Talent management of western MNCs in China: Balancing global integration and local responsiveness

Since the beginning of its market economy and open-door policy in 1978, China has extensively promoted foreign direct investment. Consequently, many western MNCs have entered the country in search of new business opportunities. Today, one of the greatest challenges facing these organizations is finding talented people who are needed to run their businesses. Although the strategic importance of talent management has been acknowledged in recent years, few studies analyze the talent management of western MNCs in China. Building on qualitative data from seven case studies, our paper therefore seeks to explore how western MNCs in China identify, develop and retain their talented employees. The paper shows that MNCs transfer their talent management practices to China without many changes, focusing specifically on the development of talented employees and the creation of an organizational culture. Nevertheless, the results also indicate that integrated and strategic talent management strategies have not yet been fully implemented.