Notes

1. The cost of living in Kyrgyzstan is definitely lower than that of the US. According to user-reported data in Numbeo.com, the cost of living without rent in Kyrgyzstan is 62% lower than in the US. City rent is about 78% lower than in the US. However, as International Business mentions, "managers who are relocating to lower cost-of-living countries are typically paid the same amount that they were receiving at the home office - otherwise, they would be financially penalized for accepting an international job assignment" (397). For example, if the median salary for a marketing manager in the US is $131,000 (US News), that manager would have to make at least that much in Kyrgyzstan, even though the average income in Kyrgyzstan hovers below $1000 USD. As for additional benefits, I looked at the US Dept. of State's rates for Kyrgyzstan - hardship differential was an additional 25% (makes sense - Kyrgyzstan is still a developing and at times troubled country), living allowances were around $15,000, and education was extremely high. Public schools in Kyrgyzstan are usually taught in Kyrgyz or Russian and aren't the best quality. There are a handful of international schools that I could find, all of them in Bishkek. The only one to publish tuition rates online - Bishkek International School - had annual tuition ranging from $9170 for the youngest students to $14155 for older students, plus other fees.

2. From what I could find, women make up a minority of managers/administrators/high-level business employees in Kyrgyzstan, ranging from about 30-40%. However, that number is large enough that I don't think it'd be a problem or extremely unusual to bring a woman to be the manager. As for minorities, Kyrgyzstan is fairly homogeneous (73.2% Kyrgyz, and very, very few people who are not Eastern European). While a foreigner who is Latino, Asian, or African may not be treated with overt racism, I think they may attract more attention than they'd want.

3. It would be helpful for the person to know Kyrgyz, as the most widely spoken language, and Russian, as a minority language disproportionately found at higher-level business. I'd probably want them to spend a few weeks in Kyrgyzstan beforehand and provide for them extensive research on the culture of Kyrgyzstan. Our book mentions different sources that could help - CultureGrams, Country Studies Area Handbooks, and Background Notes by the US Dept. of State. It would be nice for the employee to have lived in a Central Asian/Eastern European country before for a few years or even just a few months. While it's not to say that those countries are all the same, customs in Uzbekistan or Russia to Kyrgyzstan are more similar than US customs to Kyrgyzstan.

4. Ideally, I would choose a polycentric staffing policy because those people would know the local culture, business environment, and languages better than a US expat. As I mentioned before, Kyrgyzstan is fairly homogeneous, so local managers wouldn't attract unwanted attention. However, the level of higher education in Kyrgyzstan is fairly low, so there isn't a large pool of world-class managerial talent, even in larger cities like Bishkek. Therefore, I'd probably go for a geocentric staffing method, where I simply choose the best qualified and adaptable managers. Since that's very expensive, it may end up being that I go for geocentric staffing only at the very highest level and then use decently well-educated locals for mid- and low- levels of business.

5. To help reduce culture shock, I'd send employees on a trip to Kyrgyzstan beforehand to hopefully acclimate them to the environment there. I'd make sure they felt well-prepared and knowledgeable about customs, the culture, the education, even the food. While there isn't a huge Western expat population in Kyrgyzstan, I found a Facebook group with over 1000 members for expats. That group plus forums could help ease loneliness and worry of my employees. As for reverse culture shock, our textbook recommends home-culture reorientation programs, like sending the family back to America for a few weeks before they actually return, and career-counseling sessions. My company could provide for those programs. Also, I'd make sure to give the employees lots of notice before they return home, whether it's a plan we created beforehand or just that we no longer need employees there. That way, they can take their time packing up, saying goodbyes, and preparing for life back in America.

6. There are no restrictions on global companies to hire Kyrgyzstan nationals as employees. Companies are free to bring in their own foreign employees. In addition, using temporary workers or firing/hiring workers due to fluctuating conditions is legal and not restricted. Labor unions do exist in Kyrgyzstan, but generally have little presence. They are independent and allowed to bargain collectively, organize, etc. However, government restrictions have made it hard for unions to take more drastic action - the process to allow a strike is complicated and difficult, and the law "does not prohibit retaliating against striking workers." In general, lax government regulation of safety and working rights combined with stricter regulation of the powers of unions creates an environment where worker exploitation is fairly common. While I would hope that my company would not try and take advantage of that, that remains the reality.

Sources (besides the ones linked in my response)

International Business, Wild

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/kg.html

https://www.export.gov/article?id=Kyrgyz-Republic-Labor-Policies-and-Practices