2. Chapter Objectives
In Part I, we demonstrated how people play
a central role in sustaining international
operations. As international assignments are
an important vehicle for staffing, it is critical
that they are managed effectively, and the
expatriates are supported so that
performance outcomes are achieved.
3. Chapter Objectives (cont.)
The focus of this chapter is on recruitment
and selection activities in an international
context. We will address the following issues:
The myth of the global manager
The debate surrounding expatriate failure
Factors moderating intent to stay or leave the
international assignment
Selection criteria for international assignments
Dual-career couples
Gender issues
4. The global manager
Myth 1: There is a universal approach to
management.
Myth 2: People can acquire multicultural
adaptability and behaviors.
Myth 3: There are common characteristics
shared by successful international
managers.
Myth 4: There are no impediments to mobility.
5. Current Expatriate Profile
Category PCN (42%) HCN (16%) TCN (42%)
Gender Male (82%) Female (18%)
Age (Yrs) 30-49 (60%) 20-29 (17%)
Marital status Married (65%) Single (26%)
Partner (9%)
Accompanied by Spouse (86%) Children (59%)
Duration 1-3 years (52%) Short-term (9%)
Location Europe (35%) Asia-Pacific (24%)
Primary reason Fill a position
Prior international experience 30%
Source: based on data from global Relocation Trends: 2002 Survey Report, GMAC Global Relocation Services,
National Foreign Trade Council and SHRM Global Forum, GMAC-GRS 2003.
6. Expatriate Failure
Definition: Premature return of an expatriate
Under-performance during an international
assignment
Retention upon completion
8. Reason for Expatriate Failure
US Firms Japanese Firms
Inability of spouse to Inability to cope with
adjust larger overseas
responsibilities
Manager’s inability to
Difficulties with the new
adjust environment
Other family problems Personal or emotional
Manager’s personal or problems
emotional immaturity Lack of technical
Inability to cope with competence
larger overseas Inability of spouse to
responsibilities adjust
European Multinationals: Inability of spouse to adjust.
9. Costs of Expatriate Failure
Direct costs: Costs vary
Airfares according to:
Associated Level of position
relocation expenses Country of
Salary and benefits destination
Training and Exchange rates
development Whether ‘failed’
Averaged $250,000 manager is replaced
per early return by another
expatriate
10. Indirect Cost of Expatriate Failure
Damaged relationships with key
stakeholders in the foreign location
Negative effects on local staff
Poor labor relations
Negative effects on expatriate
concerned
Family relationships may be affected
Loss of market share
11. Factors Moderating Expatriate
Performance
Inability to adjust to the foreign culture
Length of assignment
Willingness to move
Work-related factors
Psychological contract/employment
relationship
12. The Employment Relationship
The nature of the employment relationship
Relational: broad, open-ended and long-term
obligations
Transactional: specific short-term monetized
obligations
The condition of the relationship
Intact: when employee considers there has
been fair treatment, reciprocal trust
Violated: provoked by belief organization has
not fulfilled its obligations
17. The Phases of Adjustment
The U-Curve is not normative
The time period involved varies between
individuals
The U-Curve does not explain how and why
people move through the various phases
It may be more cyclical than a U-Curve
Needs to consider repatriation
18. Organizational Commitment
Affective component
Employee’s attachment to, identification with
and involvement in, the organization
Continuance component
Based on assessed costs associated with
exiting the organization
Normative component
Employee’s feelings of obligation to remain
19. Why consider the psychological
contract?
Nature, location and duration of an
international assignment may provoke
intense, individual reactions to perceived
violations
Expatriates tend to have broad, elaborate,
employment relationships with greater
emphasis on relational nature
Expectations and promises underpin this
relationship
20. Selection Criteria
Technical ability
Cross-cultural suitability
Family requirements
Country-cultural requirements
MNE requirements
Language
21. Using Traits and Personality Tests to
Predict Expatriate Success
Although some tests may be useful in
suggesting potential problems, there may be
little correlation between test scores and
performance
Most of the tests have been devised in the
United States, thus culture-bound
In some countries, there is controversy about
the use of psychological tests ( different
pattern of usage across countries)
Use of personality traits to predict intercultural
competence is complicated by the fact that
personality traits are not defined and
evaluated in similar way in different cultures
23. Mendenhall and Oddou’s Model
Self-oriented dimension
Perceptual dimension
Others-oriented dimension
Cultural-toughness dimension
24. Harris and Brewster’s Selection Typology
Formal Informal
Open
Clearly defined criteria Less defined criteria
Clearly defined measures Less defined measures
Training for selectors Limited training for selectors
Open advertising of vacancy Open advertising of vacancy
(internal/external) Recommendations
Panel discussions No panel discussions
Closed
Clearly defined criteria Selector’s individual preferences
Clearly defined measures determine selection criteria and measures
Training for selectors No panel discussions
Panel discussions Nominations only (networking/reputation)
Nominations only (networking/reputation)
25. Solutions to the Dual-career Challenge
Alternative assignment arrangements
Short-term
Commuter
Other (e.g. unaccompanied, business travel,
virtual assignments)
Family-friendly policies
Inter-company networking
Job-hunting assistance
Intra-company employment
On-assignment career support
26. Barriers to Females Taking
International Assignments
External Barrier Self-established Barriers
HR managers reluctant to Some women have limited
select female candidates willingness to relocate
Culturally tough locations or The dual-career couple
regions preclude female Women are often a barrier to
expatriates their own careers by behaving
Those selecting expatriates according to gender based
have stereotypes in their role models.
minds that influence decisions
27. Equal Employment Opportunity Issues
Cultural Variations
Law and enforcement
Social values
Corporate practices
The United States
EEOA within the country
International approach
28. Chapter Summary
This chapter has addressed key issues affecting
recruitment and selection for international
assignments. We have covered:
Four myths related to the concept of a global
manager
The debate surrounding the definition and
magnitude of expatriate failure.
(cont.)
29. Chapter Summary (cont.)
Cultural adjustment and other moderating factors
affecting expatriate intent to stay and
performance.
Individual and situational factors to be considered
in the selection decision.
Evaluation of the common criteria used revealed
the difficulty of selecting the right candidate for an
international assignment and the importance of
including family considerations in the selection
process.
(cont.)
30. Chapter Summary (cont.)
Dual-career couples as a barrier to staff
mobility, and the techniques that multinationals are
utilizing to overcome this constraint.
Female expatriates and whether they face different
issues to their male counterparts.
It is clear that, while our appreciation of the issues surrounding
expatriate recruitment and selection has deepened in the past 20 years,
much remains to be explored.
The field is dominated by US research into predominantly US samples
of expatriates, although there has been an upsurge in interest from
European academics and practitioners.
31. Chapter Summary
It is also apparent that staff selection remains critical.
Finding the right people to fill positions, particularly
key managers – whether PCN, TCN or HCN – can
determine international expansion.
However, effective recruitment and selection are only
the first step.
We will explore in the next chapter that maintaining
and retaining productive staff are equally important.
32. Chapter Summary
Corporate philosophy on recruiting and selection
Selection criteria and issues of concern
Local and home countries’ policies on foreign labor
Variations in national labor law and labor markets
Inter-company networking
Intra-company arrangement
Career assistance programs
Training and continuous adaptation
33. Chapter Summary (cont.)
Will the factors affecting the selection decision be similar for
multinationals emerging from countries such as China and India?
If more multinationals are to encourage subsidiary staff to
consider international assignments as part of an intra-organizational
network approach to management, we will need further
understanding of how valid the issues discussed in this chapter are
for all categories of staff from different country locations.
Another area that remains ignored is the selection of non-
expatriates, that is, the international business travelers we discussed
in Chapter 3. In our survey of current literature, there is a paucity
of recognition of this group.
(cont.)
34. Chapter Summary (cont.)
The various consulting firm surveys conducted into
relocation trends in 2002 that we draw on in this
chapter indicate that more multinationals are
resorting to replacing traditional assignments with
business travel as a way of overcoming staff
immobility. Likewise, there is a need for further
work into the performance–selection link
surrounding non-standard assignments, including
commuter and virtual assignments.
