Lecture 10

Question 1

Companies have been sending managers to manage overseas business operations. In most cases, most of the time, these expatriates are accompanied by family members.

These expatriates can be from the:

Answer 1

home country
host country
third country

Question 2

Although there are justifiable reasons why expatriates can be selected, it is known that failure rate is

Answer 2

high due to problems related to lack of adaptation to the local environment, especially among expatriates of US origin.

Question 3

There are three synonymous terminologies which are used to refer the broadly accepted expression “ expatriates”.

Answer 3

Expatriates

Repatriates

Inpatriates

Transpatraites

Question 4

Expatriates-

Answer 4

home country managers sent out

Question 5

Repatriates-

Answer 5

returning home expatriates

Question 6

Inpatriates-

Answer 6

receiving local country managers in the headquarters.

Question 7

Transpatraites-

Answer 7

are managers brought from a third country

Question 8

Expatriate’s Recruitment, Selection and Assignment

Answer 8

Home country assignment (step one)

Apply rigorous recruitment policy for foreign assignment when selecting (step two)

Orientation (all family members should participate)

Global assignment

Question 9

Home country assignment (step one)

Answer 9

internal source (look for internal employees first)

external source (hire internationally experienced

recent immigrants with good connection in their home country)

Question 10

Apply rigorous recruitment policy for foreign assignment when selecting (step two)

Answer 10

volunteer (apply psychometric test on cultural sensitivity, hardship, family readiness, etc)

involuntary (provide incentives, promotion, promise)

Question 11

Understanding Expatriate’s Adaptation Period in Phases

Answer 11

Stage one: Excitement

Stage two: Disillusionment

Stage three: Culture shock

Stage four: Adapting to the new culture (adjustment)

Stage five: Reverse culture shock (during return to home
country)

Stage six: Readjustment to your own culture

Question 12

Expatriates and tourists in the initial stage get excited by the opportunity they have to visit new friends, historical places and for being taken care by their hosts. This…

Answer 12

“romance with the new place” might last from 3 to 7 days.

Question 13

When an expatriate has to take care of himself/herself. The new life would begin with

Answer 13

orientation of the place where one lives, getting means of transportation, shopping necessary items and dining places and communicating with the person on the street for directions.

Question 14

Culture Shock Cycles in Timeframe

Answer 14

Phase one, the excitement stage is estimated to last few days or weeks

Phase two, the disillusionment will last 2-5 months

Phase three, the culture shock phase, may last up to four months

Phase four, the adaptation phase is expected to follow after five months

Question 15

At phase three, expatriates will undergo

Answer 15

adaptation.

Question 16

Research indicates that the most effective global managers are likely to have problems of

Answer 16

adaptation

Question 17

Managers who are described as average in the US suffer little or

Answer 17

mild culture shock. This is due to the sharp contrast that exists between the US and other countries’ management styles.

Question 18

Culture shock is not limited only to the expatriate but also to his/her family members. In fact studies show that spouses who stay at home suffer the most due to

Answer 18

lack of activities and lack of communication with the local people due to language barrier.

Question 19

Culture shock shouldn’t be totally viewed as a negative phenomenon; culture shock is an interactive process which indicates

Answer 19

the negotiation of two cultures.

Expatriates therefore should be able to manage the shock rather than avoiding it.

Question 20

In order to adapt to a foreign environment, expatriates have to be

Answer 20

detached, at least temporarily from their own country, culture, organization, friends, families and parents.

Question 21

As a result of detachment during adaptation, individuals may manifest signs of:

Answer 21

embarrassment

disappointment

frustration

impatience

anger

Question 22

The process of adjustment can be measured by

Answer 22

the extent in which one accepts trading his/her own culture with a foreign culture.

Question 23

The process of change can be felt after three months.

The level of adjustment is strongly dependent upon

Answer 23

the similarities of the two cultures (home and host countries cultures).

The psychological preparation of the expatriates

Success of the subsidiary firm

The adaptation of the family members

Political relationship of the home and domestic countries

Question 24

Managing culture shock: What individuals can do:

Answer 24

Regular physical exercise

Being interested in the culture of the country (participate in events, study their arts and music)

Writing memoirs can be your hobby

Getting acquainted with the local people

Getting enrolled in continuing education (language, culture, history)

Question 25

Minimizing culture shock: What IC can do

Answer 25

Provide effective training time

Selection based on both managerial and non-managerial skill

Training should include spouses and children

Send the expatriates home during holidays (twice a year)

Apply psychometric test during selection for foreign assignments.

Create a couple career family profile

Send expatriates and the family home twice a year

–Family reunion

–Retraining

–Socializing with colleagues etc

Question 26

__ reentry is more difficult than any __ reentry

Answer 26

Professional

personal

Question 27

Most professionals might not get the

Answer 27

same position when they return (out-of-sight out-of- mind reality is a possibility)

Question 28

Organizations at the headquarters are more dynamic than foreign subsidiaries; as a result, the returning expatriate might

Answer 28

feel lost.

Question 29

The expatriates can be bored with the

Answer 29

limited responsibility they might have.

Question 30

Reentry to your own culture: Reverse culture Shock

Answer 30

Social alienation

The loss of “ foreign acquired culture and friends) “The feeling of everywhere but nowhere”

Question 31

Companies should help expatriates to maintain close contact with

Answer 31

the home organization while abroad.

Question 32

Recognition of returning expatriates helps the

Answer 32

organizations and future expatriates to benefit from their experiences.

Question 33

Recognized expatriates perform better than those

Answer 33

without recognition.

Question 34

By organizing a briefing session, the management at the headquarter can maximize the benefit the experience of returning expatriate. The lesson learned is

Answer 34

instrumental for creating an international synergistic management group.

Question 35

Indeed, expatriates come back with more knowledge after serving abroad than before taking such assignment:

Answer 35

a) They will have better managerial skills
b) They develop broader knowledge (they know how much they don’t know)
c) They become sensitive to foreigners as they had to go through that experience themselves
d) They develop the ability to work with foreigners
e) They are good connection to the foreign country they used to work in.