Globalization tends to “change the nature and behavior of firms that engage in large-scale international co-ordination and control, which in turn could transform the characteristics of their home business system” (Edwards and Rees 18). According to Patrickson and Hartmann, Australia has been adopting European and American managerial guidelines and elements of organizational culture, even though the country “sees itself as a part of the Asian economic network” (200). This involvement in global managerial tendencies can be illustrated by the adoption of the Fair Work Act in 2009 which demonstrates the acknowledging of diversity ideas significance in Australia (Kramar and Syed 13). At the same time, notable figures in Australian management (for example, Elton Mayo) and the activities of Australian organizations contribute to the development of managerial science and job worldwide (Wright 60). As globalization offers opportunities for sharing experience and ideas, Australia is involved in this process which is unlikely to end soon.
Increasing Global Competition
From the point of view of economics, globalization presupposes a “more complex and interrelated transnational economic system” (Gerber 276). This poses new challenges for any business. In order to ensure the flexibility and competitiveness of a company, managers need to create and maintain their culture, identity, and reputations while encouraging employee integrity (Abratt and Kleyn 1048-1053).
Increasing Workforce Diversity
According to Patrickson and Hartmann, the Australian workforce is diverse from the point of view of gender and ethnicity since the country embraces migrants or children of migrants from over 160 countries (199). Besides, diversity resulting from other factors (for example, religious ones) should be taken into account. With the tendency of diversity to increase, it appears that managerial characteristics should include open-mindedness along with the skills of conflict prevention and management.
Workforce Ageing
With the increase of life expectancy and the decline in fertility rate, not only Australia but the world in general faces the problem of the aging workforce (Kulik and George 929). This poses new challenges for managers as they seek to avoid age discrimination in the process of hiring and at the workplace. Apart from that, attention should be paid to retraining elderly workers.
Works Cited
Abratt, Russell, and Nicola Kleyn. ‘Corporate Identity, Corporate Branding, and Corporate Reputations’. European Journal of Marketing 46.7/8 (2012): 1048-1063. Web.
Edwards, Tony, and Chris Rees. International Human Resource Management. Harlow, UK: Financial Times Prentice Hall, 2006. Print.
Gerber, David J. Global Competition. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2012. Print.
Kramar, Robin, and Jawad Syed. Human Resource Management In A Global Context. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan, 2012. Print.
Kulik, Carol, and Gerard George. ‘Aging Populations And Management’. Academy of Management Journal 57.4 (2014): 929-935. Web.
Patrickson, Margaret, and Linley Hartmann. ‘Human Resource Management In Australia ‐ Prospects For The Twenty‐First Century’. International Journal of Manpower 22.3 (2001): 198-206. Web.
Wright, Christopher. ‘Human Resource Management In Australia’. Human Resource Management In A Global Context. Ed. Bruce E. Kaufman. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishing, 2014. 46-66. Print.