Expatriate Training
THE 21ST CENTURY OFFERS MANY ALTERNATIVES TO THE TRADITIONAL CONCEPT OF ENGAGING IN THE EXPENSIVE AND FRAUGHT RIDDEN ACTIONS ASSOCIATED WITH EXPATRIATE STAFF. CRITICALLY EVALUATE THIS ISSUE GIVING YOUR RECOMMENDATIONS TO AN ORGANISATION CONSIDERING ABANDONING ITS EXPATRIATE PROGRAMME, CITING APPROPRIATE MODELS AND EXAMPLES TO SUPPORT YOUR KEY ARGUMENTS.
INTRODUCTION
The world economy is moving away from the traditional economic system where national markets were considered as distinct entities which were isolated from each other by trade barriers of distance, time and culture. This has been in place since the advent of globalisation. In a bid for internationalisation, companies tend to use expatriates which serves as a home manager sent to overseas subsidiaries for assignment. They represent a costly and sometimes unsuccessful undertaking but yet it remains a strategy for multinational cooperation’s to facilitate their communication process between the parent company and its subsidiaries, aids in establishing country linkages’ and perhaps increase the firms understanding of international operations.
The aim of this essay is to analyse the traditional concept of expatriation and the alternatives which organisations opt for due to its presumed high cost of funding and failure. In doing this, we shall examine the roles of an expatriate to an organisation. Also, we have a discussion on the problems of Expatriation which makes organisations seek for other alternatives.
And finally, there will be a recommendation for an organisation to forfeit its plan to abandon its expatriation programme highlighting the side effects and disadvantages of the limited alternatives at hand.
WHO IS AN EXPATRIATE?
The traditional concept of expatriation according to Dowling and Welch (2004) sees expatriate as an employee who is being transferred from his home base to a foreign country in a company’s international operation. Mendenhall et al.(1995) define expatriate as one who
INTRODUCTION
The world economy is moving away from the traditional economic system where national markets were considered as distinct entities which were isolated from each other by trade barriers of distance, time and culture. This has been in place since the advent of globalisation. In a bid for internationalisation, companies tend to use expatriates which serves as a home manager sent to overseas subsidiaries for assignment. They represent a costly and sometimes unsuccessful undertaking but yet it remains a strategy for multinational cooperation’s to facilitate their communication process between the parent company and its subsidiaries, aids in establishing country linkages’ and perhaps increase the firms understanding of international operations.
The aim of this essay is to analyse the traditional concept of expatriation and the alternatives which organisations opt for due to its presumed high cost of funding and failure. In doing this, we shall examine the roles of an expatriate to an organisation. Also, we have a discussion on the problems of Expatriation which makes organisations seek for other alternatives.
And finally, there will be a recommendation for an organisation to forfeit its plan to abandon its expatriation programme highlighting the side effects and disadvantages of the limited alternatives at hand.
WHO IS AN EXPATRIATE?
The traditional concept of expatriation according to Dowling and Welch (2004) sees expatriate as an employee who is being transferred from his home base to a foreign country in a company’s international operation. Mendenhall et al.(1995) define expatriate as one who
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