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Chinese Returnees Preferred by Multinational Companies in China

A recent survey of more than 100 China-based companies has revealed that 61 percent of the respondents anticipate that they will recruit more overseas Chinese talent into their organizations over the next two years. “Language capabilities” (65 percent), “transfer of skills and knowledge” (62 percent) and “familiarity with the culture” (59 percent) were cited as the three main reasons for preferring Chinese returnees.

The PricewaterhouseCoopers International Assignment Services “Key Trends of Cross-Border Moves in Asia” study gives insights into how China-based companies attract and retain foreign talent in Asia. The survey focused on localisation trends in China and problems arising among this growing group of skilled returning Chinese.

Increasing Numbers of Returning Chinese

With the rapid development of the China market and high demand for talent, more Chinese nationals, commonly referred to as haigui in Chinese, have opted to return to China after studying or working overseas. Chinese returnees, as well as ethnic Chinese expatriates from Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia, who offer international experience and a better understanding of the Chinese language and culture, are more competitive. For many companies in China, hiring Chinese nationals with overseas work experience and regional Chinese expatriates is a preferred option.

As for the remuneration package for these returnees, 32 percent of the participants indicated that they offer remuneration packages aligned to local benchmark levels, while only 23 percent would offer expatriate packages to the returning Chinese. Survey results also showed that returning Chinese employees typically held middle management (77 percent) and senior management roles (39 percent) in China-based companies.

China is undoubtedly the key investment target in Asia for many multinational corporations, and its domestic market is large enough to warrant companies setting up their regional headquarters in China to manage activities in the region or at least in Greater China.

With over 33 percent of the respondents having their regional headquarters in China, it is not surprising to see that 78 percent of all respondents selected China as their key assignment location in Asia, followed by Singapore (43 percent) and Hong Kong (39 percent). 

China: A Difficult Localisation Destination

The Chinese economy is expected to continue growing, albeit at a slower rate due to the global economic downturn. But there is still a clear indication from China-based companies that foreign talent is required for “transfer of skills and knowledge” (75 percent) and that there is a “lack of suitable skills in the local market” (63 percent). These were the top two reasons cited by the survey respondents when asked why they recruit skilled foreign talent.

In the past, companies offered premium packages and incentives to attract employees and get them to work in China. In today’s turbulent economic environment, companies have a genuine interest in managing the costs of their international mobility programmes more effectively while  getting the people they need to make money in China and the region.

From the survey, 49 percent of the respondents indicated that they are using locally hired employees in China. But 73 percent of respondents said local employment accounts for less than 10 percent of their foreign workforce.

About 38 percent of the respondents considered China the most difficult location in Asia to localise, with India coming in second (16 percent). Localisation packages, schooling and environmental/social factors were listed by respondents as the top three factors that made localisation difficult. This proves that financial rewards and family needs continue to be key concerns of international employees.

As to what actually drives companies to localise in China, “Cost to the company” emerged as the top reason since hiring foreign talent on full expatriate packages can easily be two to three times more expensive than hiring local Chinese talent.

With cost containment at or near the top of most company’s agenda during this economic crisis, it is not surprising to see a large number of companies have reviewed their hiring policies within the last 12 months, or that they are still in the midst of reviewing them.

Several respondents also introduced some tax planning ideas to their existing policies for tax efficiency purposes while some reported that they have introduced a local-plus and localisation policies into their mobility programmes for the first time.

More Chinese Nationals Expected to Go on International Assignments

With a “lack of suitable skills in the local market” being one of the top two reasons fuelling China’s need for foreign talent, it is not surprising that many China based companies are devoting more time to training local talents and giving them international exposure. About 44 percent of the respondents anticipate an increase in Chinese outbound moves on short term assignments over the next two years, while 24 percent anticipate an increase in long-term assignments. 

Some companies are also using overseas assignments as a talent management tool, providing development opportunities for their outstanding local Chinese employees. Sending such employees on overseas assignments give employers the added advantage that employees can bring useful skills and knowledge back to China after their assignments. From a local employee’s perspective, international exposure would almost certainly lead to better career opportunities and give them the bargaining power to demand higher wages and promotions.

中国成为亚洲跨国人才流动的首选地

2009年，普华永道发布了最新的调查报告《亚洲跨国人才流动的主要趋势》，100多家来自各个行业的在华企业参与了调查。报告分析了在中国的企业怎样从亚洲吸引并留住国外人才，尤其关注目前中国市场上出现的薪酬本土化趋势以及海归日益增多的趋势。

中国成为跨国公司亚洲外派地的首选

中国无疑是跨国公司在亚洲最主要的投资目的地，巨大的国内市场为各个公司提供了足够的发展空间，使其在此设立区域总部，管理亚太地区或大中华地区的事务。有超过33%的受访企业在中国设有地区总部，78%的受访企业将中国列为最主要的外派地点，其次是新加坡（43%）和香港（39%）。

普华永道在新加坡和香港的相关调查也印证了中国市场的重要性。在新加坡的调查反映，中国（68%）是紧随新加坡（70%）之后受访者最受欢迎的外派地点。而更多香港的受访者把中国（77%）列为主要外派目的地，甚至超过香港（67%）本身。

在中国设立企业数量的增长预计仍将继续，然而其增速会因全球经济危机而放慢。尽管如此，位于中国的企业明确表示，为了“能力和知识的转移”，也由于“本地市场缺少合适的人才”，他们需要引进国外人才。这是受访者被问及为何聘用有相关技能的国外人才时最常引述的两个理由。受访企业预期在未来2年中，到中国任职的趋势仍将上升，尤其是通过高于本地的待遇(51%) 和短期外派（43%）的方式。

更多中国人才将赴海外工作

企业因为“本地市场缺少合适的人才”而需要国外人才，也因此投入更多资源培训本地人才，为他们提供接触世界的机会。44%的受访企业预计，接下来的两年内将看到更多来自中国的短期外派；24%的受访企业预计长期外派会增加。

一些公司将跨国任命作为培训人才的工具，为表现突出的中国雇员提供发展的机会。跨国工作机会能让员工为雇主把必要的技能和知识带回中国。而从本地员工的角度看，跨国工作的经历几乎能够确保更好的发展机会、要求加薪和升职时有更大的议价能力。

中国成为外企推动薪酬本地化的重点

49%的受访企业说他们已经将一些职位的薪酬本地化。但是其中73%的受访企业承认，只有不到10%的外籍员工接受了本地化的待遇。38%的受访企业认为中国是在亚洲区推动薪酬本地化最困难的地方，印度（16%）位居次席。这与普华永道在新加坡的调查一致。那里的24%的受访企业认为中国是亚洲薪酬本地化最困难的国家，其次是印度（18%）。此外，在中国和新加坡的调查中所显示的薪酬本地化面临的障碍大同小异。待遇问题、教育问题、环境社会因素是受访者认为本地化遇到的三大主要困难，这证明了经济和家庭仍是任何国际人才调派的关键考虑因素。而“节约成本”成为在中国进行本地化首当其冲的动力，因为聘用国外人才所需的成本是聘用中国本地人才的成本的2—5倍。

由于节约成本是企业在这次经济危机中最重要的任务之一，64%的受访企业表示中国将继续成为推动薪酬本地化的主要地点。更多的企业则采用半外派待遇或者高于本地的待遇作为折中或者过渡的方案。

“海归”人才越来越受欢迎

一位没有中国文化背景的人才可以具备中国需要的相关技能，但也有可能会遭遇语言或文化的困境，并且对住所、教育、生活质量的期望值往往意味着更高的补偿。而另一方面，海归以及来自香港、新加坡、马来西亚等亚洲地区的华裔外派人员既有国际经验，亦更加熟悉中国的语言和文化。许多在华企业倾向于聘用有海外工作经验的中国人或者亚太地区的华裔。

随着中国市场和人才需求的迅猛发展，越来越多的中国“海归”选择在国外留学或工作后回到中国。事实上，调查报告61%的受访者预计在未来2年内将聘用更多海外华人。“语言能力”（65%）、“能力和知识的转移”（62%）、“熟悉中国文化”（59%）是“海归”越来越受欢迎的三个最主要的理由。而至于他们的薪资待遇问题，32%的受访企业表示将依照本地的水平，但有23%的受访企业愿意给予“海归”外派人员的待遇。调查结果还显示，海归雇员通常担任中层管理（77%）或者高层管理（39%）职务。