International Human Resource Management

This article discusses the concept of International Human Resource Management (IHRM) and its importance in global organizations. It explores the role of sustainable expatriation management in the internationalization process and analyzes the selection, training, and compensation strategies for expatriates. The article also highlights the challenges faced in the repatriation process and the significance of cultural awareness in expatriation management.

Running head: INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
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Introduction
Globalisation is the term which has been widely used in the past few decades in order to
describe the world. It involves several aspects of developments such as structural changes
particularly in the domain of business, economics, products as well as technology along with the
emergence of international and global business enterprises. Pudelko et al. (2015) in their studies
have observed certain concerns whereby globalization will show the way to a continuous
emergence of jobs particularly in higher wage economies in which the employees in developed
nations are reserved by the ones in low income economies. In a changing international market
place, where market rivalry is relentlessly increasing in the universal sense, organisations
required to develop as well as sustain the competitive advantage by implementing varied global
strategic business mechanisms by proficiently creating a local significance in the international
markets. However, an efficient way to develop a local occurrence relies on recruiting employees
from the parent corporation in the subsidiaries overseas. This strategy is particularly the work of
the International Human Resource Management (IHRM) department, which takes care of the
operation of moving employees around two different positions in different locations at local as
well as international level. However, an important problem associated with cross-national human
resource management is the policy of employing parent company employees to a managerial
position in foreign subsidiaries. The term ‘expatriation’ is specifically applied in order to
categorise the procedure of international transfers of employees working in overseas subsidiaries
for a predefined time, usually from two to five years. According to Brewster et al. (2016), the
idea of expatriation did not develop recently. Since ancient Roman era, few trading agencies
have used the consistent representatives to oversee distant subsidiaries. In recent times, the role
of expatriates in global organisations has become immensely diverse in comparison to ancient

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times. Cerdin, Jean-Luc and Brewster (2014) have noted that expatriate management currently is
referred to one of the important business tools in global organisations to improve International
integration. In the view of Brewster et al. (2016), there can be identified three primary attitudes
purposed towards the recruitment of foreign operations such as ethnocentric that is home nation
oriented, polycentric which is host country centric along with geocentric which involves world
orientation. The following paper will analyse sustainable expatriation management in the domain
of IHRM. In addition to this, the paper will evaluate the way Multinational Enterprises (MNEs)
develop sustainable expatriation management and reasons behind the importance of sustainable
expatriation management for their internationalization.
Discussion
Expatriation is identified as a striking course for amassing overseas markets for a number
of organisations. Successful global assignments have been increasing the international reputation
and earnings of organisations in recent times. González-Loureiro et al. (2014) have noted that
while expatriation is an effective method for gathering overseas markets, it mainly involves huge
financial resources for its recruitment approach for Multinational Enterprises. The procedure
primarily comprises of several dimensions namely selection, training, cultural patterns,
adjustment and repatriation. Reports of authors have revealed that expatriation has the tendency
of facilitating the expatriates to acquire substantial skills and proficiency during their transfer
period which will be worth additional for their home country business enterprises (Cerdin, Jean-
Luc and Brewster 2014). Expatriates are mainly used in order to expand technological ideas and
knowledge along with organisational culture. According to Brewster et al. (2016) one of the most
vital factors of overseas venture achievements is the competence of an organisation to
successfully transfer its important capabilities on a global basis.

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The selection procedure of expatriates for global assignments is identified as one of the
most crucial process from a cost perspective for the organisation as well as for the emigrant.
Tatoglu et al. (2016) have mentioned about special selection and staffing procedures in different
organisations whereby a general process applied by these organisations while selecting
candidates are interview with both candidates as well as respective family members. Furthermore
another important criterion applied while selecting candidates is assessing candidates’
competencies in dealing with relationships with people belonging to other ethnic or cultural
background. This criterion according to González-Loureiro et al. (2014) is distinguished as the
most vital for situations with culturally varied countries as well as for the expatriates who has
substantial contact with foreign country residents. However, Tatoglu et al. (2016) have noted
that inaccuracies during the selection method changed to have negative impact on the
achievement of organization’s foreign operations and that is important to select the suitable
employee for the assignment. There can be identified various decision making procedures while
working on the selection method. As a result factors related to employee adjustment, skills,
performance and turnover are seen to be important determinants during this selection.
Moreover, the cultural general profile signifying the general intercultural communication
ability as well as intercultural sensitivity must be amalgamated with the culture specific profile
for each country during the selection procedure in order to evaluate if the applicant has suitable
competency for carrying out the assignment in that specific country. At this juncture, McDonnell
et al. (2014) have noted that different countries and different MNEs comprise of varied cultural
attributes. Several employees engaged in overseas business operations exhibit knowledge
deficiency and expertise and sometimes sensitivity towards cultural divergences, which typically
leads to making errors during interactions in selection procedure as well as in private

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conversations. Consequently it is vital to obtain knowledge about other cultures and comprehend
the existence of cultural patterns while intending to move overseas for job opportunities.
According to Hofstede, acquiring foreign language is highly important rather than learning new
vocabulary or grammar (Brewster et al. 2016). Acquiring knowledge about other cultural
patterns and language will expand individuals’ cultural competencies while interacting with
culturally diverse groups at corporate level. After the selection, procedure for an expatriate
position the following step for sustainable expatriation management is pre-departure training.
According to Slavić et al. (2014) the primary agenda of the pre departure training depends on
enhancing employees existing competencies knowledge, proficiency, behavioural patterns and
further to regulate the expatriate to the demands of living and working in a foreign organizational
setting.
Additionally, Cascio and Boudreau (2016) have revealed that increasing number of
MNEs have set up their individual internal training centre institutions such as Google,
McDonald's and Samsung. A considerable proportion of knowledge development of employees
involved developing cultural awareness and understanding and further aids the expatriates to
handle unexpected critical situations occurring in foreign environment. A useful pre-departure
training program principally offers the emigrants with effective transition to an overseas
location, which involves various components related to cultural awareness training, language
instruction as well as guidance with practical regular matters. Furthermore, one of the primary
reasons for efficient cultural training is to reduce the rate of expatriate failure. Comprehensive
studies of Cascio and Boudreau (2016) have mentioned that one of the significant reasons for
expatriate and accomplishment has been related to incompetence of expatriates or their spouses’
abilities of adjusting to foreign cultural patterns. However, authors have noted that several

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cultural trainings tend to constructively influence expatriates knowledge and performance as well
as the ability to adjust to local culture (Slavić et al. 2014).
Meanwhile, Lenartowicz et al. (2014) have claimed that several MNEs do not incorporate
effective management training and interpersonal skills development course in their training
programs for expatriation management. These organisations have been disregarding the value of
the efficacy building as well as leadership development in International Human resource
management. Additionally, several reasons have been linked to the issues related to decline of
expatriates’ performance levels. However in order to improve an effective cultural training
program, multinational organisations would required to assess these training programs and
efficiently evaluate the expatriate who have been undergoing the particular training. Moreover in
the view of Cascio and Boudreau (2016), it is highly imperative to appraise expatriates’ learning
competency and behavioural changes in order to understand their level of developed knowledge
and awareness of other cultural characteristics which have been assigned to them in order to
generate better performance in foreign organisations.
On the other hand, Baruch et al. (2016) have shed light on the use of international
compensation strategies in the process of expatriation. These strategies mainly used by MNEs
are impacted by various internal as well as external determinants. For example, the external
determinants which can to leverage the international compensation policy are related to the
organizational cultural patterns labour relations along with goal orientation and the parent
organisation (Lenartowicz et al. 2014). While the external factors have been associated with
attributes of labour market local cultural patterns in addition to industry type. Meanwhile,
Jackson et al. (2014) have noted that several companies in recent times have distinguished that if
the global assignment contributes to significant career growth for the deportee upon return; the

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expatriates would have been able to demand less direct compensation during the transfer and will
receive similar contentment through the expatriation management. However, in relation to the
expatriates’ intention of returning, the compensation strategy must provide financial safety in
regards to the career advantages benefits living expenses as well as social security. Furthermore,
during this procedure the expatriate things to anticipate certain issues related to accommodation
and education facilities for their children, which must be included in this compensation policy.
Lasserre (2017) have identified few main elements involved in the compensation policy,
which are related to the basic compensation like remuneration and incentives along with
payments which are generally given in the form of cost of living payment expenses for education
for their children along with destitution and accident payments.
Furthermore, it is important to note that several expatriates during this global assignment,
encounter challenges in adjusting to the foreign work environment as well as at home when the
written because of considerable job autonomy while working overseas (Jackson et al. 2014).
These factors are increasingly link to the expatriation procedure which for the results to the
repatriation process because of reduced levels of work responsibility at home, challenges of
readjusting to the home environment, lower level of financial incentives in addition to low
prestige and status in the new assignment at home country organisation. However, Froese (2016)
has noted that the importance of repatriation procedure and its effect on achievable expatriate
management have been identified. Nevertheless this factor of repatriation remains to be a critical
source of dissatisfaction for the international Human Resource Department as well as the
expatriates. Sidani and Ariss (2014) have claimed that repatriation is the final linkage to the
completion of the global assignment. However, majority of MNEs do not pay credence to this
procedure. As a result, in order to augment the retention rate of expatriates it is important to

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prioritize the procedure of evaluating the repatriation face by the organisations. Moreover, for an
effective repatriation program Al Ariss et al. (2014) have proposed that trying to the initiation of
the global assignment as well as the expatriates must have an assignment which focuses on
strategizing types of the expatriates’ position on returning to home country. This policy will
reduce the uncertainty and insecurity level of the expatriate upon returning. Furthermore, a
successful repatriation process will lead to improved expatriate career management activities
along with pre-departure consultations of the repatriation course of action prior to the real
homecoming (Froese 2016).
Several companies send-off emigrant recruits along with other senior employees to their
subsidiaries for maintaining thriving integration into a consistent whole and further sustaining
effective communication between the corporate office and the foreign operation. According to Al
Ariss et al. (2014), majority of international assignments are currently encountered by significant
pressure. Consequently, these global assignments have been filling positions where there is a
lack in local knowledge where there is a significant need of the power to maintain direct
development. De Jong and van Houten (2014) have put emphasis on several crucial challenges,
which have been arising while conducting International Human Resource Management system
from the deviation experienced in several countries and cultural patterns of the MNEs.
Organisations executing their business operations in the global business environment frequently
encounter diverse cultural as well as institutional differences, which further create impediments
for them to sustain in a multinational business domain. These factors have led managers engaged
in MNEs to gradually realize the value of HR practices in guaranteeing the prosperity as well as
reliability of their business operations (De Jong and van Houten 2014). Thus global recruitment
is viewed as an important HR practices in order to regulate as well as balanced especially

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dispersed international staffing operations. In expatriation management system, selection is
regarded as a vital process of obtaining information for the intentions of assessing and deciding
who should be assigned in particular jobs.
Hagen et al. (2014) have claimed that it is imperative to understand that recruitment as
well as election are identified as discrete processes in which both the procedures required to be
operated efficiently if the company aims to proficiently uphold its recruitment and selection
process. An example of an organisation has been cited here in which the organisation is likely to
have an exceptional selection procedure for appraising its candidates. However, if there can be
identified inadequate number of candidates to evaluate then such a selection system is less
resourceful. In such a stage, MNEs primarily select the candidates with specific competencies
and skills which things to be proven resourceful for the international assignment. However for
example, some of the MNEs are initiating their business operations in Asian countries like China
mainly select their expatriates on the basis of the ability of conversing in Chinese language
which can eventually be regarded as a mixed outcome for the organization. Guo, Rammal, and
Dowling (2016) have noted that managers in MNEs require having competency to engage in
cross-cultural language along with skills of being non-judgmental, resilient in addition to high
tolerance for undermined situations during the assignment. Reports of Welch, Denice and Welch
(2018) have reviewed that when multinational corporations (MNCs) execute the operations in
subsidiaries and partnership across the world, knowledge development programmes of the
members of the international labourforce leads to greater amount of criticality and challenges.
Furthermore, the agenda of ‘pay for performance’ has been highly contingent on
obtaining individual and organizational performance goals. Such strategies according to
Putthiwanit (2015) has a crucial association with the MNEs’ operational strategies and have been

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signifying as one of the most important and increasingly growing development in remuneration
practices functional and all employment levels with an individual nations as well as across
internationally managed MNEs. Meanwhile Gupta and Bhaskar (2016) have opined that similar
to the objectives related to the overall global compensation and remuneration program, the
element involving expatriates must essentially acquire specific goals in order to generate
efficiency. These objectives however mainly include efficiently offering incentives in order to
leave the home country for the means of foreign assignment supporting a suitable standard of
living, making an allowance for career as well as family requirements and needs as well as
enabling re-entry into the home nation with the ending of the global assignment. However in the
view of Wilkinson et al. (2014), MNEs in order to attain the aforesaid organisational objectives
frequently propose premium base remuneration package in order to motivate managers for
accepting global assignments.
However, it can be claimed that expatriation management draws high relevance two
organisations which comprise a global presence. Thus, it is important for global organizations to
emphasize on sustainable expatriation, as it tends to enrich the experience of managers and
further enables the company to sustain a regulated and improved performance in overseas
business operations. Such effective business operations according to Collings (2014) can only be
possible if these can be positioned through enthusiastic high-performing employees in chief
positions abroad. All these factors as per the view of Froese (2016) are combined in order to
facilitate global organisations for acquiring improved performance level. Expatriation
management further intends to improve the job experience of employees by engaging them into
new learning and knowledge development programs, which intends to benefit the organisation.
Comprehensive studies of authors have mentioned that employees who have undergone cross-

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cultural experience have shown greater propensity to help their organisations to aim for
improved goals and objectives particularly by helping in crisis financial systems in order to
incorporate them in the international market (Hagen et al. 2014). These expatriate employees can
be viewed as comprising certain personality attributes which facilitate the success of these
organisational objectives. Reports of Putthiwanit (2015) have claimed that the usage of
expatriate managerial positions have been considered to be of greater value mainly on parent
organisation have extensive periods of experience in the host market. However on the other
hand, research conducted by Welch, Denice and Welch (2018) have claimed that with the
number of expatriate managerial roles been declining as global organisations acquire greater
degree of experience in the local market. As increasingly, organisations in current times have
distinguished its level of internationalization in overseas market the number of expatriate
applicants has also increased. Such an increase has aided to set up a direct association between
foreign countries and the expatriates.
However, on the other hand authors have argued that inadequate administrative
managerial structure in order to support expatriate operations overseas is likely to represent a
significant amount of accountability for the organisations. In the view of Putthiwanit (2015), the
shortage of competent organisations involving expatriates assignment tends to give rise to
challenges at the local level which are highly critical and costly to manage which includes public
relations as well as legal procedures. Moreover, Zhu et al. (2018) have noted that expatriation
management is a highly expensive investment for any global organisation. As a result, it is
highly imperative that a particular program should be developed by these organisations in order
to select as well as deploy the most competent candidates for the assigned key positions at the
international level. Nonetheless it is important to note in this stage that the highly increasing

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demand of expatriation among global organisations have efficiently augmented the companies’
internationalization and further expand the number of expatriate candidates. In addition to this
Lasserre (2017) have mentioned regarding a significant need of well structured and arranged
expatriation programs which will efficiently generate improved outcomes as the expats will be
acquired by proficient skills and abilities for encountering any critical challenges of living as
well as employing in a culturally diverse country.
Conclusion
Hence, to conclude considering cultural diversity, which produces effective collaboration
of global assignees along with international human, resource managers have guaranteed that
successful coordination between these two elements will generate high efficiency in teamwork.
The procedure and extensive preparation of expatriate management by global organisations has
been emerging as one of the important and crucial managerial processes, which are likely to
contribute to the effective performance of companies at the global level. In addition to this, from
organizational perspective the process of expatriation management have been applied in order to
transfer knowledge skills and corporate cultural patterns to subsidiaries. Moreover, it is
important to note that shortage of resource full repatriation program can result to certain level of
apprehension and anxiety from the expatriates’ end, which might for the lead to resignation from
the expatriates. As a result, after the return of the expatriates to their home country organisations
should focus on effective readjustment program, which will increase the confidence level of the
expatriates and help them to deal with critical situations in foreign business environment.

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