Multicultural Workforce Establishing an Overseas Term Paper

Outsourced employees should be limited to filling non-critical areas of need. They should be used to alleviate the load on regular employees, rather than to replace them. They will fill in non-essential positions, leaving full-time employees to fill the more sensitive security roles.

Strategic planning will be an ongoing process, rather than a single event that is a part of the initial phases of the process. Security issues are constantly emerging and evolving. In order to remain an effective deterrent to harm, one must stay informed and keep one's staff informed of the changes that occur. An informed staff will be the most effective in spotting and reporting threats before they become problematic. The strategic security plan will be one of continuous monitoring and improvement. Security audits will be a part of this strategic planning cycle. Training and regular staff briefing will round out the security planning sessions.

Leadership

Leadership for this project will have a difficult task. They must be well-versed in the cultural aspects of the team. They must be able to look at the team and be able to determine their strengths and weaknesses. The most important job that leadership will have in to unify a diverse group of individuals. They must be able to resolve complex cultural conflicts and teach an atmosphere of tolerance. It will take a special person to effectively unify the team, while at the same time, do so without destroying the strengths of the individual. The core competencies should focus on building competencies in cultural diversity.

Leadership must be able to empower the security team. It must also be able to empower the workers, such that they are confident in their abilities to evaluate a potential situation and to take appropriate action. Leadership will have the difficult task of brining together two cultures and two worlds for a united purpose. The optimal security situation is when all of the employees feel that they are a part of the process. They must feel that they have some type of ownership in keeping the site safe. They must feel that they are a part of it and that it is not just someone else's responsibility. They must play an active role in security, rather than being a recipient of the services. The leader that can inspire the type of culture where everyone has a role to play will create the most effective security force.

One of the most difficult challenges that leadership will face is bringing together two sets of differing values among the security force and the workers themselves. The leadership must be committed to the concept that diversity is an asset to the team, rather than a liability. Often Asian values conflict with western values. This may prove to be a stumbling block that management must overcome. Leadership will play an important role in setting the tone regarding cultural diversity issues. They must make certain that lines of communication are open between both the Vietnamese and U.S. employees. The successful leader will be able to highlight common ground, rather than the differences between the two cultural groups. At times, leadership on this project may have to step in as a negotiator to mediate cultural conflict.

The last topic that leadership will have to discuss is that of loyalty. Both Vietnamese and U.S. security personnel will have a considerable are likely to have strong emotional ties to their country of origin. Both are committed to protecting their fellow countrymen. The Vietnamese and American members of the security force must overcome this protective attitude if they are to confront the issues that are common to everyone at this facility. They must see their job as one with a singular common goal, rather than focusing on each group protecting their own interests. Promoting a feeling of loyalty to the company will be one of the most difficult tasks that the leadership faces.

Organizing the Security Group

Staffing will be accomplished through an advertisements in Vietnam and in the United States. Rather than hiring traditional employees, the staff will consist of independent contractors as well as regular employees. This will reduce costs, as independent contractors are not entitled to benefits. A competitive wage will be offered to all levels of staff. This will increase the likelihood that they will remain loyal to the company. Independent contractors have more freedom to come and go as they please. This can be problematic in the security industry. Experience plays a valuable role in security related issues. A continuous staff is one of the most valuable assets.Therefore, although independent contractors are less expensive than regular employees, due a lack of expense related to benefits, they are also more risky from a security perspective.

Setting objectives will be a primary part of the strategic planning process. In the security industry, there is no such thing as good enough. Terrorists have an increasing level of technology at their disposal and security companies must continually improve in order to keep up. Just one incident is one incident too many. Therefore, objectives should ultimately strive for the highest level of security possible. However, it is important to coordinate these objectives with the manufacturing facility to make certain that they do not interfere with their objectives.

Resourcing of supplies and materials will occur on the local level. This is largely due to the expense involved in import. However, it will also help to build local relations through showing support of the local community. Resourcing will be financed by the manufacturing facility and will not be included as a part of the contract price. Leadership will be responsible for assigning tasks and monitoring the performance of the staff.

Termination Policies

Disciplinary policies and termination policies will have to comply with both U.S. And Vietnamese laws. U.S. policies, in general are more developed than those in Vietnam. However, as U.S. companies move operations to Vietnam, they are beginning to have an influence on Vietnamese policies. Vietnamese policies are beginning more closely to resemble policies in the U.S. ("Vietnamese Co.'s Realise HR Importance," 2006).

Policies in the U.S. vary from state to state, but in general they are relatively homogeneous. The home state in the U.S. will determine the prevailing laws for the security company. However, they will also have to reflect a recognition of local rules and customs regarding termination. Before the introduction of foreign companies into the Vietnamese business landscape, there were few formal laws regarding termination policies. Companies were free to set their own policies, which led to inconsistencies in the policies. However, the introduction of increasing foreign businesses has meant the need to construct more uniform national policies. These policies will have to be researched thoroughly before formal policies can be set in place. Economic reform and the need to compete in an open market make it necessary to emphasize flexibility and competitiveness in Vietnamese Human Resources policies (Zhu, 2005).

Personnel Management Philosophy

One of the key challenges that any manager faces is how to motivate employees. Those in the security industry must be particularly wary of employees that are not motivated. A lack of motivation can result in complacency, which can then result in a security risk. Employees must be willing to perform them job to the best of their abilities every day. The old paradigm treated employees as machines. It concentrated on the human as a resource, rather than concentrating on them as an individual. There has been a slow realization in human resources that the human side of the employee must be nurtured in order to achieve their maximum peak performance level.

Human resources are the only asset that do not depreciate over time (M.Felix.C., 2006). The most recent trend is to attempt to bridge the gap between training of personnel and the ability to motivate personnel (M.Felix.C., 2006). In the past, employees were viewed only in terms of production and profits. Every human was treated as a unit and was accountable for meeting their production goals. As long as the person produced, they could continue working. They only had to worry if their production fell. However, now human resources are treated as a valuable asset that can help the organization accomplish its long-term goals.

Abraham Maslow developed the theory of the Hierarchy of Needs. This theory was proposed in his 1943 paper a Theory of Human Motivation. Maslow's theory centered around the concept that humans are motivated by fulfilling their needs. These needs are organized into a hierarchy that begins with the most basic needs to keep one alive (Boeree, 2006). According to the theory, unsatisfied people do not produce satisfactory performance. Employees whose needs are met beyond those necessary for basic subsistence are more likely to have increased loyalty and will have a greater sense of belonging to the organization (Boeree, 2006).

The management system at the new security company will rely heavily on creating an environment where employees feel motivated to do their job to the best of their….....