Centre to focus on global workforce management
David Thomas, 778.782.7709; david_c_thomas@sfu.ca
Derek Moscato, 778.782.5038; derek_moscato@sfu.ca
Marianne Meadahl, PAMR, 778.782.4323
Simon Fraser University’s Faculty of Business Administration has established a new centre that will develop strategies and carry out research related to the changing needs of workforce management.
The Centre for Global Workforce Strategy was created in response to a growing need by companies to effectively manage workforce diversity.
Ideally situated within the university’s collaborative and multidisciplinary research environment, the centre will draw from the expertise on global workforce management at SFU Business.
The centre also has an extensive global network of individuals associated with ongoing research projects in the area.
“Leading companies have recognized that workforce diversity is not just a problem to be overcome but also a resource to be exploited to the benefit of the bottom line,” says centre director David Thomas. “This puts people into the competitive equation as never before.”
The competition for skilled people on a global scale is intense, and new attitudes toward work and careers present additional challenges about work-life balance, which further complicates the strategic management of today’s workforce, notes Thomas.
The centre’s research fellows span the globe and represent a wide range of specialties, including expertise in work-life balance, the development of cultural intelligence, comparative human resource management practices, managing expatriates, HR issues in mergers and acquisitions, and cross-cultural communications.
The centre’s activities will also include hosting public forums, workshops, and academic conferences, preparation and distribution of educational materials, media outreach and professional development programs.
Centre for Global Workforce Strategy: backgrounder
David Thomas, director
An internationally acknowledged expert and leading scholar in the field of international management, David Thomas has published seven books and more than 50 articles and chapters on the management of individuals in culturally diverse organizations. His book, Cross-Cultural Management: Essential Concepts, was the winner of the R. Wayne Pace Human Resource Development book of the year award for 2008. His research on the interaction of individuals from different cultures in organizational settings has led to research studies in more than a dozen countries.
A highly sought-after public speaker on the management of cultural diversity in organizations, Thomas has a long-standing collaboration with Kerr Inkson, one of New Zealand’s most eminent management scholars. Their best-selling book Cultural Intelligence: People Skills for Global Business communicates best practices in global people management in a manner easily accessible to practicing managers.
Mila Lazarova, associate director
Mila Lazarova is an assistant professor of international management at SFU Business. Her research interests include expatriate management, with a focus on repatriation and the career impact of international assignments; work/life balance issues related to assignments; global careers and the role of organizational career development and work/life balance practices on employee retention and the changing role of the HR department in organizations.
Lazarova, who is also the recipient of an Excellence in Research award from SFU Business, also conducts research in comparative human resource management and is the Canadian counterpart to CRANET, a long-term research collaboration of more than 35 universities worldwide that carries out a regular international comparative survey of organizational HR policies and practices.
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William Sacherek
Skills and experience are important but without trust (integrity) any organization profit/non-profit will not be able to sustain itself for the long term.
Almost every company espouses "people are our most important asset/competitive advantage" but upon examining that theme you'll find many corporations run more like plantations than corporations.
William Sacherek, SFU, "73