Global Company Overview
The Coca-Cola Company specializes in producing and selling non-alcoholic beverages. The signature drink originated from Atlanta in the late 19th century, and an organization was established to sell it (The Coca-Cola Company, 1). In addition to Coca-Cola and its variations, the company distributed approximately 200 brands, including Sprite, SmartWater, Fuze Tea, Costa Coffee, and others, covering all possible non-alcoholic beverages (The Coca-Cola Company, 2). The organization is global, having a presence in all continents and operating in such countries as Japan, India, Australia, Egypt, and Brazil (The Coca-Cola Company, 3). The company maintains the principle of diversity within the US and worldwide, relying on employee groups to promote the organizational culture and integrate it with local ones (The Coca-Cola Company, 4). Overall, the organization recognizes the need to consider a host country’s unique features.
Domestic Country Overview
Hongshui is a Chinese beverage company based in Guangxi, and the origin of its name is both the local river and the signature drink’s color (red). It does not hide the Coca-Cola inspiration, although the taste is far from the one achieved with the secret formula. The company is notable for hiring the Zhuang people and other minorities present in the region, although most of the employees are the Han Chinese. Hongshui issues guidelines, documentation, and product packages in several languages, including Mandarin, Yue, and Zhuang. The company is privately owned but still adheres to the law and the Communist Party’s recommendation, receiving occasional investment from the local government due to being the most prominent in the field. Although the signature beverage is acclaimed by Guangxi’s population, Hongshui is cautious about distributing it to other regions.
Checklist
- Implement cultural-informal focus as the control strategy.
- Establish a general manager for China to oversee Guangxi and other regions.
- Assign a Chinese person who was previously associated with a Coca-Cola Company division to train the local staff.
- Replace them after Guangxi employees are sufficiently equipped to ensure standardization.
- Ensure that the local professionals are also opinion leaders to facilitate cultural integration.
- Retain the existing policy to hire local minorities.
- Be considerate of the organization culture’s elements that are incompatible with the general Chinese culture and the Guangxi one.
- Maintain the practice of frequent meetings between the employees and the headquarters personnel.
- Assist Hongshui in exporting the signature drink and potentially make it a new brand.
Explanation
The suggested steps are based on the principles of standardization and localization. The first one is necessary due to the differences in the cultures driving the companies and the need to develop a network in the new region (Dowling, 4, p. 70). Then, as the Coca-Cola Company has a sufficient presence in China, establish a separate division with a knowledgeable general manager appears sensible. The third point supposes that Chinese human resources managers exist, removing the need to use American expatriates and facilitating standardization at a faster pace (Dowling, 4, p. 48). Once the local staff is prepared to maintain and promote the practices, it is prudent to replace the HR manager (Dowling, 4, p. 48). The fifth step is necessary to ensure that the measures associated with The Coca-Cola Company’s organizational culture are broadly supported (Dowling, 4, p. 56). The next two stages ensure localization and the balance between it and standardization (Dowling, 4, p. 51). The eighth step further facilitates the latter and promotes the exchange of knowledge (Dowling, 4, p. 56). Lastly, Hongshui needs to benefit from the merging through exporting its production.
Sources
The Coca-Cola Company. No date. Our Company.
The Coca-Cola Company. No date. Brands.
The Coca-Cola Company. No date. Locations.
The Coca-Cola Company. No date. Our Culture.
Peter J. Dowling. 2017. International Human Resource Management. p. 48, 51, 56, 70. Web.