Introduction
Talent management encompasses the processes of identifying the best human capital that can go a long way in improving performance outcomes of an organization (Collings & Mellahi, 2009). Effective talent management ensures that the products of a company are produced and sold, resulting in excellent outcomes (huge profits) (Tarique & Schuler, 2010).
In this context, my firm would require hiring the best sales representatives to market its hybrid scooter, which has an appeal to both women and men of all ages. Already, the product is being advertised through television and other media. This paper aims at making a recommendation to the management of my organization with respect to the analysis of various economic opportunities in the UK and China.
Comparison of the UK and Chinese markets
Employee skills are essential to achieving the goals of my firm. Some of the skills that would be required for the position of a salesperson would be the ability to work in a team, analyze market data, obtain and process information, communicate verbally with leaders and consumers, make strategic decisions, and solve problems. The UK and China would support the employee skill sets necessary for industry differently.
This is due to the fact that the two nations have varied cultural dimensions, which can be assessed using the Hofstede’s model. The UK has lower levels of power distance than China, whose many citizens believe that power within organizations is distributed unequally. With respect to individualism, China is ranked lower than the UK, implying that many workers in Chinese firms do not embrace individualism when performing their duties.
Regarding masculinity, the two nations have almost the same score. However, persons in the UK have relatively high levels of the desire to compete and achieve their goals. Chinese citizens have higher levels of caring for others (feminine). In terms of uncertainty avoidance, China has a higher score than the UK. This implies that Chinese people are more concerned about what will happen in the future.
In an attempt to identify the nation that would support the employee skill sets, it is also crucial to consider demographics. Based on global statistics, China is the most populous country in the world. Due to the country’s large population, the government came up with a policy to reduce the number of children in families (Zhou, 2008). From an analytical perspective, China has more workers than the UK, but education levels of the workforce may be different from that of the UK (Zhou, 2008).
The economy of China is improving at higher rates than that of the UK. In fact, it is expected that China will be the next world superpower. Currently, the number of unemployed people in the UK is 6%, while that in China is 4.14%. Regarding literacy levels, the UK has a higher percentage of citizens who have attained university postgraduate degrees than China. However, the number could be bigger in China due to its larger population (Zhou, 2008).
The demographic factors that are addressed above would greatly impact the recruitment in the host countries. For example, the firm would receive more job applications from Chinese candidates. This could be attributed to the larger population in the nation in comparison with the UK. It appears that the larger populace of China would affect other factors, such as the age of applicants and their literacy levels.
Overall, the firm would have a wider base of talent from which to identify the best candidate for marketing the hybrid scooter product in the nation. If a Chinese salesperson will be selected from China, then he or she will have excellent communication skills and the ability to work in teams, which will go a long way in achieving the goals of my organization. Based on the fact that market numbers are critical in determining the sales of firms, it is important to select China, and recruit a salesperson from there.
In fact, according to the above analysis, China is more likely to have an employee base with the skill sets necessary for my firm. The economic market of the product will be better in the country selected in this paper on the grounds that a larger populace will correlate with expenses of citizens in relation to purchasing non-essential goods, such as hybrid scooters.
For a better illustration, in 2013, the UK had a GDP of 2.521 trillion USD, while China had a GDP of 9.24 trillion USD (Vitell & Patwardhan, 2008). Although the inflation rate in China is 1.6%, while that in the UK is 1.4%, the firm should adopt strategies to cushion from the negative impacts of high rates of price increases.
Conclusion
In conclusion, talent management with respect to launching the hybrid scooter product is necessary. The analysis conducted in this paper has demonstrated that the two nations have different demographics and organizational cultures, which impact performances of business establishments. It is recommended that the management should consider recruiting a salesperson from China and launch the product there to achieve better sales results than would be realized in the UK.
References
Collings, D. G., & Mellahi, K. (2009). Strategic talent management: A review and research agenda. Human Resource Management Review, 19(4), 304-313.
Tarique, I., & Schuler, R. S. (2010). Global talent management: Literature review, integrative framework, and suggestions for further research. Journal of world business, 45(2), 122-133.
Vitell, S. J., & Patwardhan, A. (2008). The role of moral intensity and moral philosophy in ethical decision making: a cross‐cultural comparison of China and the European Union. Business Ethics: A European Review, 17(2), 196-209.
Zhou, X. (2008). Cultural Dimensions and Framing the Internet in China A Cross-Cultural Study of Newspapers’ Coverage in Hong Kong, Singapore, the US and the UK. International Communication Gazette, 70(2), 117-136.