The ability to adapt is a pivotal element in today’s globalised business environment. As companies expand their operations internationally, they increasingly rely on expatriates to bridge cultural and business divides. However, the success of these international assignments hinges on selecting the right candidates. In this blog post, we look into the multifaceted process of choosing successful expatriates, incorporating insights from various scholars and industry practices.
Importance of Pre-deployment Screening
Before deploying professionals abroad, companies must ensure these individuals are suited for intercultural tasks. Diagnostic tools can facilitate predictions about a candidate’s potential success. This isn’t only about evaluating skills or professional competencies;it also involves assessing the candidate’s ability to adapt and thrive in a foreign cultural environment.
Effective pre-deployment screening involves a comprehensive evaluation that goes beyond technical skills or professional achievements. It examines the psychological and sociocultural adaptability of potential expatriates, ensuring they can handle the challenges of living and working in a new cultural context.
Long-term Success Metrics
The effectiveness of an expatriate’s assignment is not solely measured during the deployment phase. Successful reintegration into their home country and their career trajectory post-assignment are equally important. Thus, companies face the challenge of not only selecting the right candidate for the initial assignment but also managing their long-term career development effectively.
Companies need to consider the long-term implications of expatriate assignments. This includes planning for the professional growth of the expatriate upon their return and ensuring that their international experience benefits both the individual and the organisation.
Clarifying Goals for Deployment
Setting Clear Objectives
The first step in this rigorous selection process is to clarify the goals of the deployment. These objectives form the basis for assessing the eventual success of the assignment. Typically, these goals can be divided into two major categories:
- Skill Transfer: The assignment aims to fill a specific knowledge gap in the host country.
- Personal Development: The primary focus is on the professional growth of the expatriate, enhancing specific skills through international exposure.
Understanding the primary objectives of the assignment helps in tailoring the selection process to find candidates who are not only capable of fulfilling the role but are also likely to benefit and grow from the experience.
Evaluating Success Across Multiple Dimensions
According to El Amine and Cascón-Pereira (2023), the success of an expatriate assignment can be assessed across three dimensions:
- Individual Dimension: This includes the expatriate’s job satisfaction, career advancement, and work-life balance.
- Interpersonal Dimension: The quality of relationships with colleagues in the host country, knowledge transfer, and the expatriate’s family situation.
- Organisational Dimension: Strategic goals of the company, the expatriate’s performance, and the success of their repatriation.
Selecting Competencies for Successful Expatriates
Essential competencies necessary for the success of an expatriate include the knowledge, skills, and attitudes crucial for performance in a role. For skill transfer-focused assignments, it’s vital to assess whether candidates possess the necessary technical skills. For assignments aimed at personal development, it’s important to evaluate intercultural developmental needs through diagnostic methods.
In addition to technical skills, intercultural competence is crucial. It enables expatriates to effectively interact and integrate into the host culture, which is essential for the success of the assignment. These competencies include the ability to navigate cultural differences, communicate effectively across cultural barriers, and adapt to new environments seamlessly.
The Crucial Role of Intercultural Competence
Intercultural competencies, often referred to as cross-cultural or intercultural intelligence, are crucial for handling challenges abroad. These competencies enable effective and appropriate actions in intercultural situations. According to Boecker and Ulama (2008), and Deardorff (2006), foundational attitudes such as respect, openness, and curiosity are essential for developing intercultural competencies, which are comprised of knowledge about oneself and the target culture, as well as skills like social competencies and analytical abilities.
These foundational attitudes facilitate the development of deeper intercultural competencies. The effective application of these competencies in the workplace leads to successful intercultural interactions, contributing significantly to the overall success of the expatriate assignment.
Adaptability in Expatriates
A key factor for successful international assignments is the adaptability of the expatriates. This involves the ability to integrate into a new cultural setting and manage the associated challenges. Adaptability includes psychological adjustment (emotional and mental coping) and sociocultural adjustment (fitting in and behaving appropriately in the new culture). Harari et al. (2018) found that personality traits such as extraversion, emotional stability, and openness are linked to successful adaptation and are crucial metrics in selecting expatriates.
The ability to adapt is not only essential during the initial phase of the assignment but also plays a critical role in the expatriate’s successful reintegration upon return. Companies that effectively assess and develop adaptability in their expatriates can significantly enhance the success rates of their global assignments.
The Global Mindset: Enhancing International Influence
A global mindset is a composite of individual capabilities and attitudes that enable expatriates to effectively influence and manage people, groups, and organisations from different cultural backgrounds. This mindset is categorised into three dimensions:
- Global Psychological Capital: This aspect covers the emotional engagement and readiness to participate in global settings.
- Global Social Capital: This reflects the ability to build trusting relationships with people from different parts of the world.
- Global Intellectual Capital: This involves understanding the global business landscape and analyzing and interpreting information effectively.
Expatriates with a strong global mindset are better equipped to handle the complexities of international assignments. They are more likely to succeed in their roles and make meaningful contributions to the organisation’s global objectives.
Conclusion
The selection of candidates for expatriate roles must go beyond conventional hiring practices. It requires a well-thought-out strategy incorporating the specific challenges of international assignments. By understanding and implementing these detailed selection processes, companies can significantly enhance the success rates of their global assignments, ensuring that both the individuals and the organisations achieve their international objectives effectively.
This is a translated and adapted version of Vormann & Remhof (2024).
References
Boecker, M. C. / Ulama, L. (2008): Interkulturelle Kompetenz – Die Schlüsselkompetenz im 21. Jahrhundert
Deardorff, D. K. (2006): Identification and assessment of intercultural competence as a student outcome of internationalization, in: Journal of Studies in International Education, 10 (3), 241-266
El Amine, N. R. / Cascón-Pereira, R. (2023): What does expatriate success mean? Developing a comprehensive definition through a systematic literature review, in: Career Development International, 29 (1), 3-79
Harari, M. B. et al. (2018): Personality and expatriate adjustment: A meta-analysis, in: Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 91 (3), 486-517
