Reference no: EM133031883
Schlumberger Profits from Geocentric Staffing
Schlumberger is one of the world's largest oilfield service companies. The firm offers a complete range of oil and gas service, including engineering, construction and project management. Schlumberger has more than 70,000 employees, does business around the world and earns more than USD4 billion in profits annually. But the firm is facing difficulties in attracting and keeping the right people which is a fundamental human resource management issue.
Schlumberger and other large companies in energy related industries depend heavily on a steady inflow of new employees. But an aging workforce and an unevenly distributed supply of talent continues to create challenges. For example, there is a significant shortage of geosciences and petroleum engineering students in North America and the Middle East - the very region where more people are needed.
More than 40 years ago Schlumberger adopted an aggressive and innovative human resource strategy that is based on diversity and partnership with colleges and universities. As a result, the firm has hired people in every country it operates in. In addition, it took a geocentric approach to all its global assignments, hiring the best people regardless of where they are from and moving them to work assignments that are mutually beneficial regardless of the location of those assignments. Schlumberger also established a long- term emphasis on hiring and developing women engineers.
As a result of these efforts, Schlumberger has maintained a human resource advantage over many of its key competitors. But these same competitors have also shown creativity too and have also taken a more global and integrated approach to human resource management. Among other things, other firms in the industry often look to current Schlumberger employees when they need to recruit experienced people.
To maintain the competitive advantages Schlumberger gets from its workforce, the firm continues to develop and implement new systems, policies and practices to retain the strong workforce it has attracted. For example, a rigorous and comprehensive training and development program helps keep its engineers at the forefront of their fields. Competitive salaries and performance-based incentives help retain the best and brightest of its employees and a well-defined career path helps Schlumberger continue to grow and nourish the talent it needs to remain competitive in an increasingly competitive world.
(a) Explain the three (3) approaches to staffing policy in international business and their justification.
(b) Analyse how Schlumberger's staffing policies have given it a competitive advantage.