Abstract
The relative capacity of the modern world business to unravel the concept of Expatriate failure extensively is worth understanding. Thus, the exploration of the defining the Expatriate failure from a business perspective and the discoveries generated to provide an insight at which a business literature is designed. From a business perspective, the expatriate failure concept or definition has produced a point of argument or critique raising concerns in the world of business. Therefore, analysis presented in this document is helpful in understanding the concept or definition of expatriate failure and its comprehensive or sophisticated understanding (Tran, 2013). On a broad front, Expatriate failure associated problems, influencing factors and factors that constitute the Expatriate failure are critically and creatively analyzed. The report further compares the Expatriate failure and Expatriate success in relation to the influencing factors. Lastly, analysis provided in this paper provides a general recommendation as well as a conclusion that overweighs the abandonment of the concept or defining of Expatriate failure in relation to the HR literature theory. By doing so, the report uncovers performance management and turnover associated problems about the Expatriate context (Deshpande, 2014).Keywords: Expatriate failure, expatriation, multinationals, international assignment and premature returns.
Introduction Expatriate failure entails a complex and proactive concepts bearing a prominent position literature from an international assignment measurement or rating. Thus, expatriate failure uses premature turnover as a turning point in a business perspective that measures expatriate failure or expatriate success. Therefore, the development of corporate globalization to expand or realize increased profit margins from a global market has forced the creation of increased demand for Expatriates (expats). However, the Expatriation concept that is defined as a foreign country non-native employee has faced multiple debates globally in relation to its association in terms of benefits and its contributions to creating a suitable business environment (Tran, 2013). Thus, the defining of the Expatriate failure in providing technical knowledge in executive planning and business idea generation as a result of exchanging of employees in the global market is worth understanding (Zaragoza-Saez & Quer-Ramon, 2011). In general, the concept of Expatriate failure or sub-standard performance level is dependent on the influencing factors, constitutes, management and the filled positions as exploited vividly in details in this paper.Expatriate failure constituting factors In a business perspective, premature returns are considered as a form of failure in terms of defining rates and estimations. However, international expiration may find expatriate successful if contracted period completion ends with mission guarantees. Conversely, from a business perspective it may not be the case even if the Expatriates completes his/her contracted period. Therefore, factors such as adjustment and poor staffing in a foreign country constitute an expatriate failure (Foganhole & Miura, 2012). In simple words, the adoption of the external environment in relation to cross-cultural understanding and family issues compared to training or repatriation issues
Family matters about the expatriate’s adaptability mechanism to a new working environment may cause psychological stress resulting in reduced performance of the expatriate employee. In addition, psychological problems associated with the new work environment may distrust the worker’ personal comfortability resulting in the Expatriate failure. Short-term duration or orientation with respect to the overall assessment of job performance and planning is also a contributing factor. In addition, other constitute an expatriate failure include; repatriation issues, inadequate business or performance oriented training for the purpose of cross-cultural encounters of the expatriate (Tran, 2013). Broad analysis of the expatriate failure determinants indicates that, inadequate knowledge or ability of the expatriate to intercultural relation problems contribute to premature overturn. In some cases, insufficient application of more rigorous programs that prepares the expatriates to the overseas’ business environment may be a contributing factor. In addition, there are chances where the job motility is unrestrictedly resulting in reduced innovation and invention of related skills (Deshpande, 2014). Therefore, it is worth acknowledging that, the overall qualification of the expatriate for the overseas performance or assignment may be sub-standard in conjunction to overreliance on competence criteria undermining other related important issues. However, further analysis of the expatriate failure factors indicates that, maintenance cost, development and remuneration factors are the contributing factors. Thus, these factors strengthen the expatriate failing abilities to increase his/her working performance (Tran, 2013). In simple words, accommodation issues in the foreign country, cost of living, territorial mobility restrictions may limit the expatriate to adventure to development or innovation his/her performance abilities. From a different point of view, selection and recruitment processes for the expatriate to fit in the oversea business jobs or environment may be altered by corruption or failure to reach a managerial or organization position requirements (Foganhole & Miura, 2012). For example, the companies or business organization may fail to consider qualification requirements that may make the expatriate more suitable than others in the overseas managerial positions. For instance, the administrative skills and knowledge related to the position taken in business organizational structure or previous performance and experiences in working abroad. In addition, there can be failures related to limited knowledge of evaluating the expatriate in relation to his/her ability to active command in foreign languages and its related environment (Tran, 2013). From a different perspective, strict link between expatriation and selection process in evaluating the expatriate abilities in relation to the managerial position, professional achievements and skills may be a significant challenge to the expatriate performance. For example, the expatriate business candidate’ international knowledge and abilities to speak a foreign language may be ignored in selection criteria or process but they are quite essential in determining the expatriate failure. In simple words, although the expatriate may be well trained or skilled to fit the desired business managerial position, other challenges may force his performance to undesirable rating or result according to Foganhole & Miura, (2012).Factors influencing the expatriate’s dysfunction behavior and action failure Individual factors act as a connecting component between the expatriate failure and his/her personality. For example, different psychological features may alter the global market performance where the introversion meaning in relation to the social contract may be obligated. In addition, inadequate optimism of the expatriate in staying away from his/her family members in conjunction to business neuroticism and lake of abilities in manifesting openness to new challenges may be a problem (Zaragoza-Saez & Quer-Ramon, 2011). Little motivation or low resistance to new market environmental stress associated with abilities in coping with the new environment may be a contributing factor to an individual’s expatriate failure. In addition, inadequate willingness to deal with the uprising unique psychological challenges can force an expatriate to fail dramatically. In simple words, limited internal motivation to create an international market setting within oneself that link the expatriate assignment and the overseas experiences may generally led to an expatriate failure (Zaragoza-Saez & Quer-Ramon, 2011). On broad aspect, cross-cultural factors that link the expatriate’s background, and the international culture may be an influencing factor in the expatriate failure due to adjustment or adapting problems. For example, the organization and cultural standard of the foreign market environment that limit the mobility of the employees (Deshpande, 2014). In this case, ethnic identity, age, race, and language may limit the expatriate’s ability to explore the global market in a foreign country where the conditions are unfavorable. On similar account, language barrier or race may force the expatriate to terminated his/her contract or reduce expatriate’s performance when he feels isolated or rejected in the foreign country. In simple terms, cross-cultural factors will significantly reduce the expatriate performance (Foganhole & Miura, 2012). It is worth acknowledging that, business organizational factors or structure such as managerial methods or style of shaping its influences in the global market may be a contributing factor. For example, a business organization may constitute poor selection methods, training and remuneration or motivation methods that do not favor the expatriate in working in an intercultural global market (Arno & Chris, 2008). In addition, organizational goal and objectives may not be too high to be met by the expatriate in a high competitive environment that does not match the expatriates’ skills to respond or adapt adequately. In simple term, there may be presence of a wide gap between the organizational goals in the overseas environment and the individual’s objectives which leads to continuous work training leading to gradual expatriate failure (Svenja & Michael, 2007).Expatriate performance influencing factors Factors that result in the expatriate success will lead to the expatriate’s performance. Therefore, all factors that affect expatriate’s performance in a business perspective will also result to expatriates success in global market environment (Zaragoza-Saez & Quer-Ramon, 2011). It is worth understanding that, expatriate’s assignment or responsibilities from a business perspective include managing new business experiences, managing business change as well as handling challenges that may result from personal or organizational factors. However, adequate knowledge and ability provided to the expatriate to face out cross-cultural issues will significantly contribute to expatriate performance (Arno & Chris, 2008). On similar account, adequate application of technical programs and training that enables the expatriate to be prepared adequately for the overseas’ business environment or experiences will increase the expatriate performance. In addition, expatriates job mobility in relation to the foreign sister companies or business organization can be restricted to increase innovation and invention of related skills due to business work automatization (Foganhole & Miura, 2012). Therefore, it is worth understanding that, the overall performance of the expatriate for the overseas assignment will be increased. From a different perspective, expatriate performance can be improved dramatically if the expatriate’s maintenance cost, development and remuneration related factors are taken into consideration (Svenja & Michael, 2007). In simple, the expatriate individual work related factors such as accommodation issues in the foreign country, family problems, cost of living, territorial mobility restrictions and other relevant matters should be carefully be monitored to prevent generation of work-related stress. Conversely, expatriate performance is influenced by selection and recruitment processes that see the expatriate fit in the expatriate assignment or business environment. Hence, an unaltered process by the forces corruption or failure in reaching managerial position requirements criteria in the global market will reduce the expatriate’s performance (Deshpande, 2014). For example, the business companies with poor strategies for determining highly qualified staffs by using proper and recommended selection and qualification criteria. The measures should include various mechanisms such as previous foreign country performance, ability to speak in foreign languages and managerial skills or knowledge in the related work (Foganhole & Miura, 2012). In addition, the expatriate’s performance can be improved if there are proper training in adaptive mechanisms in the foreign countries and provision of enough social and cultural support for attaining the set goals successively. From a different perspective, the expatriate performance can be successfully be improved by the organization if there are no related expatriate selection mistakes or process. For example, a business company can improve the expatriate performance in the oversea expatriate assignment if the expatriate’s technical skills are combined with other critical factors (Svenja & Michael, 2007). For example, the ability of the expatriate to interact or relate to other people and willingness to adapt or accept the new environment, culture, and social challenges should be used in the selection process and qualification criteria.
Cross-cultural and pre-departure improves the expatriate performance as the expatriate can foresee the upcoming challenges that may be encountered in the oversea assignment that may hinder his/her operations or performance. In addition, the presence of a business advocate or mentor that communicate or take care of the expatriate interests in a foreign country can significantly improve his performance (Arno & Chris, 2008).Expatriate failure comprehensive concept International assignment premature end with or without related reasons resulting to underperformance or related issues such as repatriation issues can be determined by the causes of its outcomes. On a broad aspect, expatriate failure does not only reflect reduced value added to the organization but also reflects a failure of something in relation to the business (Svenja & Michael, 2007). Therefore, expatriate failures as a negative market value mainly focus on the expatriate individual factors or expatriate himself even though the business organization may selection process of the right candidate for the oversea assignment. However, from a company point of view, expatriate failure to the organization may not mean expatriate failure to the expatriate himself (Carmel & Nicholson, 2005). The expatriate failure damages in expatriate management literature only qualify to create adverse impacts on the business organization but rather not the expatriate himself. For example, in business reorganization or restructuring a position may be terminated or expatriate dismissed, the outcome cannot be classified as a expatriate failure even though it can be regarded so by the expatriate himself (Deshpande, 2014). From a different point of view, premature resignation of the expatriate as a result of competitive and better offer from the competitor resulting to damage or dysfunction to the organization is regarded as a failure. In this regard, using the definition described above, functional turnover that sees an underperforming expatriate out of the business is of value compared to dysfunctional turn turnover that sees a highly performing expatriate quite the business position (Arno & Chris, 2008). Further analysis of the expatriate definition from a business perspective can be reflected from the word failure that contextualizes the term failure to relate to the expatriate side. In this regard, expatriation failure can be defined as the inability of the repatriate or expatriate to meeting his organization expectation or his target performance designed by his team. In simple, words, expatriate underperformance as well as dysfunctional turnover in relation to business perspective after repatriation is regard as a failure. In general, it is worth understanding that, expatriate performance, turnover, and the associated management performance concepts constitute the definition of expatriate failure (Ted, 2003).Expatriate turnover and performance management context Human Resource Management activities in performance management systems are designed to improve any employee’s performance. Thus, integrated employee’s performance are stimulated by individual performance goals, performance improvement opportunities, performance and rewards links as well as progress in regular feedback from employees and business organization (Svenja & Michael, 2007). Conversely, when these factors are integrated or incorporated in international assignments, expatriation failure will be prevented. For example, in selection and training of the expatriates, communication on expected performance as well as individual performance requirements should be clearly communicated and defined. Hence, the organization can improve their expatriates’ performance management and turnover if their goals are achievable, specific, measurable, timely and realistic (Carmel & Nicholson, 2005). However, the organization goals or objective may not be realistic or achievable under different cultural context or business environment. For this scenario, regular feedback is quite essential for improving and managing the expatriate performance by assigning a business related mentor to the expatriate at the headquarters who has worked with different cultural context and experience to alleviate the problem. In simple words, regular feedback will create room for problem identification or signaling at early stages before the situation worsen. Thus, expatriate performance will be solved by prior providing opportunities for improved performance or correction thereby preventing potential factors that may contribute to the expatriate failure (Ted, 2003). The link between the expatriate performance and rewards promotes recognition value in the international assignment. Hence, the employees or expatriates would feel motivated and develop adaptive mechanisms that would lead to job satisfaction and commitment. In simple terms, the expatriate turnover, role description, and support would be directed towards a higher performed goal. From a different point of view, organizational support in conjunction to the role clarity improves the expatriate’s adaptive mechanisms or adjustments to the new working environment resulting in increased performance (Carmel & Nicholson, 2005). However, role conflicts in the new operating environment lead to reduced job commitment as well as increased job dissatisfaction. In addition, employee’s turnover for the international assignment is substantially improved by active promotional influence and development of career opportunities for both organizational commitments and expatriate job satisfaction (Ted, 2003).Conclusion Defining the expatriate failure from a business perspective can only be achieved through collective bargains. Therefore, organization and expatriate perspectives and expectation plays significant roles in defining the expatriate failure in relation to the turnover and management performance context. Inability of the expatriate to reach their organization expectation resulting in premature turnover or underperformance is regarded as expatriate failure. In contrast, early end of international assignment in an ideal expatriate or international cycle turn out to reflect unplanned outcomes as a result of factors influencing or determine expatriate failure. Through analysis of the factors that causes expatriate failure, it is clear that personal, organizational and cross-cultural factors cause expatriate failure. It is worth generalizing that, through evaluating the nature of international assignment in relation to its possible outcome, an expatriate may still fail both performance and turnover even if he/she remains in the business throughout the contracted business. Therefore, in the light of clear and adequate understanding of the definition of the expatriate failure from an enterprise perspective, it is recommendable for further research for clarification and understanding of the concept of expatriate facture. In addition, dysfunctional turnover prevention strategies and performance management contexts should be broadly examined.
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