Managing Human Resources in China The View from Inside Multinationals

China is undergoing a dramatic transition from the old to the new as the country integrates into global product and labour markets. Managing Human Resources in China examines the emergence of new and hybrid forms of employment practices within Chinese Multinational Corporations (MNCs) from the perspective of local stakeholders. These include managers, workers and government officials, who take part in strategic planning and policy implementation whilst coping with the pressure of an ever-changing environment. Working in and observing four foreign-invested manufacturing plants located in one of China's new industrial clusters, Yu Zheng offers a fresh perspective on the management of MNCs. The voices of employees have not been heard before, yet they are the critical actors in China's transformation through foreign direct investment. This book explores the pains and gains, achievements and setbacks of managing the Chinese workforce, which is ever pragmatic, increasingly assertive and constantly evolving.

1. Introduction: economic transition, multinational corporations (MNCs) and employment practices at workplace level in China; 2. MNCs and management space: a framework to study subsidiary HRM; 3. Doing case studies with mixed research methods; 4. Multinationals in China: an overview; 5. Household white goods manufacturing plants: targeting an emerging consumer market; 6. Synthetic fibre manufacturing plants: developing a regional production base; 7. Management learning, strategic repositioning and power struggles: dynamics in developing subsidiary HRM; 8. Conclusion.

Based on extensive fieldwork from four foreign-invested manufacturing plants in one of China's new industrial clusters, this book explores human resource management within Chinese Multinational Corporations from an employee perspective. It examines how subsidiary managers implement policies, handle everyday workloads and cope with the pressure of an ever-changing environment.

Yu Zheng is a Lecturer in Asian Business and International Human Resource Management at the School of Management, Royal Holloway, University of London. Her research interests are in international human resource management, cross-country transfer of management practices and comparative employment relations. She is currently a member of the Euro-Asia Management Studies Association.