Henley-on-Thames,

There is considerable debate as to the determinants of the HR policies of HRM: do they reflect national institutional or cultural realities, emerging common global practices, parent country effects, or the dual effects of trans-national and national realities? This paper uses an extensive international database to explore these differences, assessing variations in a range of HR practices. It finds new evidence of national differences in the manner in which indigenous firms manage their people, but also evidence of a similarity in practice amongst MNCs. In other words, MNCs tend to manage their human resources in ways that are distinct from those of their host country; at the same time, country of origin effects seem relatively weak. Whilst there is some evidence of common global practices, sufficient diversity in practice persists to suggest that duality theories may provide the most appropriate explanation