Chapter 7

International Training,
Development and Career

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Chapter Objectives
 Define and contrast between training and
development
 Explore how the international assignment is a vehicle
for both training and development, as reflected in the
reasons why international assignments continue to
play a strategic role in international business
operations
 Examine the role of training in preparing and
supporting personnel on international assignments
 We examine the before, during, and post assignment
issues:
IHRM, Dr. N. Yang 2
Training and Development

 Training aims to  Development aims to

improve employees’ increase abilities in
current work skills and relation to some future
behavior positions or jobs.

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International Assignments as a Training
& Development Tool
 Expatriates are trainers
Part of knowledge & competence transfer
Expected to help train & develop HCNs
 Expatriate ensure adoptions
Show how systems and procedures work
Monitor performance of HCNs
 A form of management development
Job rotation to gain a broader perspective
Assist in developing a pool of capable global operators

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Figure
7.1 International training and development

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IHRM Chapter 6 5
Pre-departure Training Programs
 U.S. MNCs were found
reluctant to provide
pre-departure training
 U.S. firms 32%
 European firms 69%
 Japan 57%
 Primary reason:
 Top managers saw it
as not necessary or
effective
 No time
IHRM, Dr. N. Yang
 GMAC-GRS 2004
 62% firms provided at
least a 1-day training
 74% made it optional
 Most firms include
family:
 Whole family 28%
 Spouse 27%
 Employee only 5%
 None 40%
6
Table
7.1
Availability of cross-cultural training in MNEs

Brookfield Brookfield
2009 2011

CCT available 81% 74%

CCT attendance optional 78% 75%

 Employees only 7% 4%

 Employee and spouse 32% 46%

 Whole family 56% 49%

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IHRM Chapter 6 7
Components of Pre-departure
Training
 Cultural awareness programs
 Preliminary visits
 Language training
 Practical assistance
 Security briefings
 Training for the training role
 TCN and HCN expatriate training
 Non-traditional assignments and training

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Black & Mendenhall’s Three Key
Dimensions for Cross-cultural Training

 Training methods
 Levels of training rigor
 Duration of training, relative to
Expected degree of interaction
Culture novelty – how different host culture is
from native culture

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Information-giving approach
Low interaction, Length of training
similar cultures < 1 week

CCT methods emphasize an information-giving

approach:
 Area or cultural briefings
 Lectures, movies, books
 Interpreters
 ‘Survival-level’ language training

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Affective approach

2-12 month assignment, More training rigor

some interaction 1-4 + weeks long

CCT methods emphasize an affective approach:

 Role-playing
 Critical incidents
 Culture assimilator training
 Case studies
 Stress reduction training
 Moderate language training
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Immersion approach
High interaction, More training rigor
novel culture 2+ months long

CCT methods emphasize an immersion approach:

 Assessment center
 Field experiences
 Simulations
 Sensitivity training
 Intercultural web-based workshop
 Extensive language training
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The Mendenhall, Dunbar and Oddou
Cross-cultural Training Model

Degree of Cultural novelty

Degree of Interaction with HCNs

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Figure Cultural awareness training and assignment
6-3 performance

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 Table Perceived value of cross-cultural
7.2
preparation of expatriates

Brookfield Brookfield
Value Rating 2011 2009

Of great value 25% 19%

Of high value 64% 60%

Of medium value 11% 19%

Of little value 0% 2%

Source: Brookfield Global Relocation Trends 2009 and 2011, LLC.

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IHRM Chapter 6 15
Developing Staff through
International Assignments
 Management development
 Organizational development
 Individual development
 PNNs, HCNs, TCNs
 Non-traditional expatriate assignments
 International business travelers
 Overcome time and resource constraints

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Expected Outcomes of International
Assignments
 Management development
 Individuals get experience, advance careers
 MNE gets cadre of experienced international
operators
 Organizational development
 MNE accumulates knowledge, abilities
 MNE & individuals develop a global mindset
 MNE gets direct control & socialization, which assist
the transfer of knowledge and competence

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Networked MNEs’ Benefits from
International Teams
 A mechanism for fostering innovation, organizational
learning, knowledge transfer
 A means of breaking down functional & national
boundaries, enhancing information flows
 A method for encouraging diverse decision-making,
problem-solving, and strategic assessments
 An opportunity for developing a global perspective
 A technique for developing shared values; thus helping
MNE with informal, normative control through
socialization

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Figure Developing international teams through
7.2
international assignments

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Trends in internationals training and
development
 Convergence for T&D from the pressure of globalization
 Divergence with growing realization of the importance of the
national context
 Host-countries pressure for localization of T&D initiatives
 Increasing awareness of NGOs’ importance
 The rise of China and T&D focused on China
Motorola University, Siemens Business School, European
Management Institution, HP Business School, Hairer University, IBM
Research Labor, Ericsson China R&D Institute
CPA tests, ETS exams
The U.S. 100,000 Strong Educational Exchange Initiatives, May 2010
 Realizing the need to address global, comparative, and
national contexts for effective T&D programs
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Figure
7.3 Expatriation includes repatriation

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Figure
7.4 Repatriation activities and practices

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IHRM in
Action
Repatriation and loss prevention at
7.1 ISCAM

 Wayne Bullova took an international assignment for

three years as Loss Prevention and Safety Director at
ISCAM’s new regional center in central Peru.
 ISCAM did a good job to prepare him and his family
for the difference between Lima and Denver.
 His wife enjoyed local life, and his children quickly
adjusted to the American school in Peru.
 Wayne immediately enjoyed the increased
responsibility and centrality of his new role.
 He returned to a very different world upon repatriation.

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 IHRM in
Action Repatriation and loss prevention at
7.1 ISCAM
 The corporate restructuring occurred a year into his expatriate
assignment. His long-time mentor and friend Herman Balkin took
reportedly a generous early retirement package. His network
dissolved, with a series of junior new executives.
 He spent the better part of a month trying to get an office and to
understand his new job. The counter-terrorism and security
protocols he developed in Peru were either ignored or modified
by his supervisors.
 Wayne placed his children in a city school district that the children
were having problems with, and his wife started to complain
about Denver’s winter.
 After taking a 5-week vacation he was due, Wayne wrote up a
letter of resignation.
 What went wrong? Could that be prevented?
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The Repatriation Process
 Assign home sponsors or mentors
 Home leaves, work-related information
exchanges, and pre-departure orientation
process
 After return orientation to the new job
assignment and local work group
 Reconnection to local social network, assisting
and coping with factors that drive post-
assignment family and career anxieties

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Expatriate Turnover (GMAC-GRS 2011)

 Expatriate average annual turnover 8%

 During assignment 22%
 Within 1 yr. of return 28%
 Between 1-2 yrs. of return 24%
 Over 2 yrs. 26%

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International Assignment Failure
GMAC-GRS 2011
 Failure rate 4%
 Leading causes
 Spouse/partner
dissatisfaction 18%
 Poor candidate choice 16%
 Poor job performance13%
 Inability to adapt 12%
 Other family concerns 8%
IHRM, Dr. N. Yang
Brookfield 2010
 Premature return 7%
 Leading causes
 Spouse/partner
dissatisfaction 65%
 Other family concerns 47%
 Poor candidate selection 39%
27
Effectiveness of Ways to Reduce
Expatriate Turnover (GMAC-GRS 2011)
In order of high, medium, or low
effectiveness:
 Opportunity to use experience 35%
 Position choices upon return 22%
 Recognition 16%
 Repatriation career support 13%
 Improved performance evaluation 9%

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Individual Reactions to Re-entry
 Job related factors
 Social factors
 Personal and organizational outcomes

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Figure Factors influencing repatriate
7.5
adjustment

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Table Career impacts of international
7.3
assignments

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Language Training
 The role of English as the language of
world business
 Host country-language skills and
adjustment
 Knowledge of the corporate language

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The Impact of Language on Power

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Shadow Structure Based on Language

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Responses by the MNE
 Staff availability and career expectations
 Boundaryless and protean careers
 International itinerants
 Return on investment (ROI)
 Direct and indirect costs
 Using TCNs and HCNs as a way to reduce costs
 Knowledge transfer
 Identifying critical, implicitly held knowledge assets
inherent in expatriation-repatriation
 Reducing resistance and building trust
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Figure Linking repatriation process to
7.6
outcomes

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Knowledge & Skills Acquired from
International Assignment
 Market specific knowledge – Local systems
(political, social, economic), language, customs
 Personal skills – Inter-cultural knowledge, self-
confidence, flexibility, tolerance
 Job-related management skills – Communication,
project management, problem-solving
 Network knowledge – Meeting diverse people
 General management capacity – An enlarged job
description, broader job responsibilities, exposure to
other parts of the organization

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Table
7.4 Topics covered by a repatriation program

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Proactive Strategies for Smooth
Re-entry
 Pre-departure briefings on what to expect during the assignment &
upon return
 Multiple career planning sessions
 Written repatriate agreements clarifying available assignments upon
return
 Mentoring programs that continue after return
 Extended home visits to keep up with social, family, & organizational
changes
 Reorientation programs on changes in organization
 Personalized orientation on emotionally-charged issues
 Personalized reorientation on financial & tax advice
 Providing an adjustment period upon return
 Visible and concrete expressions of the repatriate’s value to the firm

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Summary
 T&D through international assignments
 CCT components and effectiveness
 The importance of language training
 ROI and knowledge transfer
 Key issues through the expatriation-
repatriation process
 Trends and proactive strategies in managing
international assignments, expatriate
retention, and careers
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Vocabulary
 T&D = training & development, the human resource, NGOs
 internal hires
 cultural awareness training, CCT, field experiences, degree of expected interaction,
cultural novelty or similarity
 information-giving, affective, & immersion approaches, security briefings
 role-playing
 preliminary visit
Additional types of training:
 international cadre
 multinational, virtual teams
 Language
 repatriation, ROI  Critical incidents
 reverse culture shock  Culture assimilator
 mentors, repatriation program  Stress reduction
 career anxiety, work adjustment  Simulations
 family adjustment, social networks
 Sensitivity
 boundaryless careers, protean careers
 international itinerants

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 Discussion Questions
1. What are some of the challenges faced in training expatriate
managers?
2. Assume you are the HR director for a small company that has begun to
use international assignments. You are considering using an external
consulting firm to provide pre-departure training for employees, as you
do not have the resources to provide this ‘in-house’. What components
will you need covered? How will you measure the effectiveness of the
pre-departure training program provided by this external consultant?
3. How does an international assignment assist in developing a ‘cadre’ of
international operators? Why is it necessary to have such a ‘cadre’?
4. Why do some MNEs appear reluctant to provide basic pre-departure
training?

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