International HR Case Studies
Cross-Cultural Team Conflict
The Problem
Samsung Electronics faced significant challenges when integrating their Korean headquarters’ culture with their U.S. R&D division. Korean managers expected respect and hierarchical communication, while American employees valued direct feedback and flat organizational structures. This cultural clash resulted in miscommunication, decreased productivity, and high turnover rates among American staff who felt micromanaged and undervalued. Several key engineering talents resigned, citing cultural misunderstandings as their primary reason for leaving.
Your Scenario
You’ve been appointed as the new Global HR Director at Samsung Electronics with the task to resolve the cultural conflicts between the Korean headquarters and U.S. R&D division. The CEO has given you six months to improve retention rates and establish better cross-cultural communication before the launch of a critical new product line that requires seamless collaboration between both teams.
Global Compensation Inequity
The Problem
Spotify’s rapid global expansion created significant compensation disparities across regions. Engineers in Stockholm and New York earned substantially more than those with identical roles and responsibilities in emerging markets like Brazil and India. When the company transitioned to a “work from anywhere” policy post-pandemic, these disparities became transparent as teams collaborated more closely. This led to resentment, with employees in lower-paid regions feeling undervalued despite equal contributions. Internal data showed that teams with the highest compensation disparities had 35% lower engagement scores and 28% higher turnover rates.
Your Scenario
As the newly appointed Global Compensation Director at Spotify, you’ve been tasked with developing a more equitable global compensation strategy that balances market realities with internal equity. The CEO wants a solution that doesn’t dramatically increase overall compensation costs but addresses the growing dissatisfaction among international teams. You need to present your strategy to the executive team in one month.
Regulatory Compliance Failure
The Problem
Uber’s aggressive global expansion strategy led to significant regulatory compliance issues across multiple countries. The company often entered markets without fully addressing local employment laws, particularly regarding worker classification. In the UK, the Supreme Court ruled that Uber drivers should be classified as workers entitled to minimum wage and holiday pay, not independent contractors as Uber had maintained. Similar legal challenges emerged in France, Germany, and other markets. These regulatory failures cost the company over $300 million in legal settlements, damaged its reputation, and created uncertainty in its business model.
Your Scenario
You’ve been hired as Uber’s new Global Head of HR Compliance following these setbacks. The board has directed you to develop a comprehensive strategy to address regulatory compliance issues across all markets while maintaining the company’s core business model as much as possible. You need to rebuild trust with regulators, provide clarity to drivers, and create sustainable employment practices that can adapt to different regulatory environments.
Global Talent Acquisition Bottleneck
The Problem
Siemens faced critical talent shortages in its renewable energy division as it expanded operations across Europe, Asia, and the Americas. The company struggled to fill specialized engineering and technical roles, with positions remaining vacant for an average of 147 days compared to the industry standard of 90 days. This talent gap delayed several major projects, including a €200 million wind farm installation in Taiwan. The problem was exacerbated by inconsistent recruitment processes across countries, limited global mobility support, and competition from tech companies offering more attractive packages to engineering talent.
Your Scenario
As the newly appointed Global Talent Acquisition Director for Siemens, you need to develop a strategy to overcome these recruitment challenges and build a sustainable talent pipeline for the renewable energy division. The CEO has emphasized that addressing this talent gap is critical to meeting the company’s ambitious climate impact goals and maintaining market leadership in green technology.
Labor Disputes and Unionization
The Problem
Between 2022 and 2023, Starbucks faced significant labor disputes and a wave of unionization efforts across its U.S. stores. Employees expressed frustration with working conditions, including understaffing, wage disparities, benefits, and perceived inadequate support from management. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated these concerns, leading workers to demand better working conditions, higher wages, improved healthcare benefits, and job security. The company faced criticism for its response, with accusations of using anti-union tactics, including intimidating employees, firing pro-union workers, and engaging in illegal labor practices. These actions led to several legal disputes, which further fueled unionization efforts and brought public attention to the company’s labor practices.
Your Scenario
As the newly appointed Chief Human Resources Officer at Starbucks, you’ve been tasked with developing a comprehensive strategy to address the labor disputes and unionization efforts. The CEO has emphasized the importance of rebuilding trust with employees while maintaining the company’s operational efficiency and brand reputation. You need to create an approach that respects employees’ rights to organize while fostering direct communication between management and workers. Your strategy should address the root causes of employee dissatisfaction and establish a framework for positive labor relations moving forward.
Franchise Labor Liability
The Problem
McDonald’s faced a multiyear legal battle over whether it should share responsibility for alleged labor violations in its franchisees’ restaurants. The case posed a major threat to the franchise model underlying one of the largest employers in the world. The charges generally alleged that McDonald’s franchisees fired and retaliated against employees for supporting union activity. The central issue was whether McDonald’s as a parent company should be considered a “joint employer” and thus liable for labor law violations at franchisee-owned locations. While McDonald’s ultimately won the case when the federal labor board ordered approval of a settlement that absolved the company from direct responsibility, the case highlighted significant tensions in the franchise employment model and raised questions about corporate accountability in decentralized business structures.
Your Scenario
As the newly appointed Global Head of Franchise HR Relations at McDonald’s, you’ve been tasked with developing a proactive strategy to prevent future labor disputes while maintaining the independence of the franchise model. Despite the legal victory, the company’s reputation suffered during the lengthy battle, and franchisees have expressed concerns about inconsistent HR practices across the system. The CEO wants a framework that protects both the company and franchisees from future litigation while ensuring ethical labor practices throughout the McDonald’s system. Your challenge is to create guidelines and support systems that improve labor practices without triggering joint employer liability.
Supply Chain Labor Ethics
The Problem
Nestlé faced significant challenges in establishing credibility in its global cocoa supply chain after investigations revealed labor violations, including instances of child labor and forced labor. Despite implementing the Nestlé Cocoa Plan and Child Labor Remediation and Monitoring Systems, an investigation by the Fair Labor Association (FLA) found numerous violations of Nestlé’s Supplier Code of Conduct. Workers on cocoa farms were typically not aware of Nestlé’s corporate policies, and in at least one case, investigators found an instance of forced labor. Rather than terminating contracts with problematic suppliers, Nestlé chose to “renegotiate” contracts, raising questions about the company’s commitment to addressing labor abuses. The lack of transparency in these renegotiations made it difficult to confirm whether meaningful changes were implemented.
Your Scenario
As the newly appointed Global Head of Ethical Supply Chain Management at Nestlé, you’ve been tasked with overhauling the company’s approach to labor issues in its cocoa supply chain. The CEO has made it clear that the company needs to move beyond superficial compliance to establish genuine credibility with consumers, investors, and human rights organizations. You need to develop a comprehensive strategy that addresses the root causes of labor violations, creates meaningful accountability for suppliers, and establishes transparent monitoring and remediation processes. Your approach must balance the commercial realities of the global cocoa market with the ethical imperatives of eliminating forced labor and child labor from Nestlé’s supply chain.
Employee Activism Management
The Problem
Amazon faced significant employee activism when 4,000 employees filed a shareholders’ resolution criticizing the company’s exacerbation of climate change. This represented part of a rising wave of employee activism, where workers advocate for social change inside their own organization. While Amazon ultimately responded by pledging to eliminate its carbon emissions by 2040, the incident highlighted the growing expectations employees have regarding corporate social responsibility (CSR). A 2019 survey found that 75 percent of employees in the United States agreed that “employees are right to speak up against their employers.” Despite this widespread employee support, such activism remains controversial among many corporate leaders, creating tension between management’s traditional authority and employees’ desire to influence their company’s social and environmental impact.
Your Scenario
As the newly appointed Chief Employee Relations Officer at Amazon, you’ve been tasked with developing a framework for constructively engaging with employee activism while maintaining the company’s operational focus and decision-making processes. The CEO recognizes that employee activism will continue to be a significant factor in the workplace but wants to channel it productively rather than having it manifest as public criticism of the company. You need to create guidelines for how managers should respond to employee activism, establish appropriate channels for employees to raise social and environmental concerns, and develop processes for incorporating employee input into the company’s CSR initiatives without ceding strategic control to employee activists.
Diversity Initiative Rollback
The Problem
Microsoft faced criticism after allegedly downgrading its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts. According to a former employee who led a DEI team, the company laid off staff working on DEI initiatives around July 2024, with the former employee claiming that “true systems-change work associated with DEI programs everywhere are no longer business critical or smart as they were in 2020.” This occurred despite Microsoft’s 2020 commitment to double the number of black leaders within the company by 2025 following the murder of George Floyd. While Microsoft officially stated that “Our D&I commitments remain unchanged,” the situation reflected a broader trend of large companies slimming down DEI teams amid political uncertainty over promoting equality. This reduction in DEI resources risked undermining progress toward workplace equity and inclusion.
Your Scenario
As the newly appointed Chief Diversity Officer at Microsoft, you’re facing a challenging situation. Budget cuts have reduced your team size, yet the company’s public diversity commitments remain unchanged. The CEO has asked you to develop a strategy that maintains meaningful progress toward diversity goals despite reduced resources. You need to rebuild trust with employees who perceive the layoffs as a retreat from DEI commitments while navigating the increasingly politicized environment surrounding DEI work. Your challenge is to create an approach that delivers tangible results, engages leaders throughout the organization in advancing diversity goals, and effectively communicates Microsoft’s ongoing commitment to creating an inclusive workplace.
Global Supply Chain Labor Conditions
The Problem
Walmart faced significant challenges regarding labor conditions in its global supply chain, particularly in the garment sector. Research conducted between 2012 and 2016 revealed violations of international labor standards in Walmart supplier factories across Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, and Indonesia. The investigation included interviews with 344 workers and an in-depth case study spanning 8 months of working conditions in an Indonesian Walmart supplier employing 3,800 contract workers. The findings highlighted systemic issues in Walmart’s global production network, including precarious work arrangements, unsafe conditions, and violations of workers’ rights. Despite Walmart’s supplier code of conduct and compliance programs, the research demonstrated persistent labor rights violations throughout the company’s extensive supply chain.
Your Scenario
As the newly appointed Global Supply Chain Ethics Director at Walmart, you’ve been tasked with addressing the persistent labor violations in the company’s global supply chain. The CEO has acknowledged that current compliance approaches aren’t working effectively and wants a comprehensive strategy that goes beyond audits and codes of conduct to create sustainable improvements in working conditions. You need to develop an approach that addresses the structural issues in Walmart’s purchasing practices that contribute to labor violations, creates meaningful accountability for suppliers, and establishes more effective monitoring and remediation processes. Your strategy must balance Walmart’s commercial interests in maintaining competitive pricing with the ethical imperative to ensure decent working conditions throughout its supply chain.