Author Archives: Warren Heaps

Ten Tips for Managing Employment Contracts

Posted on June 23, 2011 | 6 comments

Guest Author:
Joan Keston –  Keston & Associates, Ltd.

[Editor’s Note:  We are happy to welcome Joan Keston as a Guest Author.  Joan is an experienced attorney and Managing Principal at Keston & Associates, a consulting firm that helps companies achieve a stable international presence by providing a broad range of legal services for international corporate and employment law, and global governance.  She assists public and private companies, NGOs and non-profits, US and foreign entities.]

Employment contracts are a requirement in many countries.  Drafting employment contracts is a blending of the company employment policies and practices, usually based on employment law of the country where the company’s headquarters is located, and the employment/labor law of the country where the employee is working.

Jurisprudence varies greatly among countries, and this will affect basic contract law and corporate law, as well as legal principles.  Layered on top of these differences is employment/labor legislation, an area that is extremely nationalistic and specialized.  The differences are accentuated more so in developing countries.

Managing these contracts is a challenge.  Here are ten best practices to consider: Continue reading →

6 Comments

Posted in Global HR Expertise, International Employment Law

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Special Announcement from Birches Group and Emergence Growth

Posted on June 17, 2011 | 7 comments

Author:
Warren Heaps – Birches Group LLC

This post is a bit of a departure from our normal content, which usually focuses on the “how-to” of international human resources management.  Today we are making an exception to bring you some exciting news.

This week, my company, Birches Group LLC entered into an agreement with Emergence Growth, led by another one of our authors here, Yendor Felgate, to work together to expand our customer base in Africa.  Emergence will become the exclusive agent for our compensation and benefits surveys in Africa, focused on private sector companies that operate across multiple countries.

Continue reading →

7 Comments

Posted in Africa, Compensation, Developing Markets, General, Global HR Expertise, Professional Development

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Global Mobility Policies for the 21st Century

Posted on May 26, 2011 | 8 comments

Author:
Warren Heaps – Birches Group LLC

It’s now almost the middle of 2011, so the 21st century is well underway.  The new realities of global business are upon us:

  • Companies are expanding from developed countries into new, high-growth markets in the developing world in record numbers.
  • Global talent is being snatched up across borders on a regular basis.
  • Companies are sending expats to new locations, and breaking new ground with each assignment.
  • Companies headquartered in developing markets like India, China, Brazil and South Africa, to name a few, are expanding along with multi-nationals from more established markets.
  • Demographic shifts will result in an increasing number of workers being sought from developing countries to replace the ageing workforce in North America and Europe.  In fact, McKinsey predicts that by the year 2040, the largest working-age population in the world will reside in Africa.

So what does this have to do with global mobility?  A lot!

Continue reading →

8 Comments

Posted in Compensation, Expatriate Recruitment, Expatriate Selection, Expatriates, General, Global HR Expertise, Global Mobility Services, International Assignee Recruitment, International Assignee Selection, International Expertise, Repatriation, Talent Management

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2011 Global Talent Index

Posted on May 11, 2011 | 2 comments

Author:
Warren Heaps – Birches Group LLC

The famous “war for talent” lives on.  Or does it? Heidrick and Struggles, the international recruitment firm, together with the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), have just published their 2011 “Global Talent Index” report.  This year, in addition to a report which can be downloaded here, they have provided the resources for blogs and other sites to help spread the word about the report, including videos and interactive tools.

Here is a video introduction to the Global Talent Index from Kevin Kelly, CEO of Heidrick and Struggles:

Continue reading →

2 Comments

Posted in Global HR Expertise, Talent Management

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Benchmarking Regional Roles – What Works?

Posted on April 13, 2011 | 7 comments

Author:
Warren Heaps – Birches Group LLC

More and more companies are consolidating operations into regional centers, using a base in one country to manage businesses in multiple markets. This makes good sense for several reasons:

  • Efficiency – regional offices eliminate duplicate resources and allow organizations to focus on customer-facing positions in smaller markets.
  • Expansion – a regional approach allows for gradual expansion into new markets, permitting “testing of the waters” before entering a market.
  • Local knowledge and expertise – staff in a regional center are usually familiar with more than one of the markets in the region, so can often help bridge market, language and cultural differences.

So regional offices sound like a great model for many companies. But how does a regional role impact compensation? This is a subject of considerable debate amongst compensation professionals. Continue reading →

7 Comments

Posted in Compensation, Developing Markets, Global HR Expertise

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Global Salary Grades or Global Salary Structure?

Posted on March 14, 2011 | 7 comments

Author:
Warren Heaps – Birches Group LLC

Recently a reader posed a question to me:

“My company has expanded into ten new countries and I’m trying to establish a global salary structure.  With all the different exchange rates, I’m finding it difficult to come up with one structure that works everywhere.  Can you give me some advice?”

I provided a short answer to the reader, which I will share here, along with some additional information.  First, though, some clarifying definitions, because I believe there is some confusion with terminology (which provided the name of this post).

Continue reading →

7 Comments

Posted in Compensation, General, Global HR Expertise, International Expertise

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What About Inflation?

Posted on February 28, 2011 | 13 comments


Author:
Warren Heaps – Birches Group LLC

In one of my recent posts, I explained why employers should be careful how they use devaluation as a factor in setting changes to salaries.  One reader sent me a long note describing her dilemma in managing the merit budget approval process for international locations in her company, specifically, how should she take inflation into account?  I realized that my conversation with this reader would probably be of broader interest, so I decided to write this follow-up post.

The fundamental question is:
How should inflation be considered when determining salary increase budgets?

Continue reading →

13 Comments

Posted in Compensation, Global HR Expertise

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Ten Frequently Asked Questions About China’s Labor Law

Posted on February 15, 2011 | 4 comments

Guest Author:
 Aaron Schindel – Partner at Proskauer

Editor’s Note:  This post was compiled by Aaron Schindel, a Partner in the Labor & Employment Law Department and co-head of the International Labor & Employment Group at Proskauer.  His career spans the full range of labor and employment matters for clients ranging from multinational corporations to small not-for-profit organizations, to large and small public sector entities.

The article originally appeared in the Proskauer law firm newsletter “International HR Best Practices Tip of the Month.”

With the explosive growth of the Chinese economy, many companies are opening offices in China. Hiring employees in China requires a detailed understanding of local laws and regulations. Ying Li and Lijuan Hou of Proskauer’s Hong Kong office have compiled this list of ten frequently asked questions about the laws affecting foreign employers opening offices in the People’s Republic of China.

Continue reading →

4 Comments

Posted in Global HR Expertise, International Employment Law

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Managing International Assignees During a Crisis

Posted on February 1, 2011 | 7 comments

Author:
Warren Heaps – Birches Group LLC

With the recent events unfolding in Tunisia, Egypt and elsewhere around the world, a common question we’ve been hearing a lot lately is, “What do we do about the expats we have there?”  The simple answer is that you need  a plan.

In Egypt specifically, the recent events evolved quickly and after more than a week, there are no signs of the crisis abating.   Continue reading →

7 Comments

Posted in Expatriates, Global HR Expertise, Global Mobility Services, International Expertise

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Impact of Devaluation on Local Pay

Posted on January 21, 2011 | 9 comments


Author:
Warren Heaps – Birches Group LLC

Recently, a client posed the following question to me:

“The Ethiopian Birr has devalued recently and management wants to offer an across-the-board increase to our staff there.  Can you offer any guidance?”

The first thing I asked my client was if she was referring to expats or local staff. She confirmed local staff, not expats.  So, I told her if that’s the case, you might want to reconsider such a step.  Why?

Continue reading →

9 Comments

Posted in Compensation, Developing Markets, Global HR Expertise, International Expertise

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