Although the steady march of globalization opens up markets and potential sources of revenue for businesses, it can be a strain on employees – particularly when these employees are asked to take on international assignments. Some employees are better equipped for expatriate work than others, and those who are culturally sensitive, open to new experiences and are highly motivated are prime candidates for relocation. However, businesses often fail to consider the context of the assignment and how that may affect the success or failure of a particular employee. New research indicates that the level of support that the foreign subsidiary gives to the expatriate, as well as the degree of difference between the cultures of the home and host country, are important factors in the expatriate employee’s ease of adjustment and performance in their new role.

Cross-cultural Motivation

Expatriate employees need to be motivated to proactively adjust and adapt to an international assignment. Termed ‘cross-cultural motivation’, this means that the employee is not only willing to tackle the challenge with confidence and zeal, but is also genuinely interested in such a task.

The results of this study indicate that without such motivation, employees are less likely to succeed, regardless of contextual factors. Thus, when grooming talent for regional or global roles, there has to be some crosscultural motivation present as a baseline. To assess this, organisations might put high-potential leaders in diverse teams to gauge the level of intrinsic interest and confidence they have in terms of figuring out what makes people of other cultures tick.

What can the organisation do to ensure that cross-culturally motivated employees shine in their overseas roles? This study suggests that senior management should choose to move employees into countries that are similar to the home country in terms of culture and also where the organisation’s foreign subsidiary is likely to provide a great deal of support.

Degree of Cultural Distance

Employees may be willing to travel to a foreign environment, but then may find themselves unable to succeed there. Although cross-cultural motivation may be high, the degree of cultural difference between two countries may be so great that the employee may be unable to identify how he or she can acquire the necessary skills to thrive. For example, a highly motivated Chinese expatriate sent to Indonesia may push an aggressive growth-at-all-costs plan to increase revenue. However, though the expatriate may want to understand Indonesians (whose value for harmony often trumps that of growth), the difference in cultural values is likely to hinder the success of the Chinese leader.

Organisations should work to carefully place leaders with the right set of skills and characteristics on the right foreign assignment. Simply putting the best people where there is the greatest business need is a short-sighted approach. To maximize the success of a foreign assignment, the leaders with the highest cross-cultural motivation should be sent to those locations that are most culturally distant from their home country.

Foreign Subsidiary Support

In some cases, organisations may not have the luxury of pairing employees from a highly qualified pool with specific cultures. When foreign talent must be sent to culturally distinct locations, it is imperative that the foreign subsidiary provides a great deal of support. This study suggests the subsidiary should provide the following types of support for expatriates:

1. Adjustment support (helping expatriates and their families adapt in their international assignment)

2. Career support (offering career-related guidance)

3. Financial support (providing monetary incentives and assistance)

By creating a climate of support for the host national, the subsidiary is able to take some of the onus off the foreign talent to learn how to adjust in the new environment.

This study suggests the home organisation needs to do more than just pick the right talent and send them abroad. It is a continuous process of support and development to which the foreign subsidiary must commit to make the foreign assignment worthwhile. The authors suggest organisations can help provide support through high-performance work systems, training the local organisation to better mentor expatriates, and pairing new expatriates with experienced local mentors. The obligation to prepare and develop employees does not stop when they leave the country.

Methodology

Dr Gilad Chen (University of Maryland), Dr Bradley Kirkman (Texas A&M University), Dr Kwanghyun Kim (Korea University), Dr Crystal Farh (University of Maryland), and Dr Subrahmaniam Tangirala (University of Maryland) collected data using a survey of 556 expatriates working for a Fortune 500 US-based company. Participants were asked to respond to a series of questions regarding their level of cross-cultural motivation, their level of work adjustment, the degree of cultural difference between their home and host countries, and the amount of support they received from the foreign subsidiary. Finally, job performance was assessed via company performance appraisal records.

Reference

Chen, G., Kirkman, B. L., Kim, K., Farh, C. I. C., & Tangirala, S. (2010). When does cross-cultural motivation enhance expatriate effectiveness? A multilevel investigation of the moderating roles of subsidiary support and cultural distance. Academy of Management Journal, 53, 1110–1130.

This article was first published in HQ Asia (Print) Issue 08 (2014)