Section Twosubstantial amount of its international human resource
management activities, including payroll, benefits, and other
administrative functions.^50 Nokia also handles some aspects of
its international operations with outsourcing.
Production location decisions today frequently involve
considerations of various sites in Asia. While many Asian
countries went through a setback that will linger for several
years, the expansion of markets and location of production
facilities in Asia, particularly in China, has enormous
implications. The growth of private entrepreneurship and
manufacturing in China has been truly phenomenal. Private
sector production in China now makes up 60 percent of the
country’s gross domestic product (GDP) compared to zero
percent in 1979.^51 Furthermore, the list of international
companies with manufacturing operations in China constitutes a
virtual who’s who of inter-national business.
In addition to these developments, the competitive
environment that companies now face in Europe is different
than that which existed prior to the establishment of the
European Union, the European Monetary Union, and euro
currency. U.S. and other non–European Community companies
have used mergers, joint ventures, and strategic alliances as
means of gaining access to European markets. An example of
such a joint venture is the Whirlpool and Philips arrangement in