Continental Airlines Human Resources Plan and IHRM Strategy

Introduction

Human resources represent the most valuable resource a company owns — a resource that must be properly managed in order to help the company develop and achieve its goals and objectives. There are many factors that influence a company's human resources situation in a positive or negative manner. The recruitment and selection process can be the solution to a company's human resources problems, or it can represent the root of those problems.

In other words, if the recruitment and selection process is properly implemented and is well suited to the company in question, it can help build the foundation for a medium- and long-term workforce that is strong, high-performing, and loyal. But if the recruitment and selection of personnel do not reflect the actual situation and needs of the company, the organization will fail to attract and retain suitable employees.

Human Resources Issues at Continental Airlines

As a transnational company, Continental Airlines must face a series of issues regarding its human resources situation. Currently, aside from the regular challenges that any company must address — especially during times of financial and economic crisis — Continental Airlines' most important and most visible problem is the low percentage of minority representation within its personnel.

This problem is reflected by the absence of minority representatives in the company's corporate and leadership structures. Given the global context in which the company operates, such a situation is rarely encountered, particularly among companies of this size.

There are several explanations for this situation. It could mean that the percentage of minorities within Continental Airlines' personnel is lower than it should be relative to the minority share of the country's population, which may indicate that minorities are being denied certain opportunities. This concern is directly connected to the recruitment and selection process.

Additionally, the professional performance of minority employees is likely comparable to that of the majority, meaning that from a professional standpoint there is no justification for the absence of minority representatives at the top management level. This suggests that at some point in their careers, minority employees are prevented from advancing to senior leadership positions.

International Human Resource Management Improvement Plan

There are several important differences between a company's domestic HR strategy and its international one. Operating across different countries — sometimes on different continents — with people of varying nationalities and cultures significantly increases the complexity of International Human Resource Management (IHRM) activities (Dowling, Festing & Engle, 2008).

As a consequence, Continental Airlines must manage a greater range of HR activities compared with purely national companies. The company must also think and act within a broader perspective that incorporates all the factors influencing its HR situation. In order to fully benefit from its personnel's potential, the company must actively engage with employees' circumstances — particularly those of groups such as minorities — to help them overcome challenges that may arise from cultural differences.

One particular aspect that Continental Airlines must address is that the ratio between expatriates and local employees may shift over time, which means the company must adapt its HR emphasis as conditions change. The absence of minority representatives at the top management level indicates that Continental Airlines has not successfully applied this principle of IHRM.

In order to build a strong, loyal employee base for the medium and long term, the company's HR professionals must first identify the factors that inhibit performance in a multinational context and integrate solutions to these problems into the international HR strategy.

One such factor is the inability to adjust to a foreign culture. There was once a widely held assumption that individuals can adapt to any culture in any country. Practice has since debunked this notion. Many foreigners — whether students or employees — have failed to integrate successfully in a different country, particularly when cultural and religious dimensions are fundamentally different.

Conclusion

After testing and selecting the most suitable candidates for each position, the company's HR department must develop appropriate training and development programs for these employees. Motivation is a critically important element of the HRM plan and must be tailored to the needs of each position (Cherrington, 1991).

Regarding the minority representation issue, it is recommended that the proportion of minority employees reflect the demographics of the region in which each Continental Airlines branch is located. This should not, however, be the primary criterion for selecting and recruiting staff. Recruitment and selection at Continental Airlines must above all seek to uphold the quality standards set by the company.

The recruitment and selection process must follow a structured series of steps (Ivancevich & Glueck, 1986). Employees should be hired based on their skills, knowledge, and abilities (Kubr, 1992). Their aptitudes must match the requirements of each position, regardless of the minority group they represent. A well-designed IHRM strategy that integrates diversity goals with merit-based hiring will position Continental Airlines to build a more equitable, capable, and competitive global workforce.