Global Careers: Personal and Organizational Challenges and Rewards

Dr. Margaret ShafferUniversity of Wisconsin Milwaukee

WERC September 19, 2012

Agenda

• Global careers in perspective • Global career alternatives• Personal challenges and rewards• Organizational challenges and rewards• Research trends and opportunities

Global Bingo

Exercise

Global Bingo

• Goals: Assess global knowledge; create awareness of global complexities; emphasize the importance of shared knowledge in global settings; get to know each other better; have fun; and win prizes

• To win, have five correct answers down, across, or diagonally• You may not answer the questions on your own bingo board• Find someone who can answer a question, have him/her initial

the box and fill in the answer without stating the answer aloud• Obtain no more than two answers from any one person• When you have five down, across, or diagonally, yell “Global

Bingo!”

Global Careers

Short-termAssignees

GlobalDomestics Frequent

Flyers

Commuters

VirtualTeamMembers

Alternativesto Corporate Expatriates

Self-initiated Expatriates

Flex-patriates

Corporate Expatriates Self-Initiated Expatriates

Purpose Managerial controlSkill/technology transferManagement development

Personal developmentCareer development

Duration Usually 12-36 months Varies (short-term to permanent)

Location 1 country 1 country

Relocation With family With or without family

Advantages Professional and personal developmentRelationship building and integration with host country nationalsGlobal boundary-spanner

Professional and personal developmentRelationship building with host country nationals

Disadvantages ExpensiveLack of flexibilityFamily adjustment problemsSeparation from extended family

Personal risk/expenseContractual obligationSeparation from extended family

Comparison of Expatriates

Comparison of Global Travelers and Global DomesticsShort-term Assignees Flexpatriates

Purpose Skill/technology transferProblem solvingManagement controlManagement development

Project-basedProblem solvingSkill/technical transfer

Duration Usually 3-12 months Usually 1-2 months

Location 1 or few countries Multiple countries

Relocation Usually without family Without family

Advantages Flexibility and simplicityCost effectivenessGlobal boundary-spanner

Flexibility and simplicityCost effectivenessGlobal boundary-spannerGlobal perspective

Disadvantages Separation stress – alcoholism, divorce, health issuesLack of integration with host country nationals

Separation/travel stress – alcoholism, divorce, health issuesTime zone differencesLack of social integration at home and host locations

Comparison of Global Travelers and Global DomesticsIBTs Global Domestics

Purpose Knowledge-transferNegotiationsDiscussionsMeetings or conferences

Service providerBuyer of products/suppliesLogistics manager

Duration Usually 1-2 weeks None or limited trips

Location Multiple countries 1 or multiple countries

Relocation Without family None

Advantages Flexibility and simplicityMost cost effectiveGlobal boundary-spannerRelationship maintenance with home-country colleagues

Flexibility and simplicity

Disadvantages Separation/travel stress – alcoholism, divorce, health issuesTime zone differencesHost country relationships limited to work colleagues

Lack of global perspectiveDifficult to develop relationships with those in other countries

Brookfield Global Relocation Services 2012

Assignment Policies Currently in Place

Other

Virtual Teams

Developmental

Rotational Assignments

Commuter

Local Hires

Extended Business Travel

Localization of Expatriates

1-Way Move

Short-term Assignments

Long-term Assignments

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 120%

8%

3%

18%

18%

26%

22%

25%

35%

44%

86%

96%

Brookfield Global Relocation Services 2012

Future Assignment Policies under Consideration

Other

Rotational

Developmental

One-way Moves

Commuter

Localization of Expatriates

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40%

14%

5%

13%

28%

27%

25%

24%

33%

20%

22%

36%

INTERNATIONAL ASSIGNMENTS

Who and Where

Profile of International Assignees• 80% are male• Ages

– 13% are 20-29 years old– 31% are 30-39 years old– 34% are 40-49 years old– 19% are 50-59 years old– 3 % are 60+

• 79% have not had any expatriate experience• 89% were already employed by the company • 60% are married• 43% took children on the assignment• 81% of those married had spouse/partner accompany them on

assignment

Assignment DestinationsTop Locations Emerging New Locations Most Challenging

Locations

United States Chili China

China Brazil Brazil

United Kingdom Australia India

Singapore India Russia

Germany Russia United States

Australia South Africa United Kingdom

Global Careers and the Individual

Challenges and Rewards

Major Personal Challenge:Cross-Cultural Adjustment• Anticipatory adjustment influenced by pre-departure

training, previous experience with same country or similar culture

• In-country adjustment affected by ability to maintain a positive outlook under high pressure, interact well with HCN’s, understand cultural values and norms, handle job responsibilities, adapt to organizational culture, self and family’s ability to handle new culture, and expat’s ability to “get along” in organization

Expatriate Challenges

• Adjustment– Work– Interaction– Cultural

• Spouse adjustment• Global knowledge, skills and

abilities

Low

High

1 2 3 4 5 6Months in a New Culture

Moo

d

Expatriate Failure

• Failure – Return home early– Poor performance– Poor adjustment

• Cost of failure can be quite high – relocation and replacement costs, damage to reputation, lost business, etc.

Causes of Assignment Failure

• Spouse/partner dissatisfaction• Other family concerns• Job does not meet expectations• Inability to adapt• Inadequate job performance• Poor candidate selection

Expatriate Re-Entry

• Reverse culture shock• Readjustment problems– New position constitutes a demotion– Lack of opportunity to use skills learned abroad– Salary and benefits may decrease– Others do not relate to foreign perspective

• Up to 25% of returning expats leave the company within one year after returning

Transition Strategies

• To facilitate adjustment – Individual and firm agree upon the length of

the tour of duty– Mutually agreeable job identified for expatriate

return• Keep expatriate involved in home office

communication and projects while s/he is abroad• Proactive strategy that provides an effective

support system to allay concerns about career issues

Global Careers:Personal Rewards• Personal growth and development• Greater self-confidence• Increased autonomy and responsibilities• Global mindset• Transferable skills• Faster promotions

Global Careers and the Organization

Challenges and Rewards

Purposes of Expatriate Assignments • Fill a skills gap (technical or managerial)• Build global relationships• Craft a common corporate identity and culture• Market products• Transfer technology to foreign subsidiaries• Provide managers with international experience• Reward long-time employees• Provide better on-site control of foreign operations

Organizational Challenges

• Broader and more flexible perspective• More involvement in employees’ lives• Greater exposure to problems and difficulties• Greater exposure to external influences• Greater complexities in all areas of human resource

management

Female Expatriates• Less than 20% of expatriates are female• Female expatriates have lower failure rates than

males– Males: 10-40%– Females: 3%

• More difficult to get the job than to do the job• Female expatriates are seen as foreigners first and

as women second• Treated with the same respect as male expatriates• Being a female can sometimes be an advantage

Dual-Career Couples

• More employees are refusing int’l assignments because of spouse employment– Loss of spouse’s income– Derailment of spouse’s career

• MNCs have to select from a diminishing pool of qualified applicants

Strategic Responses for Dealing with Dual-Career Challenges

• Intercompany networking• Job-hunting assistance• Intracompany employment• Support for commuter marriages• On-assignment career support

Critical Assignment Management Challenges

Return on investment

Lack of mobility technology

Complex administration program

Mobility team resources

Inability to use experience

Compliance

Retention of repatriates

Careerm management

Controlling policy exceptions

Cost of assignment

0% 2% 4% 6% 8% 10% 12% 14%

4%

4%

4%

6%

6%

7%

9%

9%

11%

13%

Brookfield Global Relocation Services 2012

Initiatives to Improve Expatriate ROI

Web-based CC Training

Company Intranet

Mandatory Destination Support

Recognition/Communication During Assignment

Mentoring

Mandatory Cross-cultural Training

Assignment Preparation

Communication of Objectives

Career Planning

Candidate Selection/Assessment

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35%

1%

1%

1%

5%

5%

5%

9%

20%

23%

30%

Organizational Rewards

• Pool of experienced international employees• Accumulation of international knowledge, skills and

abilities• Global mindset among management team• Control over subsidiaries• Transfer of knowledge and competence to

subsidiaries

The Global Employee Mobility (GEM) Project

Global Work Experiences – Research and Practice

The Global Employee Mobility Project• Aim is to improve the success of global employees• Consortium of academics from around the world• Research on all forms of global work experiences– Expatriates/repatriates– Short-term assignees– Flexpatriates– International Business Travelers (IBTs)– Global virtual team members– Global domestics

Taxonomy of Global Work Experiences

High

Low

High

LowLow High

GlobalDomestics

Global VirtualTeamMembers

InternationalBusinessTravelers

Flexpatriates

Self-InitiatedExpatriates

CorporateExpatriates

Degree ofCognitiveMobility

Degree ofBoundaryIntegration

Global Work Experiences

Degree of Physical Mobility

Short-term Assignees

Dimensions of Global Work• We define global work experiences along three

dimensions that identify unique requirements of the different types of global work experiences: – Physical mobility - degree to which the work role requires

the global employee to travel, or relocate, internationally – Cognitive flexibility - the degree to which the global work

requires role incumbents to adjust their thought patterns and scripts to effectively interact with people and adapt to situational demands across cultures.

– Non-work disruption – the degree to which the work role requirements disrupt or interfere with the employee’s normal activities and routines outside of work.

Choices, Challenges, and Consequences of Global Work

Choices Challenges Consequences

• Country and family considerations

• Intrinsic and extrinsic motivators

• Personal characteristics

• Safety concerns

Pers

onal

Org

aniz

atio

nal

• Selection criteria• Fit between employee

and global work experience type

• Incentive plans• Preparing employees

for global work

• Adjustment and coping with stress

• Work and nonwork demands

• Inter-cultural relationships

• Identity transformation

• Support resources for employees and families

• Transition management

• Career management• Employee engagement

• Satisfaction• Well-being• Career progression • Development of global

competencies

• Performance• Retention• Utilization of global

competencies • Work goal attainment

Firm Participation

• Provide survey access to– Global employees– Spouses/partners and colleagues (if possible)

• Benefits– Summary of survey results– Suggestions for improving global work experiences