Foreign knowledge workers as a strategic staffing option

1998 was the second year in a row that saw the annual allocation of 65,000 visas for the temporary employment of professional workers exhausted before the end of the year. The increased quota of 115,000 for 1999 was exhausted by March. Congressional action underway as this article went to press to f urther revise the quota to 195,000 may give more firms the opportunity to r ealize what their quick-moving competitors have already seen-that U.S. immi gration policy provides several options for hiring knowledge workers and ot her professionals for short-term or permanent positions. This article casts the hiring of foreign knowledge workers as one of several staffing options available to organizations and presents information on advantages and limi tations of various immigration programs. Hiring foreign professionals is no t a costless panacea, though, and earn raise important strategic issues tha t cascade through levels of management. This article examines these issues to help managers at all levels determine if hiring immigrant workers is a v iable option for their professional workforce staffing.