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TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT

OF
GLOBAL EXPATRIATES
FLOW OF THE PRESENTATION

1 . INTRODUCTION
•Staffing Policy
2. Managing expatriates ( Keywords : Stress , Expatriate Stress ,
Stressors .)
•Brief summary
•Stress Process in Expatriates
•Stressors in Expatriate Assignment
3 . Training module for Expatriates
•the two types of strategies, which an organization may adopt in its training
module
And individual Coping Strategies
4 . Training evaluation framework for expatriates
•Implementation issues across cultures
•The Kirkpatrick model and the 360-degree feedback in expatriates
5 . Case study
Who is an Expatriate ?
 An expatriate (in abbreviated form, expat) is a person temporarily or
permanently residing in a country and culture other than that of the person's upbringing
or legal residence. The word comes from the Latin term expatriātus from ex ("out of")
and ‘patria’ the ablative case of patria ("country, fatherland").

 Host country nationals(HCN’s):Citizens of the country in which the


organization's foreign subsidiary operates.
 Parent country nationals (PCN’S):The citizens of the country in which the
headquarters of the multinational are based.
 Third country national (TCN’s):The citizens of a country other than the parent
or host country.

CORPORATE CULTURE AND EXPATRIATE SELECTION

Corporate Culture
“an organizational variable which may “mould and shape internal culture to
particular ways and how to change culture, consistent with managerial
purposes”

“a view of organizations as expressive forms, manifestations of human


consciousness”.
Staffing Policy
 Staffing policy:
 Selecting individuals with requisite skills to do a particular job.
 Also as tools for developing and promoting corporate culture.

 Types of staffing policy:


 Ethnocentric.
 Polycentric.
 Geocentric.
Types of Staffing Policy

Ethnocentri
Polycentric Geocentric
c

Key
management Host-country
nationals manage Seek best
positions
subsidiaries, people,
filled by
parent company regardless
parent- nationals hold key of nationality
country Headquarter
nationals positions
The Expatriate Problem

Expatriate failure:
Premature return of the expatriate manager to his/her home country

Cost of failure is high:


Estimate at three times of an expatriate’s annual salary plus the cost of relocation
(impacted by currency exchange rates and assignment location) $250,000-
1million
Expatriate Failure Rates

Recall Rate Percent Percent of Companies


US Multinationals
20 - 40% 7%
10 - 20% 69
< 10 24
European Multinationals
11 - 15% 3%
6 - 10 38
<5 59
Japanese Multinationals
11 - 19% 14%
6 - 10 10
<5 76 Table 18.3
Reason for Expatriate Failure

 U.S. Multinationals  Japanese Firms


 Inability of spouse to adjust  Inability to cope with larger
 Manager’s inability to adjust overseas responsibilities

 Other family problems  Difficulties with the new


environment
 Manager’s personal or emotional
immaturity  Personal or emotional
problems
 Inability to cope with larger
overseas responsibilities  Lack of technical
competence
 Inability of spouse to adjust
Critical Challenges to Successful Relocations


ess management in expatriates

The process The Stressors


Effect of expatriate failures

§Damage to the firms reputation in the international context


§
§Group Dynamics affected
§
§Relationships between host parent countries may also be affected
§
§Productivity of the foreign operations may go down.
§
§Failures have profound effects on the expatriates by causing lowering
their self esteem and ego
Stress process in expatriates
According to the Selye’s (1976) General Adaptation
Syndrome[GAS] model, four stages of expatriate stress can be
identified:
STRESS PROCESS IN EXPATRIATES
STRESS PROCESS IN EXPATRIATES
Stressors in expatriate assignment
Job-related stressors

Ø Cultural adjustment: Cross cultural adjustment is adjustment of expatriate


with the job, host country nationals, and to general work and non work
environment
Ø
Ø Tension between parent and host country work set-up
Ø
Ø Communication problems: The possibilities for communication and
interactions are considerably enhanced if managers are proficient in the
language of the culture in which an expatriate is operating
Job-related stressors
Ø Gender issues: Gender issue is a stressor particularly to women expatriates.
Women expatriates have to be more resilient and resourceful if they wish to be
successful in foreign cultures
Ø
Ø Differences in Compensation: Substantial differences exist in the compensation
of expatriates at the same level in various countries

Ø Quality of superior-subordinate relationship : Relationships between superiors


and subordinates who are from different cultures form the significant aspect of
multi-national organization effectiveness

Personal Stressors

Ø Family issues: Adjustment of the expatriate spouse and family to host country
may be a potential problem affecting the expatriate and may even lead to
assignment failure

Ø Dual-career couple: The expat ‘s spouse has to leave a good job in the home
country.

Ø Psychological acceptance: The non- acceptance of the expatriate is a potential


stressor for an expatriate
Culture shock
 'Culture shock' refers to the process of coming to understand and adapt to
differences in culture manifest through daily interaction and situations.
 The most common stages of culture shock one faces with relocation
abroad are:

 Stimulation: the first stage of relocation is commonly full of hope and


excitement

 Culture shock: The differences in behaviour combined with the stress of
adapting to a new daily routine leads to a dislike and criticism of the
host culture

 Adjustment: After the initial settling-in period, an understanding and
empathy with the host culture starts to develop

 Enthusiasm: The relocation is now a distant memory and the host country
becomes 'home'
1.
Managing Expatriates
Organizational Coping Strategies
 Promoting interaction with the host country nationals: Interpersonal
contacts with the host country nationals teach the expatriate how to behave
and act during the assignment
 Helping hand from HR professionals: HR professionals having an intimate
knowledge of host countries, their customs, language, cost of living,
education alternatives and spouse employment opportunities, etc., can help
the expatriates in overcoming the problems in the host country.
 Testing the personality of the expatriate: Expatriate agreeableness, indication
of collaboration, sincerity, respect and empathy for others, may promote
showing tolerance and patience as well as solving problems responsibly
 Selection of the candidates: Screening candidates for expatriate assignments
so as to “care enough to send only the best qualified,” both in the job
requirements, and in their being able to adjust to the host culture
Organizational Coping Strategies Contd..

 Organizational Training strategies to cope with expatriates stress


 Pre-departure training programs
 Cross-cultural training before and after arrival in the foreign
country
 Language Training
 Job training and Strategic training
 Coaching and Mentoring
Organizational Coping Strategies Contd..
 Organizational support at the new locale: The host country organization should
provide the necessary support to the expatriate emotionally, physically and
psychologically.
 Repatriation programs: A largely overlooked but critical and important issue in
the training and development of expatriates is to prepare them for re-entry into
their home country organization.
 Coaching on career progression: The parent company should clearly explain the
expatriates the career value of the foreign assignment and discuss the career
track following the repatriation
 Knowing the family circumstances: Thorough knowledge about the expatriate
family circumstances, commitments, and family adjustment capabilities
 Proper compensation practices: Equalizing expatriate pay on a global basis to
reduce the substantial difference in the pay
Individual Coping Strategies
 Not being Over Excited: Expatriates should not be over excited of going
to foreign country.
 Learning how to behave: Expatriates should thoroughly observe,
discretely inquire and should try to learn what principles are lying
beneath behaviors of the host country nationals which at first may
appear to be unusual.
 Spouse support: Spouse support and adjustment can help the expatriate as
a great stress reliever
 Exercising: Regular physical exercise, some practice of meditation and
relaxation techniques can help in relieving expatriate stress.
 Recreation: Recreational activities like watching movies, listening to
music, etc. can be taken according to expatriates’ interest to relieve
stress.
Expatriate development
Evaluation in terms of development

The time has come in IHRM to give more attention not only to the design
and content of expatriate training per se, but also the neglected evaluation
of this training and the development of interpersonal and management skills
as well as efficacy building and leadership effectiveness.
Kirkpatrick model

The most widely recognized and comprehensive approach is provided by


Kirkpatrick (1994). He suggests that all training programs should be evaluated
on four basic levels:
Kirkpatrick model

Reaction measures are designed to assess the trainees’


Reaction (level 1).
opinions regarding the expatriate training program

if the expatriates are not positive and enthused, there is


little chance for future benefit.
It provides suggestions on improving future programs.
Reactions can provide quantitative, easy to understand
data that the trainers can use to demonstrate the success
of the expatriate training
Trainee reactions can provide trainers with information
that can be used to establish relative standards of
performance for the design and conduct of future
cultural training programs of expatriates.
Kirkpatrick model

Learning (level 2). Measuring learning in this second level of evaluation


means determining one or more of the following

What knowledge did the expatriate learn?


What attitudes and values were changed?

Behavioral assessment It is one thing to get a favorable reaction and have


(level 3). cognitive learning take place…………
…………..It is quite another to have a desired on-
the-job behaviors in the foreign culture actually
occur.
Kirkpatrick model

Performance results Evaluation of performance improvement measured


(level 4). by outcomes such as productivity, retention,
customer satisfaction, and profits
Multisource
Implementation of 360 degrees across cultures
The process of growth and development in the workplace is ongoing.
Some cultures simply don’t subscribe to the same notion that feedback is valuable and can guide
manager development.
Constructs measured, by 360-degree instruments are appropriate for most
workplaces and cultures.
It is important to consider measurement issues when taking an instrument to a different culture.

(360-degree) feedback
It is both acceptable and valuable to ask bosses, peers, direct reports, and
customers for developmental feedback.

Managers will accept results as accurate and truthful when the 360 data are
kept confidential and when the raters are guaranteed anonymity.

Survey questionnaires as used in the 360 approach reliably and validly


measure individual differences.
Conclusion

§To minimize adverse consequences associated with expatriation,


successful management of expatriation process need to be adopted
with the help of careful human resource management strategy such
as selection, training, compensation, etc.
§It is also suggested that effective use of individual and
organizational strategies may reduce the possibilities of stress
among expatriates.
§At the organizational level, pre and post departure training,
language training cross-cultural training are needed to be
implemented and they should be regularly monitored.
§At the individual level, expatriates should be supported by the
family and friends.
CASE STUDY !
Background Information on the
Organization
Brunt Hotels, PLC, owns more than 60 hotels throughout the United
Kingdom.

They recently acquired a small hotel chain headquartered in France.


Brunt’s chief executive decided that half of the new hotels in France
would be retained and rebranded as part of the Brunt Hotels Group;
the other half will be sold. This will support Brunt’s strategic
objective of growing the organization slowly to make sure that new
ventures are well supported and opened on time and on budget.

Brunt’s hotels are considered budget accommodations; they are


functional, clean and reasonably priced. Additional information about
UK hotel standards is available at
http://www.qualityintourism.com/content/pdfs/Standards/Budget%20Hotels%

Most guests stay for one to three nights and are a combination of
business and leisure travelers. The hotels are typically situated in
downtown locations that are easily accessible by mass transit.
Tourists are attracted to these hotels in popular visitor
destinations where the many local attractions mean that they will not
be
spending much time in their hotel rooms.
Background Information on the
Organization
The organization has decided to use an ethnocentric approach
and send some of their existing UK-based managers to France to
lead the changeover of the new hotels and then manage them after
they re-open. If this new overseas venture is successful,

Brunt may decide to acquire other small hotel groups in other


European countries. The organization would like to own 150 hotels
in the next five years. Their 10-year plan is to own 300 hotels
across Europe. This is an ambitious target, so it is important
that the organization finds an effective formula to operate
successfully in other countries
The organization has never owned any hotels outside the UK before, and has
hired a team of independent management consultants to advise them on how to
proceed. They provided the consultants the following information during their
initial meeting:
§A majority of their existing managers said they would like a chance to work
abroad.
§None of their existing managers speak French fluently.
§They will allow four weeks to rebrand the hotels. The new hotels must be
ready to open after that time.
§They expect to recruit a large number of staff for the new French hotels,
because
§more than 70 percent of the employees from the acquired organization left.
§They will require their managers to be flexible and move between countries if
any problems arise.
Activity
Activity A (5 minutes)
Based on the information you have to date, what do you think the key priorities
should be?

Activity B (15-20 minutes, including presentation of ideas)

The hotel management asked you if they should look only at internal candidates
who are parent country nationals (PCNs) or recruit host country nationals (HCNs).
Group 1 believes that only PCNs should be hired.
Group 2 believes that only HCNs should be hired.

Present the advantages of the approach your group was allocated to the class.

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