International Assignments: From Here to There and Back Again

International Assignments: From Here to There and Back Again

By Audrey Adams, All Points Relocation Service Inc.

Cross cultural preparation and in-country orientation and assistance are more widely offered to expatriates by their employers now than in the past. But these programs by themselves do not address the whole process for the expatriate and it is too tempting to economize on such a costly transfer, to the detriment of the assignment's success. Though fiscally responsible for all or part of the relocation, it is often difficult for a host manager or a repatriate's manager, or even the uninitiated within a human resources team, to appreciate the adjustments required on the part of the expatriate and his/her family. Their need for support and assistance is very real and does not end the day their container is delivered in the host country.

On the surface, the following international relocation looks fairly comprehensive. A reliable international mover has been engaged. A process for communication of policy has been put into place and everyone understands their role. The company has organized compensation benefits, allowances, tax planning, the immigration process and has even addressed language training. Finally, home disposal or rental management has been initiated and an experienced destination services company awaits the expatriate's arrival.

Yet anyone who has ever transferred employees and their families to another country may have experienced one or more of these problems:

Assignment failure
Early return
Poor productivity during the assignment
Poor productivity after return
Repatriate attrition
Unplanned additional expenses incurred to assist the family with settling in problems
Employee marital problems, separation, divorce
Health problems
Children developing difficulties in school

The international assignment management program described above does not necessarily address these potential problems. Instead many international corporations have found that taking a long term view of the process?providing a comprehensive support program and planning the family's reentry from the outset--creates a more satisfying experience for the employee and family and a more productive investment for the organization. A comprehensive international assignment management program increases the likelihood that the right candidates are selected for foreign assignments, provides them and their families with the information and training necessary to adapt in their new location, maintains ongoing support to the employees while abroad and plans the families' repatriation from the beginning.

Candidate Evaluation

Identifying a candidate with the right skill set for the job is only one part, and not necessarily the most important step, in overall candidate selection. The individual's family situation may be conducive to the assignment, it may require special attention, or it may preclude them altogether. A candidate and/or family without the right attitudes and coping skills needed to adapt to the foreign environment may render the candidate's outstanding skill set almost meaningless in terms of the assignment's success.

According to ERC's International Survey in 1997:

"Most respondents (62 percent) perceived the spouse's/partner's/family's inability to adjust to the host country's culture or physical environment as the number one reason for assignment failures. Inability of the expatriate to adjust to the culture or physical environment ranked second (58 percent)."

Assistance is available to corporations to ascertain the candidate's and family's suitability for the assignment and can be a good predictor of the assignment's success. Ultimately there are four possible results from the process:

appears conducive to success and therefore is selected;
does not appear conducive to success and is therefore not selected;
appears that additional assistance will improve the likelihood of a successful assignment (and identifies what additional assistance is recommended);
the interview itself may convince the employee to decline the relocation.

Cross Cultural Orientation and Preparation

The duration of the program, the timing of its delivery and, most importantly, the content must be customized to the candidate's circumstances. The process can be split into two parts: a pre-departure session of one, two or more days; and a post arrival review usually taking place several weeks, if not months, later. This kind of structure is not always practical however?it simply may not be feasible for the candidate to devote this much time to the process, either before or after arrival.

The objective of the initial session is preparation. It identifies what the candidate and the family members can expect to experience relocating to a different country. It helps them determine attitudes which will help or hinder their ability to adapt and gives them country specific information which will be useful in understanding the culture, attitudes and business practices in the foreign location. The impact of the assignment on the spouse or partner, children and friends is addressed; lifestyle and culture shock are discussed. It can also include practical information about history, politics, geography, transportation, shopping, safety, health care, and schooling.

The post arrival session gives the family the opportunity to review and discuss their actual experiences since arrival and allows the counsellor to identify areas where education and coping skills need to be reinforced and additional support provided.

"Culture shock is what happens when a person suddenly finds himself in a place where 'yes' may mean 'no', where a fixed price is negotiable, where to be kept waiting in an outer office is not a cause for insult, where laughter may signify anger. It is what happens when familiar psychological clues that help an individual to function in society are suddenly withdrawn and replaced by new ones that are strange or incomprehensible."

--Alvin Toffler

Repatriation

Is it fair to say that this is the least understood and most neglected area of international assignment management? Some feel so. At the very least the organization has to grapple with the position to which the employee is returning. Does the new position utilize his/her new found skills or will the repatriate find himself in a "holding pattern" job and feel under-challenged and under-appreciated. Is the repatriating family prepared to experience reverse culture shock? Do they realize that re-establishing old work relationships and friendships involves more than merely being back in the city again?

The world did not stand still while the expatriate was abroad. The individual has changed, the home organization has changed and friends and family have changed. The expatriate may miss the status conferred by the posting overseas. The foreign service, housing, automobile and cost of living allowances have ceased. These are all issues which must be dealt with if the organization is to maximize its investment in the employee, ensure the transfer of the knowledge gained by the employee while abroad and ultimately retain the employee.

The employee's repatriation should be planned along with all the other components of the relocation at the outset, before the employee has even departed for the assignment in the first place.

Strategies for Ongoing Support and Repatriation:

Encourage and facilitate the maintenance of regular contact between the expatriate and the home office throughout the assignment. More and more firms are introducing formal mentoring programs as a standard procedure of their international assignment management process.
Meet with the expatriate at the home office in conjunction with home leave each year so he/she can stay abreast of what is going on there.
Continue communication from the home office: company newsletters and other pertinent information; even community news. Maintaining connection with the home location lays the groundwork for a smoother re-entry.
Initiate the actual repatriation process at least six months to a year before return, establish the schedule and plan the logistics of repatriation, and identify his/her new position after repatriation.
Provide the employee and his/her family with repatriation counselling to help them understand the reverse culture shock effect and prepare them for their return.
Provide the employee's spouse/partner with career counselling.
Encourage the receiving manager to assist the employee to effectively integrate their overseas experience and skills into their new position.

More and more global organizations are recognizing that managing international assignments effectively requires an approach that deals with the entire experience for the employee: the impact on their family, their career development, their success during, and their success after the relocation. There is no need to risk what is a substantial investment on the part of the organization. Looking after the transfer full circle will mean a positive experience for the employee and the company, less assignment failure and better employee retention after repatriation.

Reprinted with the permission of the Canadian Employee Relocation Council, CERC News, May/June 1999, vol 99.