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Introduction
Human resource (HR) management is an essential element of organizations strategic planning. Any companys international HR department should take great care of analyzing the factors that can lead to the success or failure of opening a business in a particular region. Euro Disney, which opened in Paris, France in 1992, is an example of unsuccessful HR practices that can serve as a lesson on how not to conduct HR management.
Disneys HR department tactic
The first mistake Disneys HR department made in France was not taking into consideration the countrys culture. As Karadjova-Stoev and Mujtaba remark, the major failure was planning Euro Disney in the same way the three previous parks were created (82). Thus, the company practiced the ethnocentric managerial approach in which the successful style of management used in the home country is applied in the host country.
The primary assumption of those who choose such a method is that the practices bringing success at home will also work well abroad (Karadjova-Stoev and Mujtaba 81). However, Euro Disney soon demonstrated that the selected managerial tactic had been unsuitable. The individualistic culture of the American business did not turn out well in France. Numerous cultural misunderstandings, including those of food norms and drinking habits, per capita spending, and transportation preferences, led to disastrous outcomes.
The second lesson to be learned, which was closely associated with the first one, was the attitude toward appointing managers. Disney assigned managers who did not encourage local employees and never recognized their assets, thus undermining workers motivation (Karadjova-Stoev and Mujtaba 82). Thirdly, a serious error made by HR managers was the misunderstanding of French labor laws (Karadjova-Stoev and Mujtaba 84).
In the USA, employees were used to the schedule based on the day of the week and time of the year (Karadjova-Stoev and Mujtaba 84). Meanwhile, French workers were not used to such flexibility and were resistant to it.
Conclusion
Therefore, three main takeaways from unsuccessful HR practices in Euro Disney are the lack of cultural competence, the appointment of non-local managers, and the violation of the host countrys labor law. While it took Disney much time and effort to mitigate the adverse outcomes, other companies can learn from these mistakes and avoid them from the beginning. International organizations should bear in mind that what works well at home will not necessarily lead to favorable outcomes abroad.
References
Karadjova-Stoev, Guergana, and Bahaudin G. Mujtaba. Strategic Human Resource Management and Global Expansion Lessons from the Euro Disney Challenges in France. International Business & Economics Research Journal, vol. 15, no. 3, 2016, pp. 79-88.
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