SME inward internationalization - How do Finnish employers see foreign job applicants?

Project 33 employer interviews in 2004 –Experience of foreign subordinates, either with a degree from Finland or elsewhere –State, community or private employer representatives –From all over Finland –From different industries 635 questionnaires back 2004/2005 –Experienced and inexperienced –State, community or private employer representatives; From all over Finland; From different industries

Results Importance of internationalization of higher-education institutions What contributes and what hampers foreigners in finding a job in Finland? HRM processes and foreign applicants Differences in a superior’s work if there are foreign subordinates

Conclusions Proposals to state authorities Proposals to work communities Proposals to higher-education institutions Proposals to foreign job applicants Proposals for further research

Different foreigners in Finland Ca working addresses – about foreigners working all over Finland  employers not personally experienced Different foreigners – different needs and capabilities! –Refugees with difficult backgrounds –Marriage – based immigration –Highly-educated experts and their spouses (dual career)

HRM not strategic issue in SMEs Only 5% have had problems iwth work permissions or finding good foreign employees Exceptions – We have a monthly review of personnel needs –We have decided to triple our foreigners abroad and Finns abroad –Personnel costs are the biggest costs in some industries where they have become strategic for that reasons

Most used recruiting channels Questionnaire (all vs experienced employers) -Unemployment authorities 38% - 43% -Newspapers 33% - 40% -Internet 23% - 32% Interviews -Work placement -eChannels

Most used recruiting channels based on the questionnaire answers State employers size has no influence but municipal and private sector employers use newspapers the more the bigger the work unit Newspapers are used more in the capital area and in Northern Finland Own net pages are most used in Middle Finland state sector, Häme or Savo-Karjala municipal sector and capital area private sector Direct recruiting from HEIs is in use private sector big industrial companies and in the capital area or Häme state sector Headhunting is most used –Small and middle-sized communities, small companies, primary sector and state in Savo-Karjala Word of mouth is most used –in small companies, big state units or middle-sized municipal units –Capital area, Savo-Karjala and Ostrobothnia private sector –Private secondary sector and public primary sector

Most used recruiting channels based on interviews Active recruiting has grown Foreigners are a bigger risk – HEIs not known, foreign language and cultural nuances not known eChannels most important, newspapers and unemployment offices not that important Municipal and state sector test people first by shorter periods and different allowances Work placements used as test periods In the recruiting interview a foreigner has to be able to show his/her knowledge and professionalism

A Foreign Applicant Should Be able to speak Finnish Have a BIG network of Finnish persons! Be able to handle the ”You are a bigger risk in recruiting” Be able to show your expertise and professionalism in the interview Find out about Finnish way to recruit and to work (fellow students/employees, neighbours, friends)

Salary and benefits Based on questionnaire: same salary level The special knowledge, Finnish language, Finnish degree are important criteria Based on interviews: same salary from the same work and different salary from different work

Induction periods It is easy to enter Finnish work communities? However, foreign background is not taken into consideration with induction processes Total care is not taken of foreigners but there are two opposite views whether it should be done

Engagement According to interviews there are two types of engagement means used –Small and public sector rely on work content, atmosphere and respect of employees –Big companies offer a lot of services: competitions, trainee programs, social program…

Integration to work communities According to questionnaire informants – employers - in this study, no problem According to immigrant studies – big problem According to interviewees of this study – contreversial opinions Misunder- standings 85% Left alone44% Stays alone 32% Naming17% Accidents10%

Further education needs based on internationalization Contents: language education, intercultural communication skills Forms: no strategies in use

Superiors and work communities need instructions and further education (Söderqvist 2005) How to take benefit from the international dimension in the real work? How to meet diversity in real situations? What intercultural capabilities are and how to use them? How to change the superior and HRM if foreign subordinates?

Finnish employers’ views in general, and about changes in superior work

Positive attitudes, but benefits not realised + Foreigners no threat to Finnish working life + Multicultural work community taken as more innovative + Foreigners seen as a possibility ? Thanks to foreigners our business has not developed, they have not brought new customers or new partners  annual accounts of foreign HRM  recruiting of foreigners according to their education

Attitude and Motivation – A foreigner should Be educated Be professional Have intercultural skills Have own initiative Be reliable Be able to use Finnish as working language

Changes in superior’s working ways in the case of foreign subordinates There is a need for more communication if there are foreigners in the work community The work of a superior becomes more complicated if many cultures Foreigners who have worked in our company/ work community have discussed actively

Superior work changes if foreign subordinates… The importance of changes vary according to the importance of international dimension for the mission of the company/work community, for example case of international marketing unit If top management is international, everything changes (trade union representatives…)

Superior work changes if foreign subordinates… Experienced employers claim more that ”Foreigners who have worked in our unit have looked for clear orders and surveillance of the work” than those giving their answer based on images of the issue 43% - 12% ”Foreigners who have worked in our unit have liked the little amount of hierarchy” 38% - 11% ”We have been forced to show concretely how things should be done” – 45% - 14% ”Foreigners who have worked in our unit have internalised the idea of an internal entrepreneur” 24% - 5%

Foreigners who have worked in our unit have looked for clear orders and surveillance of the work Number of respondents % I agree totally 1910 I agree 6233 I disagree 4725 I disagree totally 3519 I don’t know 2413 Sum

Foreigners who have worked in our unit have looked for clear orders and surveillance of the work Municipal and private sector employers agree more than public employers with this statement The smaller the work community the more the employers agree with the statement Employers in Häme (>50%) agree more than those of Savo-Karjala and Middle Finland (<40%) More order giving and surveillance needs in the primary than in the secondary or tertiary sector

Foreigners who have worked in our unit have liked the little amount of hierarchy Number of respondents % I agree totally 116 I agree 5932 I disagree 3519 I disagree totally 137 I don’t know 6636 Sum

Foreigners who have worked in our unit have liked the little amount of hierarchy Respondents are from the private sector – about half of public sector employers have chosen ”I don’t know” State (44%) and private (45%) are over average whereas municipal sector employers are under it (33%) The more employers disagree with this statement the smaller they are The tertiary sector employers agree more than primary or secondary sector

We have been forced to show concretely how things should be done Number of respondents % I agree totally 2413 I agree 6032 I disagree 4725 I disagree totally 3720 I don’t know 1810 Sum

We have been forced to show concretely how things should be done State sector employers are different from the others - only 25% agree with the statement whereas about half of the others agree with it Primary and secondary sector agree more (almost 60%) than tertiary sector (44%) Employers from Ostrobothnia and Northern Finland agree less than average with the statement whereas employers from capital sector, Turku region and Savo-Karjala agree more than average

Foreigners who have worked in our unit have internalised the idea of an internal entrepreneur Number of respondents % I agree totally 105 I agree 3419 I disagree 4324 I disagree totally 2212 I don’t know 7440 Sum

Foreigners who have worked in our unit have internalised the idea of an internal entrepreneur Private sector (27%) and state employer (25%) agree more than average whereas municipal sector employers agree less than average (20%) Tertiary sector agrees more, primary sector less The bigger the work unit, the less the employer agrees with this statement Only Turku region (11%) differs much from the average – 24%

Superior work changes if foreign subordinates… Supervision of work becomes more complicated even though in recruiting situations it was claimed that personality is more important The relationship superior-subordinate becomes an issue if foreign subordinates If not surveyed, nothing happens – foreigners are not used to the big independence given to them Foreign languages used cause misunderstandings if not checked If municipal employers hire foreigners, they have better education than Finns (unemployed) but feel horrible when the work period is coming towards its end Different hierarchies in different cultures – ex. doctors in Russia vs those in Finland Religion, language, understanding of time become issues

Superior work changes if foreign subordinates… More communication needed – foreigners discuss actively (50% of experienced employers say so) State (69%) and municipal (60%) employers claim more than private sector (40%) that more communication is needed State employers find foreigners active discussants (56%), private sector employers disagree more than average with this statement Small employers agreed more than general that there is a need for more communication Private sector agrees more than average where as municipal sector agrees less than average with the need of more communication Communication has increased more in Turku region, Häme and Savo-Karjala than in Middle and Northern Finland and capital region Employers in Northern Finland find foreigners more active discussant than those of capital region and Savo-Karjala

Superior work changes if foreign subordinates… Style of communication changes if foreign subordinates Language has to be chosen actively – translating –Less information given in English –Way of behaving changes (please…) There are more misunderstandings based on language problems – foreign and Finnish subordinates don’t dare to say that they have not understood More closer connections are needed in a multicultural work community When foreigners learn Finnish they change to more challenging jobs