Expatriate Failure Rates Research Articles

No expatriate is an island: the role of salient stakeholders' support in international assignments

PurposeInternational assignments are an effective tool to develop employees' cultural competencies, yet expatriate failure rates remain high. This paper aims to examine salient stakeholders' (i.e. organisations, host country nationals (HCNs) and spouses) support as antecedents of expatriates' work adjustment and task performance. It also explores work adjustment as a mediator between support and task performance.Design/methodology/approachAdopting the quantitative approach, survey data were collected from 112 expatriates who were married and based in organisations in Malaysia. Partial least squares-structural equation modelling was employed to analyse the data.FindingsThe findings validate the direct influences of perceived organisational support (POS) on work adjustment, HCN support on work adjustment, and spousal support on task performance. The indirect effect of HCN support on task performance through work adjustment was also established. When expatriates' work adjustment improves as a result of receiving HCN support, their task performance is enhanced.Practical implicationsThis study evidences that expatriate-hiring firms should provide suitable support for expatriates when they work overseas. Local employees and spouses should likewise be tasked to help expatriates maximise their full potential in achieving successful performance in their assignments.Originality/valueThe contribution of this study is the exploration of the relationships between support, work adjustment and task performance among expatriates. It also adds to the limited knowledge on the role of specific stakeholders in the expatriate context.

Cultural distance and expatriate failure rates: the moderating role of expatriate management practices

This study examines moderators of the relationship between cultural distance and the two critical indicators of expatriate failure – maladjustment and premature return rates. Results based on a sample of 126 Taiwanese multinational corporations indicate that expatriate selection and performance management practices moderate the cultural distance–expatriate maladjustment relationship, and expatriate performance management practices moderate the cultural distance–premature return relationship. Additionally, these relationships were stronger when the use of practices was low. We discuss theoretical and practical implications, and offer suggestions for future research.

International relocation mobility readiness and its antecedents

Purpose – International relocation for work reasons implies uncertainty and stress, resulting in high expatriate failure rates. Hence, organizations should consider employee’s international relocation mobility readiness (IRMR) in selection processes. The purpose of this paper is to identify personal as well as social antecedents of IRMR. Design/methodology/approach – Data were gathered by an online survey (n=273 German employees) and analyzed using SEM. Findings – SEM results indicate that attitudinal (boundaryless mindset), biographical (previous international work experience) and social variables (the perceived social endorsement of international relocation mobility) are positively related to IRMR. The positive relationship between personality variables (uncertainty tolerance, proactive personality) and IRMR is mediated by boundaryless mindset. Research limitations/implications – The sampling method applied limits the generalization of the results. Practical implications – Results can be applied in personnel selection to find employees with a strong IRMR. Thus, expatriate failure rates could be reduced. Originality/value – This is the first study that addressed personal as well as social antecedents of IRMR.

Personal and Social Determinants of International Relocation Mobility Readiness

International relocation for work reasons is associated with a high amount of uncertainty that has to be mastered individually, not seldom resulting in high expatriate failure rates. Internationall...

EXPLORING THE SUCCESS OF EXPATRIATES OF U.S. MULTINATIONAL FIRMS IN MEXICO

To examine U.S. multinational corporations, this research utilizes a multivariate model to differentiate among IHRM practices and their impact on U.S. expatriate performance. Questionnaires sent to 481 corporations combined with an analysis of the six independent variables, including selection criteria, cross-cultural training, and inability of spouses to adjust help us to understand U.S. expatriate rates of success and failure in Mexico. While, to a considerable degree, an IHRM model based on mainstream literature can predict U.S. expatriate success and failure rates, this research demonstrates the significant discrepancies that exist when comparing the results of the relationship of each variable individually.

Are our referencing errors undermining our scholarship and credibility? The case of expatriate failure rates

AbstractUsing a citation network of 60 references on expatriate failure rates, I demonstrate how commonplace is the violation of the principles for good academic referencing. Inappropriate references undermine scholarship and its credibility. In the case of expatriate failure rates, miscitation has promoted a firmly entrenched myth unsubstantiated by any empirical evidence. I discuss the implications of referencing errors for academics and practitioners and demonstrate how these errors can be avoided. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

'The persistent myth of high expatriate failure rates': a reappraisal

While there is now a mature literature on many aspects of the management of employees on international assignments (IAs), there is still considerable controversy about the numbers of expatriates who actually fail in these. Traditionally, this has been defined as the number of staff who return home before the agreed end of an IA, because of poor work performance and/or personal problems. Employing this definition, the research described in this paper supports the view that expatriate failure rates (EFRs), among UK employees are, indeed, very low (on average, around 8 per cent). However, this article argues that this traditional definition has limitations and does not reveal the true extent of the problems which IAs can cause to some expatriates and their dependants both during their time abroad and after returning to the UK. The paper then goes onto argue that a broader definition of 'failure' is needed, which includes: an acknowledgement of the considerable stresses and strains experienced by a minority of staff who are under-performing on IAs; the 'poaching' of successful managers by other companies while they are abroad or at the end of their IAs; the often negative outcomes of repatriation experienced by many employees in recent years; the negative (and largely unreported) effects on some families and the career prospects of partners and negative views about the prospect of overseas postings in the future.

Expatriate management policies in UK companies new to the international scene

This article reports on the management of international assignments (IAs) in fifteen UK companies who have expanded their operations into the international arena over the last three to twelve years.1The results show that very few of these companies currently follow examples of ‘good practice’ as espoused by most management theorists and other commentators on the management of expatriate assignments. However, at this moment in time, they do not have any significant problems with either high expatriate failure rates (HEFRs) or with staff performing under par on IAs. However, many are experiencing considerable problems with returning expatriate staff. The implications of these findings for expatriate management are discussed in detail.

The persistent myth of high expatriate failure rates

This paper provides a critical analysis of research and notably quotations in the field of expatriate failure rates. Over the last three decades it has become almost ‘traditional’ to open an article on expatriate management by stating that expatriate failure rates are (very) high. Virtually every publication on the topic defines and measures expatriate failure as the percentage of expatriates returning home before their assignment contract expires. Of course, premature re-entry might be a very inadequate way to measure expatriate failure. One can easily argue that those expatriates who stay on their assignment but who fail to perform adequately are (potentially) more damaging to the company than the ones who return prematurely. Furthermore, successful completion of a foreign assignment does not mean that the possibility of expatriate failure has been avoided. Sometimes, returning home poses even larger problems than the foreign assignment itself. The repatriate must face re-establishing himself within the...

Expatriate management practices of New Zealand business

In this paper data are presented from one of the first studies of expatriate management practices in New Zealand. The results reveal a number of consistencies with research reported from other countries as well as a number of apparent anomalies. In particular, New Zealand companies, like those in a number of other countries, appear to place a low value on those expatriate management practices which are linked with success (e.g., technical skills, period of incumbency and track record). Moreover, there was a low incidence of pre-departure training. However, negligible expatriate failure rates are recorded and most are attributed to ‘relational difficulties'.