Chapter 5
Recruiting and Selecting
Staff for International
Assignments
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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.
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Chapter Objectives (cont.)
 The focus of this chapter is on recruitment
and selection activities in an international
context. We will address the following issues:

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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 for international assignments
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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.
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Table
5-1
Current expatriate profile
Source: based on data from Global Relocation Trends: 2005 Survey Report, GMAC Global Relocation Services, National Foreign Trade
Council and SHRM Global Forum, GMAC-GRS 2006, GMAC GRS.
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Marital Status
 53% Married male
 8% Married female
 7% Male with significant other
 4% Female with significant other
 18% Single male
 10% Single female
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Expatriate Failure
 Definition: Premature return of an expatriate
 Under-performance during an international
assignment
 Retention problem upon completion
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Expatriate Failure Rates
Recall Rate Percent
Percent of Companies
US Multinationals
20 - 40%
10 - 20%
< 10%
7%
69%
24%
European Multinationals
11 - 15%
3%
6 - 10%
< 5%
38%
59%
Japanese Multinationals
11 - 19%
6 – 10%
<5
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14%
10%
76%
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Reason for Expatriate Failure
 US Firms
 Japanese Firms
Inability to cope with
larger overseas
responsibilities
Difficulties with the new
environment
Personal or emotional
problems
Lack of technical
competence
Inability of spouse to
adjust
Inability of spouse to
adjust
Manager’s inability to
adjust
Other family problems
Manager’s personal or
emotional immaturity
Inability to cope with
larger overseas
responsibilities
European Multinationals: Inability of spouse to adjust.
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Reasons for Early Return
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Family
concerns
New
Completes
Cultural
position in assignment adjustment
company
early
challenges
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Security
concerns
Career
concerns
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Direct Costs of Expatriate Failure
 Direct costs:
Airfares
 Associated relocation
expenses
 Salary and benefits
 Training and
development
 Averaged $250,000 per
early return

 Costs vary according to:
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Level of position
Country of destination
Exchange rates
Whether a ‘failed’
manager is replaced by
another expatriate
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Indirect Cost of Expatriate Failure
 Damaged relationships with key stakeholders
in the foreign location
 Negative effects on local staff
 Poor labor relations
 Loss of market share
 Negative effects on expatriate concerned
 Family relationships may be affected
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Figure
5-1
International assignments:
factors moderating performance
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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
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The Employment Relationship
 The nature of the employment relationship

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Relational: broad, open-ended and long-term
obligations
Transactional: specific short-term monetized
obligations
 The condition of the relationship

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Intact: when employee considers there has
been fair treatment, reciprocal trust
Violated: provoked by belief that the
organization has not fulfilled its obligations
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Likelihood of Exit
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Figure
5-2
The phases of cultural adjustment
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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
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Figure
5-3
Factors in expatriate selection
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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 ways in different cultures
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Mendenhall and Oddou’s Model
 Self-oriented dimension
 Perceptual dimension
 Others-oriented dimension
 Cultural-toughness dimension
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Table
5-2
Harris and Brewster’s selection typology
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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
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Table
5-3
Barriers to females taking international
assignments
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Equal Employment Opportunity Issues
 Cultural Variations
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Law and enforcement
Social values
Corporate practices
 The United States
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EEOA within the country
International approach
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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.)
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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.)
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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.
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.
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Chapter Summary
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 chapters that maintaining and
retaining productive staff are equally important.
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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
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Discussion Questions
1. What is the difference between a global manager and a
global mindset?
2. Should multinationals be concerned about expatriate
failure? If so, why?
3. What are the most important factors involved in the
selection decision?
4. Are female expatriates different?
5. Discuss the proposition that most expatriate selection
decisions are made informally, as suggested by the
‘coffee-machine’ solution.
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