Careers around the World

Companies are becoming more global and international, and commerce and information flow seamlessly across national borders. In addition, modernization, rapid technological change, an increasingly (shared) global culture, and shifting socio-demographic values have created conditions in which career stability is more threatened, while the importance of managing the career well is paramount. But, what do we know about careers in different contexts and how those career experiences vary in different regions and countries of the world? The goal of this book is to develop new understandings of career from the vantage point of those who live in diverse cultures, and who belong to different generations. Careers Around the World explores the very meaning of what a career for individuals is in different countries, cultures, professions and age groups. What does career success mean for people around the world? What are key career transitions, and how are they best managed in different cultures? As those questions have not yet been investigated in the literature of careers across cultures and generations, the authors have taken an approach that led to hearing the answers directly from working people around the globe. This book presents the answers to these questions from each of the seven major cultural regions of the world and the practical implications of these differences for those who manage human resources in organizations that cross national boundaries, as well as those who advise on careers.

Jon P. Briscoe is Associate Professor of Management at Northern Illinois University, USA. Jon is a Co-Founder and the Director of the Cross-Cultural Collaboration on Contemporary Careers (The "5C Group") whose research forms the basis for this book. A graduate of Boston University's Graduate School of Management, Jon has served as Chair of the Careers Division of the Academy of Management. In addition to careers in different cultures, Jon's research focuses on self-directed career management, management and leadership development, and value-expression in the workplace. He has published several scholarly journal articles and book chapters, and regularly presents his work internationally. Douglas T. (Tim) Hall is Morton H. and Charlotte Friedman Professor in Management in the Organizational Behavior Department of the Boston University School of Business, USA. His areas of research interest are career development, leadership development, executive succession planning, and work/life integration. He is the author of the books Career management & work-life integration (with Brad Harrington, Sage, 2007), Careers in and out of organizations (Sage, 2002), and The career is dead -- long live the career: A relational approach to careers (Jossey-Bass, 1996) Wolfgang Mayrhofer is Professor of Organisational Behaviour and Management at Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration, Austria. He has authored, co-authored, or co-edited over 21 books, including European human resource management - Evidence of convergence? (with Morley and Brewster, Heinemann, 2003) and Managing Human Resources in Europe (Routledge, 2006.) In addition, he has contributed over 100 book chapters and articles in peer-reviewed journals. His research focuses on comparative perspectives in human resource management and leadership, career, and social systems theory and management.

Table of Contents 1. Careers in a Global World 2. A New Approach to Understanding Careers 3. Career Success 4. Managing Career Transitions 5. Generational Issues 6. Cultural Contingencies: The Role of Economic and Political Context 7. Implications for the Management of People and Organizations 8. Conclusion: Future Directions. Appendix: Country Guide