Most organizations working internationally learn soon enough that ignorance of cultural requirements can put a very costly international venture at great risk; nevertheless, recent budget and time pressures have produced a marketplace of intercultural services that claim to provide cultural competencies without the critical investment of real training.

Dean’s presentation will evaluate the marketplace of intercultural services and products available, and the deliverables that they claim to provide.  Cultural training insures high-levels of competencies, that promote deep and longterm value for the entire organization, while cultural survival interventions, like coaching and passive webtools, provides no longterm value for the organization beyond the transactional success of the individual assignment.

By the end of the presentation, you  will be able to evaluate the benefits of various intercultural products and services, and assess their ability to provide real ROI, for both the international assignees and the organization, or just superficial cultural survival.

ABOUT DEAN FOSTER

As president of Dean Foster Associates, New York, Dean Foster conducts cross-cultural training worldwide and consults on intercultural business issues with most Fortune 1000 companies in the United States and around the globe.

For over twenty years, Dean has played a major role in the development of the intercultural training field: formerly he was founder and Managing Director of Berlitz Cross-Cultural Worldwide, Vice President GMAC/Windham Intercultural, and founder of Cross-Cultural Consulting Associates, New York. Dean is a frequent guest on CNN, CNBC and other TV and radio shows, and keynotes at major international professional conferences. interviewed in major publications, such as Newsweek Magazine, the New York Times,USA Today and others, Dean is also a frequent Guest lecturer at Harvard Business School, New York University, Columbia University Graduate School of Business, and other educational organizations.

Dean has written many articles, as well as the four-part Global Etiquette Guide book series (John Wiley & Sons), which includes The Global Etiquette Guide to Europe, the Global Etiquette Guide to Asia, the Global Etiquette Guide to Latin America, and the Global Etiquette Guide to Africa and the Middle East, and the book, Bargaining Across Borders (McGraw-Hill),which the American Library Association voted as one of the top ten business books of 1994.

Dean is a Contributing Editor for National Geographic Traveler, writing the CultureWise monthly column, Contributing Editor for American Express Executive Travel Magazine, and Senior Contributing Editor for the International webpage of Monster.com. Dean is adjunct Professor at the American University, Intercultural Management Institute, Washington, D.C., and received his M.A. and is a PhD candidate in Sociology from the Graduate Faculty of the New School for Social Research, New York City.

Thank you to Tom Fox for allowing us to post a link to his recent webinar!

One of the key company lynch-pins in any FCPA compliance and ethics program is Human Resources. Most HR professional do not think of themselves as on the front lines for FCPA compliance and ethics. However the HR function is plays a  key role in “connecting the dots” for FCPA ethics and compliance. What policy does a company take to punish those employees who may engage in unethical and non-compliant behavior in order to meet company revenue targets versus what rewards are handed out to those employees who integrate such ethical and compliant behavior into their individual work practices going forward? One of the very important functions of HR is assisting management in setting the criteria for employee bonuses and assisting management in the evaluation of employees for the bonuses. This is an equally important role in getting out a company’s message of adherence to a FCPA compliance and ethics policy.

Does a company have, as a component of its bonus compensation plan, a part dedicated to FCPA compliance and ethics? If so, how is this component measured and then administered? There is very little in the corporate world that an employee notices more than what goes into the calculation of their bonuses. HR can and should facilitate this process by setting expectations early in the year and then following through when annual bonuses are released. With the assistance of HR, such a bonus can send a powerful message to employees regarding the seriousness with which compliance is taken at the company. There is nothing like putting your money where your mouth is for people to stand up and take notice.

If a company has an employee who meets, or exceeds all his sales targets, but does so in a manner which is opposite to the company’s stated FCPA compliance and ethics values, other employees will watch and see how that employee is treated. Is that employee rewarded with a large bonus? Is that employee promoted or are the employee’s violations of the company’s compliance and ethics policies swept under the carpet? If the employee is rewarded, or in any way not sanctioned for unethical or non-compliant behavior, it will be noticed and other employees will act accordingly. One of the functions of HR is to help ensure consistent application of company values throughout the organization.

In the energy industry, (and probably lots of other industries) there is the following archetypal story. It usually is told about a Regional Manager in the Far East or the Middle East who is alleged to have said some along the following lines, “If I violate the Code of Conduct I may or may not get caught. If I get caught I may or may not be disciplined. But if don’t make my revenue numbers for two quarters I will be fired”. If such a story is allowed to percolate throughout the company, employees will feel that all that matters is hitting their revenue targets, not acting in an ethical and compliant manner. Human Resources provides a vital front line function is providing consistent, across the board application of a values core values of compliance and ethics by training and then reinforcing that “hitting the numbers” in a manner which is antithetical to the company’s compliance and ethics program is not acceptable. But this must be done in both words and actions.

The HR Department in any multi-national company has a significant role in not only managing the employee base but in assisting to set the correct expectations regarding FCPA compliance and ethics. Consistent applications of these core beliefs and values will assist any company in remaining compliant and driving home the message that the company takes FCPA compliance seriously.

[Editors Note:  We are happy to welcome Thomas Fox of tomfoxlaw.com as a Guest Author.  Tom recently spoke to Houston International HR Roundtable on HR's role in FCPA compliance.  Tom will be presenting a webinar on The Role of HR in FCPA Compliance and Ethics on Tuesday, May 18, 2010 at 2 pm (CST) that will be of interest to international HR professionals.

Registration Link:              https://secure.confertel.net/tsregister.asp?course=509107

Tom has practiced law in Houston for 25 years. He is now assisting companies with FCPA compliance, Risk Management and international transactions. He was most recently the General Counsel at Drilling Controls, Inc., a worldwide oilfield manufacturing and service company.  He was previously Division Counsel with Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. where he supported Halliburton’s software division and its downhole division, which included the logging, directional drilling and drill bit business units.  Tom attended undergraduate school at the University of Texas, graduate school at Michigan State University and law school at the University of Michigan.  Tom writes and speaks nationally and internationally on a wide variety of topics, ranging from FCPA compliance, indemnities and other forms of risk management for a worldwide energy practice, tax issues faced by multi-national US companies, insurance coverage issues and protection of trade secrets.  Additional information on FCPA and compliance issues can be found at http://tfoxlaw.wordpress.com/.]

Reflecting Houston’s standing in the international HR community, we host a constant stream of international HR conferences.  In addition to our monthly events, Houston regularly hosts conferences by Families in Global Transition (FIGT), National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC), Texas State Council of SHRM, and Global HR News.

Please send us a tweet or say hello in person when you are in Houston.  For further information on Houston as the Global Leader in international business, please visit the Greater Houston Partnership.

Welcome to Houston!

Program on International Labor and Employment

Many people think of Houston as the “energy capital,” but Houston is also the International Human Resource capital.  Visit us regularly to learn about our International Human Resource events and training! Houston International HR Roundtable is working on networking and educational events for the international HR community and to promote Houston as a Center of Excellence in International Human Resources.  You can also join Houston International HR Roundtable, LLC on Facebook and on LinkedIn.

Dinner time?

One of the greatest joys of my international assignments was the opportunity to learn and experience different cultures and FOOD!  My favorites are the simple foods – Pho in Vietnam, fresh baguette in France, kimchi in Korea, or ice cream in Italy.  What are your favorites?