Globalisation and workforce diversity: HRM implications for multinational corporations in Singapore

This paper presents findings based on a study involving local and foreign medium- to large-sized multinational corporations (MNCs) in Singapore. The findings highlight the connection between the stages of organisational development, headquarters-subsidiary orientation, and increasing workforce diversity in MNCs, as the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) economies develop the regional human capacity as part of an economic and social imperative in response to globalisation. This paper introduces a new conceptual framework-construct domain of diversity-to identify the nature of the labour market, and discusses the need for firms to align company policies, strategies, and organisational structures with the dynamic business environment. A significant implication is the impact on strategic international human resources management for MNCs in the Asia Pacific region. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]