever is needed.

Kubr et al., (1989, p. 68) says that “comparison is inherent in the very concept of training and development needs.” This means that in dealing with needs, a comparison is done because two different conditions are present.

“Factors and conditions affecting competence and its applications are being compared in addition to, and in parallel with, competence and performance” (Kubr et al., p. 68).

On the other hand, our organization has worked hard and spent much for the development of our own workforce. We have sent managers and employees abroad and let them be immersed in other cultures and in different work places so they become well-informed, well-trained, and highly motivated. They do the comparison in the process.

Firth (2002, p. 46) says that, “Future success means a capable, committed, diverse and flexible workforce that feels in control of its choices, its time and its life in general. Acquisition of core transferable skills – in particular, good interpersonal communication skills as well as skills in IT – will be key.”

Management should introduce worklife balance. This is because stress can cause ill-health and dysfunctionality. There is enough pressure in the workplace, added with all sorts of pollution.

Firth (2002, p. 46) adds: “The pressures of the new 24-hour society and a long-hours culture creates personal, commercial and social problems … change means unprecedented pressure, and unprecedented opportunity. Everyone needs to develop the skills to balance an increasingly complex set of roles and relationships at work and at play.”

Continuous study and surveys should be conducted in the field. These studies may be done by field personnel themselves, with guidance and direct supervision of the HRM people. Their studies and surveys have to be coordinated well, inputted in the database, and compared with past data and information. Needs assessment and identification of needs have to be carried properly and correctly.

“Pinpointing precise training and development needs in the management ranks may never be as clear-cut as it is in the technical area. But it is a process that can be more rigorous – much more rigorous – than it has been in the past.” (Kubr et al., 1989, p. 2)

This training and development will involve the technical aspect of the job, and they have to be properly assessed. The changes are not ordinary changes that have occurred over time, but new changes in the new atmosphere of high technology. They are new changes for the future of work.

Performance Evaluation Process

Performance management has been introduced in organizations’ HR practices “as a means of providing a more integrated and continuous approach than was provided by previous isolated and often inadequate merit rating or performance appraisal schemes” (Armstrong, 2000, p. 214).

Performance management is a strategic and integrated approach that aims for the success of the organization by improving the performance of the organization’s employees. This is focusing on their capabilities and individual talents that should contribute to the entire performance of the organization. Performance management also aims to provide the means through which the staff involved in such an undertaking can provide better results in such a way that the customer or the community will be benefitted in the end. The organization’s role here is to provide the framework, including planned goals, standards and competence requirements. As a whole, the organization’s function is full support for the entire undertaking to make it a success.

Armstrong (2000, p. 214) stresses that performance is strategic in nature in that it concerns with broader issues of the organization such as its functions and role in the community or environment to which it serves. The four features of integration of performance management are:

1. Vertical integration – this pertains to the organizational set up which links or aligns business team and individual objectives;
2. Functional integration – this links functional strategies; for example in the education set up, it links the organization’s role with that of the individual employee in delivering education to the masses.
3. HR integration – this links the different aspects of HRM to the individual’s development.
4. The last is integrating individual needs to the organization. (Armstrong, 2000, p. 214-215)

The concept of performance management focuses on the role of employees and people within the organization and how to deliver better results to the community or customers to whom the organization serves.

“It involves the development of processes for establishing shared understanding about what is to be achieved and an approach to managing and developing people in a way that increases the probability that it will be achieved in the short and longer term. It is owned and driven by line management.” (Armstrong, 2000, p. 215)

Performance management strategy is concerned with:

1. performance improvement in order to achieve organizational team and individual effectiveness. Organizations, as stated by Lawson (1995, cited in Armstrong, 2000, p. 215) have ‘to get the right things done successfully’.
2. employee development because performance improvement is not achievable unless there are effective processes of continuous development. This addresses the core competences of the organization and the capabilities of individuals and teams. Performance management should really be called ‘performance and development management’. (Armstrong, 2000, p. 215)
3. satisfying the needs and expectations of everyone in the organization including the owners, management, employees, customers, suppliers and the general public. Performance management treats employees as equal partners whose interests are respected and who have a voice on matters that concern them, whose opinions are sought and listened to. Performance management should respect the needs of individuals and teams as well as those of the organization.
4. communication and involvement wherein a continuing dialogue between managers and the members of their teams take place to define expectations and share information on the organization’s mission, values and objectives (Armstrong, 2000, p. 215).

Performance management also focuses on targets, standards and performance measures or indicators. But it is also concerned with inputs – the knowledge, skills and competencies required to produce the expected results. It is by defining these input requirements and assessing the extent to which the expected levels of performance have been achieve by using skills and competencies effectively, that developmental needs are identified. (Armstrong, 2000, p. 220)

The areas of concern related to selection methods are: reliability, validity and legality.

1. Reliability – refers to the degree to which interviews, tests and other selection procedures produce comparable data over a period of time and the degree to which two or more methods produce similar results or are consistent. Reliability is even more important in qualitative (i.e. words) work than in quantitative (i.e. numbers) work because words are open to interpretation and there is a higher risk of error due to subjectivity.
2. Validity – refers to the extent to which something measures what it claims to measure.
3. Legality – a selection method should also be assessed against current employment legislation, particularly to employment opportunities legislation. (p. 287)

Getting the Right People in Abu Dhabi

In line with the principle of getting the right people on the right spots at the right time, the branch in Abu Dhabi will recruit the best possible candidates to fill up employee vacancies, middle managers and staff.

The process of recruitment will be systematic and well planned: a representative from the main headquarters in the United States will be sent to act as a Hiring Manager; she/he will have several assistants who are Abu Dhabi native born who will act as interpreters and assist in the recruitment process.

Appraising individual employees is one aspect of needs assessment. Beaumont (1993, p. 74) argued that “the grounds (i.e. criteria) on which an employee is appraised should reflect the larger competitive strategy of the organization”.

Indeed, it would certainly reflect on the organization’s strategic development. Beaumont (1993) further states that some of the leading advocates of Total Quality Management are highly critical of performance appraisals based on individual employees. Line managers appraise their employees and in turn, they are being appraised by their own superiors.

One of the primary objectives of employee appraisal is to improve the performance of the employee. Some other benefits can also be gleaned from employee appraisal, according to Beaumont, such as generation of information for human resource planning, and communication and understanding between employees and supervision.

Originally appraisal schemes tended to concentrate mainly on personal traits, but now the focus is on job results.

According to Cray & Mallory (1998, p. 120), “One of the functions of HRM most susceptible to cultural influence – and therefore most likely to arouse resentment when those influences are ignored – is performance appraisal.”

The authors are referring to international organizations. This is so because with the continuing expansion of global organizations and the concomitant demand for experienced international managers, the accurate assessment of managers and potential managers outside the home country has become an important HRM function. Studying or appraising employees varies from culture to culture.

On the subject of appraisal format, Beaumont (1993) states that there are three basic schools or categories of format, and they are:

1. “Norm-referenced formats – individual employees being evaluated in relation to other employees;
2. “Behaviorally based formats which evaluate individuals by reference to behavioral criteria;
3. “Output-based measures, where the product(s) of the job is the reference point”. (Beaumont, 1993, p. 77)

Performance standards may be in line with employee appraisal but this is more on determining the results of the many programs of the organization. Performance standards are used “to describe the results that the organization expects employees to produce for each function included in a job description” (Bogardus, 2004, p. 197).

Job descriptions are vital in determining functions of employees. They point to each and every job in the organization. In line with performance, there are job objectives which use job description as the preferred method of communicating job duties and responsibilities to employees.

In other words, for standard HRM, companies use job descriptions to tell their employees what they expect of them in their assigned jobs.

Employees should be flexible and not just be focused on his/her own job description. Job descriptions therefore have to be broadened considering the broad areas of technology and the concept of globalization. Employees’ jobs are widened in the present set-up of the workplace, so do job descriptions, which have to be changed in meaning and concept. Objectives of job performance and description go along together and have to be taken into consideration.

The Environment in Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi is the capital of the United Arab Emirates in the Middle East with a conventional hereditary system. The head of state is the Emir who rules in accordance with the modified provisional constitution, the Emir decrees laws. It has attracted investors and has been converted into a tourist destination.

The culture of a country is an important aspect in HRM functions. Establishing a branch in Abu Dhabi requires a study on the country and the culture of the people to whom HRM functions will focus on. The branch office will create a culture by itself aside from the existing culture of the country.

A study by Hofstede (1983) revealed that certain characteristics of national culture are associated with economic growth. Applying this on the particular culture and economic growth of Abu Dhabi, we can say that its national culture and economic growth reflect on its history and the characteristics of the Abu Dhabi people.

While it is not for this paper to dig deeper on the history and psyche or national character of the people, it is enough to state a little of the country. Abu Dhabi is a predominantly Muslim country, their national values allow them to carry on as a people, at the same time they have their allegiance to a royal family. The government encourages foreign investment, and it has transformed the country into a tourist destination. There is no perceived labor movement. As a whole, the environment in Abu Dhabi is conducive to foreign investment and the establishment of a business retail outlet.

Cultural influences

Hofstede (1984, cited in Mead, 2005, p. 8) defines culture as “the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes the members of one human group from another … [and] includes systems of values; and values are among the building blocks of culture”.

The values of the particular group of people are one form of influence on the organizational culture. According to Mead (2005, p. 8), “culture is particular to one group and not others; culture is learned, and is not innate; it is passed down from one generation to the next; and that culture includes systems of values.”

Hofstede (1993) saw the distinction between two cultures present in this situation; two cultural systems are essentially separate. The national culture is derived from early socialization, while the corporate or organizational culture springs from specific organizational culture mainly through the nationality of the founder.

Cultural differences are a key factor to globalization. In Abu Dhabi, national values are more pronounced in the way people dress, talk, act socially, and in their religious ways. Cultural influences are a major concern.

The employees will be sourced from the general population, while some will come from expatriates. Senior staff and other managerial jobs will come from the United States, the country of origin.

Cross-cultural concerns are inevitable. This makes additional demands on the skills of the managers in handling employees of different orientation and culture. However, it is worth mentioning here that there is an American community with a school in Abu Dhabi.

HR managers working in an international environment are obviously subject to the impact of multi-country, regional and global change and dynamism than managers in a single-country operation (Harris et al., 2003). Different countries do have different values which affect the way people organize, conduct and manage work.

The HR manager has to be aware of the cultural differences. He/she is faced with interpreting the actions and attitudes of the employees, negotiate with groups that have not only different goals but different methods of reaching to the company and different expectations of the other employees’ behavior. Moreover, other normal HR activities such as recruitment and selection, training and development, reward and performance appraisal, may all be affected by cultural values and practices in the host country. In other words, the adoption of policies for HR should be given careful study.

Selection of Senior Staff

The main office has to decide which principle the branch office, or other branch offices throughout the world, will have to follow.

Harzing (2004) provides with three types of orientations for multinational corporations (MNCs). These international orientations are ethnocentric, polycentric and geocentric.

1. MNCs with the ethnocentric staffing policy would appoint parent country nationals (PNC) to top positions at their subsidiaries. In other words, if our head office or parent country is the United States, top positions in Qatar will be occupied by U.S. nationals.
2. MNCs which follow a polycentric staff would appoint host country nationals (HCN) or Qatari citizens.
3. Firms with a geocentric staffing policy would simply appoint the best person, regardless of nationals of a country other than the MNC’s home country which is the U.S. or the country Qatar. They are called third country nationals (TCN).

Another staffing procedure is known as the regiocentric (Heenan and Perlmutter, 1979, cited in Harzing, 2004) in which managers are moved on a regional basis and often forms a mid-way station between a pure polycentric/ethnocentric approach and a truly geocentric approach.

Managers are often transferred from one country to another, and this is called expatriation.

A recent study (Harzing 2004) provides a detailed information on the relative use of PCNs for the managing director position in foreign subsidiaries. This is important in formulating policies for the branch office in Abu Dhabi.

It says that 40.8% of the subsidiaries had a PCN as managing director. Subsidiaries of Japanese prefer PCN as managing director than are subsidiaries of European MNCs. Percentages of PCNs in subsidiaries of European MNCs differ considerably across various countries. The highest percentage of PCNs can be found in Latin America, Africa, Asia and the Middle East. It is therefore recommended that the PCN principle be applied on Abu Dhabi. In this set up, top positions will be occupied by managers coming from the host country.

The problem of integration

One of the key issues for managers in international organizations is the problem of integrating employees from several cultures. At one level the problem is the familiar one of overcoming value and behavioural differences that arise when employees from different cultures must work together. (Cray & Mallory, 1998, p. 7)

The senior manager and staff may face the problem of integration as the manager comes from the United States and the middle- and lower-level managers and staffs are Abu Dhabi nationals. This becomes more pressing as the organization is more geographically diverse and culturally complex. This requires a higher level of integration to make culturally induced problems more noticeable. When organizations adapt systems to increase integration other complications arise.

In this case, the senior managers and staff should know how to be flexible in answering to the needs of the middle- and lower-level staffs of the organization. The branch office should be designed to accommodate different levels of tolerance for ambiguity and complexity.

The problem of integration across geographic distance and cultural diversity is one that can be expected to become more prominent and more intricate as organizations grow to reflect the larger number of countries with developed markets (Cray & Mallory, 1998, p. 8).

Training and motivation of employees

Pressing issues on culture can be addressed, although partly, with training and motivation of employees. The management and employees have to work together, and the management should know how to work it out with employees of a different culture. Creating and maintaining a well-motivated salesforce is a challenging task. The confidence and motivation of the salespeople are being constantly worn down by the inevitable rejections they suffer from customers.

Employees should be trained in the art of selling with motivation. An understanding of motivation lies in the relationship between needs, drives and goals. The basic process involves needs which set drives in motion (deprivations with direction) to accomplish goals.

Motivation has been researched by psychologists and others for many years. A number of theories have evolved for motivating sales people and employees in the workplace. These are the theories of Maslow (1943), Herzberg et al, (1959), Vroom (1964), Adams (1965) and Likert (1961).

Cultural aspects should be properly addressed. The culture of the inhabitants of the area has to be taken into consideration, including fashion, language, and way of life. The employees should receive on-the-job training, to include the necessary motivation, constructive criticism, and other aspects in line with their cultural values. Some selling approaches may not be applicable in certain cultures. For example, problem solving techniques may not be suitable for the Abu Dhabi nationals and salespeople but are applicable in the United States. A careful study of the way of life should be incorporated in the training module. Furthermore, care needs to be exercised when translating sales manuals into the local language.

Training must include product knowledge and an appreciation of the company, its history and philosophies. For expatriates, language training may be required and familiarity with the business etiquette. Often initial on-the-job training is with an experienced expatriate. Training in the language, lifestyle and culture of the people should include the employees’ spouse and children to reduce early burnout.

The four classic stages to learning a skill are:

1. Unconsciously unable – trainee does nothing about skills.
2. Consciously unable – Trainee reads about skills but cannot carry them out in practice.
3. Consciously able – Trainee knows what to do and is reasonably proficient in individual skills but has difficulty putting them all into practice together.
4. Unconsciously able – Trainee can perform the task without thinking about it; skills become automatic. (Jobber and Lancaster, 2003)

A successful training programme takes the trainee through the difficult barrier to the final stage when he or she can perform all of the skills at once and has the ability to think a stage in advance so that the trainee has control of the selling situation. The manager should be able to integrate himself/herself, and the values and training methods should have been inculcated in the minds of the trainees.

The training programme should cover a combination of knowledge and skill development. There are five components:

1. The company – objectives, policies and organisation.
2. Its products.
3. Its competitors and their products.
4. Selling procedure and techniques.
5. Work organization and report preparation

The first three components are essentially communicating the required level of knowledge to the salesperson. This will probably include a brief history of the company, how it has grown and where it intends to go in the future. Policies relevant to the selling function, for example how salespeople are evaluated, and the nature of the compensation system will be explained. The way in which the company is organized will be described and the relationship between sales and the marketing function, including advertising and market research, will be described so that the salesperson has an appreciation of the support he or she is receiving from headquarters.

Product knowledge includes a description of how the products are made and the implications for product quality and reliability, the features of the product and the benefits they confer on the consumer. Salespeople will be encouraged to carry out their own product analyses so that they are able to identify key features and benefits of new products as they are launched. Competitors will be identified and competitors’ products will also be analysed to spotlight differences between them and the company’s products.

Other features of the training programme – work organization and report writing – include establishing good habits among the trainees in areas which, because of day-to-day pressures, may be neglected.

Methods of training includes lecture, films or vides, role playing, case studies, in-the-field training. The lecture method is useful in giving information and providing a frame of reference to aid the learning process. This should be supported by the use of visual aids, for example professionally produced overhead projectors and other Information Technology materials.

Other methods include role-playing that allows the trainees into the stage of being consciously able to perform a skill. The trainee can learn by his or her own successes and failures in a buyer-seller situation. Feedback is provided by other group members, the sales trainer and by audio-visual means. Seeing oneself perform is an enlightening and rewarding experience and can demonstrate to the trainee the points raised by other members of the group.

Field training is necessary for the employees, especially those who are in charge in selling, and for company and its managers as well. It allows them to:

• analyse each salesperson’s performance
• identify strengths and weaknesses
• gain agreement with the salesperson that a weakness exists
• teach the salesperson how to overcome the weaknesses
• monitor progress to check that an improvement has been realized. (Jobber & Lancaster, 2003)

Career Planning and Development Processes

Managers should have a formidable set of skills in order to perform their jobs efficiently, including teaching skills, analytical skills, ability to motivate others, communication skills, and the ability to organize and plan.

Managers and employees can work their way up the ladder in the organization. Changing jobs and companies every year is becoming more common, but with the proper benefits, salary, and motivation, our own work force can make a career in a branch in Abu Dhabi. Some benefits will include taking the employees’ family with them, build their home, and their children can study there. The environment in Abu Dhabi entices expatriates to work and build their career in the country.

Appropriate compensation for health and insurance should be afforded on the employees. Compensation in case of accidents in the course of the performance of employee duties should also be afforded, all in accordance with the laws of Abu Dhabi.

There are a lot of factors in the global environment of business. Expansion of a certain retail store to enter into another competitive aspect of business requires careful planning and strategic moves. Such factors include cultural considerations and other internal and external factors that the organization should tackle about.

A well-trained management staff should handle the Abu Dhabi retail branch taking into consideration all the internal and external environments discussed in this paper.

References

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