Abstract
The present article of a theoretical nature addresses cross-cultural training as a success factor to promote external adjustment. In that sense, a documentary and critical review of the subject, and the analysis pursuant to agency theories, transaction costs, and dynamic capacities allow the formulation of a body of propositions; the latter help to estimate, among other considerations, that the degree of effectiveness of the referred practice can not only differ according to cultural distance, type of expatriate employee, and strategic approach; but, as an unintended effect, the acquired technical and multicultural skills may be susceptible to personal benefit, when weaknesses in control mechanisms or inadequate human resources policies are conductive to the presence of opportunistic behavior or conflicts of interest between parties.
References
Álvarez, M., & Gómez, S. (2009). El proceso de expatriación en empresas multinacionales: Visión del expatriado. Navarra, España: Ernst & Young-IESE Business School, Universidad de Navarra.
Álvarez, M., Gómez, S., & Contreras, I. (2011). Políticas de expatriación en multinacionales: Visión de las personas. Navarra, España: Ernst & Young-IESE Business School, Universidad de Navarra.
Álvarez, M., & Gómez, S. (2013). Políticas de expatriación en el contexto económico actual: Visión de las empresas. Navarra, España: Ernst & Young-IESE Business School, Universidad de Navarra.
Arnáez, N., Arizkuren, A., & Muñiz, M. (2012). Reflexiones sobre las prácticas de gestión y factores que favorecen la repatriación. En M. Muñiz Ferrer, J. Labrador Fernández & A. Arizkuren Eleta (Eds.), Internacionalización y capital humano (pp. 165–202). Madrid, España: Pontificia Universidad de Comillas.
Barbian, J. (2002). Return to sender. Training, 39(1), 40–43.
Barbulesco, R., & Bidwell, M. (2012). Do women choose different jobs from men? Mechanisms of application segregation in the market for managerial workers. Organization Science, 24(3), 1–20.
Bartlett, C., & Ghoshal, S. (1992). Transnational management. Text, cases and readings in cross-order management. Londres, Reino Unido: Irwin.
Baruch, Y., & Altman, Y. (2002). Expatriation and repatriation in MNCs: A taxonomy. Human Resource Management, 41(2), 239–259.
Bastida, M. (2015). Do brain drain ao brain gain: Expatriación, emigración e competitividade empresarial. Revista Galega de Economía, 24(3), 49–64.
Bauer, T., & Taylor, S. (2001). When managing expatriate adjustment, don‘t forget the spouse. Academy of Management Executive, 15(4), 135–137.
Bell, Y., McNaughton, R., & Young, S. (2001). Born-again global firms: An extension to the "born global" phenomenon. Journal of International Management, 7(3), 173–189.
Bennett, R. (1993). Meeting the challenges of repatriation. Journal of International Compensations and Benefits, September/October, 28–33.
Bennett, R., Aston, A., & Colquhoun, T. (2000). Cross-cultural training: A critical step in ensuring the success of international assignments. Human Resource Management, 3(2–3), 239–250.
Black, S., & Gregersen, H. (2000). High impact training: Forging leaders for the global frontier. Human Resource Management, 39(2–3), 173–184.
Blassingame, K. (2002). Strangers in strange lands. Employee Benefit News, 16(8), 31–32.
Bonache, J., & Cabrera, A. (2005). La gestión de expatriados. Dirección de Personas (2a ed.). Madrid, España: Prentice Hall.
Bonache, J. (2010). El valor estratégico de la movilidad global de puestos, personas y conocimientos en las multinacionales. Universia Business Review, 27(3) 1–16.
Brewster, C., & Scullion, H. (1997). A review and agenda for expatriate HRM. Human Resource Management Journal, 7(3), 32–41.
Brookfield Global Recolocation Services (2010). Global relocation trends: Survey report. Nueva York, NY: Windham International.
Chunques, V., De Miranda, E., & Farina, M. (2014). Distância psíquica no processo de internacionalização: A percepção dos expatriados brasileiros. Revista Eletrônica de Negócios Internacionais, 9(3), 57–77.
Castro, A. (2011). La evaluación de las competencias culturales de los líderes mediante el inventario de adaptación cultural. Anales de Psicología de la Universidad de Murcia, 27(2), 507–517.
Castro, A. (2012). La evaluación de las competencias culturales: Validación del inventario ICC. Interdisciplinaria, 29(1).
Coase, R. (1937). The nature of the firm. Económica, 4(16), 386–405.
Coelho, A., Di Diego, E., & Macke, J. (2016). Transferencia intercultural de conocimiento y el papel del área internacional de recursos humanos. Invenio, 19(36), 89–105. Recuperado de https://www.redalyc.org/articulo.oa?id=87745590006
Collings, D. (2014). Integrating global mobility and global talent management: Exploring the challenges and strategic opportunities. Journal of World Business, 49(2), 253–261.
Doherty, N., & Dickmann, M. (2012). Measuring the return on investment in international assignments: An action research approach. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 23(16), 3434–3454.
Donado, A. (2015). El choque cultural en la internacionalización empresarial. Magazín Empresarial, 11(27), 39–48.
Doz, Y., & Prahalad, C. (1984). Patterns of strategic control within multinational corporations. Journal of International Business Studies, 15(2), 55–72.
Edmond, S. (2002). Exploring the success of expatriates of U.S. multinational firms in México. International Trade Journal, 16(3), 233–255.
Fanjul, E. (2010). Factores culturales e internacionalización de la empresa. ICE, 856, 7–19.
Feldman, D., & Thomas, D. (1992). Career management issues facing expatriates. Journal of International Business Studies, 23(2), 271–293.
Gómez, S., & Fernández, L. (2005). Políticas de expatriación y repatriación en multinacionales: Visión de las empresas y de las personas. Navarra, España: IESE Business School–Centro Anselmo Rubiralta de Globalización y Estrategia, Universidad de Navarra.
Gullahorn, J. T., & Gullahorn, J. E. (1963). An extension of the U-curve hypothesis. Journal of Social Issues, 19(3), 34–47.
Handler, Ch., & Lane, I. (1998). Career planning and expatriate couples. Human Resource Management Journal, 7(3), 67–78.
Hanzmann, Z. (2016). How can companies ensure successful expatriate assignments? Examining important antecedents of assigned expatriates‘ cross-cultural adjustment in the light of new trends in global mobility (Tesis de Maestría). ISCTE-Instituto Universitário de Lisboa, Portugal.
Harvey, M. (1982). The other side of foreign assignments: Dealing with the repatriation dilemma. Columbia Journal of World Business, 17(1), 53–59.
Harzing, A. (2001). Of bears, bumble-bees and spiders: The role of expatriates in controlling foreign subsidiaries. Journal of World Business, 36(4), 366–379.
Harzing, A., & Christensen, C. (2004). Expatriate failure: Time to abandon the concept? The Career Development International, 9(7), 616–626.
Hofstede, G. (2001). Culture‘s consequences: Comparing values, behaviours, institutions and organizations across countries. Londres, Reino Unido: Sage Publishing.
Hung-Wen, L. (2007). Factors that influence expatriate failure: An interview study. International Journal of Management, 24(3), 403–413.
Jensen, M., & Meckling, W. (1976). Theory of the firm: Managerial behaviour, agency costs and ownership structure. Journal of Financial Economics, 3(4), 305–360.
Johanson, J., & Valhne, J. (1977). The internationalization of a firm: A model of knowledge development and increasing foreign market commitments. Journal of International Business Studies, 8(1), 23–32.
Jones, G., & Wright, P. (1992). An economic approach to conceptualizing the utility of human resource management practices. Research in Personal and Human Resource Management, 10, 271–299.
Kluckhohn, F., & Strodtbeck, F. (1961). Variations in value orientations. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
Kopp, R. (1994). International human resource policies and practices in Japanese, European, and United States multinationals. Human Resource Management, 33(4), 581–599.
Landis, D., & Brislin, R. (1983). Handbook on intercultural training (Vol. 1). Nueva York, NY: Pergamon Press.
Lee, L., & Van Vorst, D. (2010). The influences of social capital and social support on expatriates‘ cultural adjustment: An empirical validation in Taiwan. International Journal of Management, 27(3), 628–649.
Littrell, L., Salas, E., Hess, K., Paley, M., & Riedel, S. (2006). Expatriate preparation: A critical analysis of 25 years of cross-cultural training research. Human Resource Development Review, 5(3), 355–388.
Lovvorn A., & Chen J. (2011) Developing a global mindset: The relationship between an international assignment and cultural intelligence. International Journal of Business and Social Science, 2(9), 275–283.
Management ED. (2010). La nueva dinámica de las políticas de expatriación (Núm. 1518) Recuperado de http://www.especialdirectivos.es.
Mendenhall, M., & Stahl, G. (2000). Expatriate training and development: Where do we go from here? Human Resource Management, 39(2–3), 251–265.
Mendenhall, M., Osland, J., Bird, A., Oddou, G., & Maznevski, M. (2008). Global leadership: Research practice and development. Londres, Reino Unido: Routledge.
Mirabal, A. (2006). Efecto moderador de la cultura, el contexto y la estrategia sobre las prácticas de entrenamiento y asistencia cross-cultural para expatriados (Disertación doctoral no publicada). Universitat de Valencia, Facultad de Economía, Valencia, España.
Moon, T. (2010). Organizational cultural intelligence: Dynamic capability perspective. Group and Organizational Management, 35(4), 456–493.
Morris, M., & Robie, C. (2001). A meta-analysis of the effects of cross-cultural training on expatriate performance and adjustment. International Journal of Training & Development, 5(2), 112–125.
Perlmutter, H. V. (1965). Three conceptions of a world enterprise. Revue Economique et Sociale, May, n.p.
Pires, G., Stanton, J. & Ostenfeld, S. (2006). Improving expatriate adjustment and effectiveness in ethically diverse countries: Marketing insights. Cross Cultural Management, 13(2), 156–170.
Polanco, Y. (2013). El proceso de administración de los recursos humanos. Enfoque hacia los expatriados. Análisis Económico, 67(28), 78–91.
Quintanilla, J., Sánchez-Mangas, R., & Susaeta, L. (2010). Políticas y prácticas de recursos humanos en el contexto organizativo de la empresa multinacional. Barcelona, España: IESE Business School/Fundación BBVA. Recuperado de https://mba.americaeconomia.com/sites/mba.americaeconomia.com/files/iese_0.pdf
Rajshekhar, G., & Todd, P. (2011). Entrepreneurial orientation, management commitment, and human capital: The internationalization of SMEs in India. Journal of Business Research, 64(9), 1004–1010.
Right Management (2013). Global leadership trends. Recuperado de: https://www.manpowergroup.com/
Riusala, K., & Suutari, V. (2004). International knowledge transfers through expatriates. Thunderbird International Business Review, 46(6), 743–770.
Sánchez, M., Sanz, R., & Aragón, B. (2007). Antecedents of repatriates‘ job satisfaction and its influence on turnover intentions: Evidence from Spanish repatriated managers. Journal of Business Research, 60(12), 1272–1281.
Shaffer, M., & Harrison, D. (2001). Forgotten partners of international assignments: Development and test of a model of spouse adjustment. Journal of Applied Psychology, 86(2), 238–254.
Shaffer, M., Harrison, D., Gregersen, H., Black, S., & Ferzandi, L. (2006). You can take it with you: Individual differences and expatriate effectiveness. Journal of Applied Psychology, 91(1), 109–125.
Teece, D., Pisano, G., & Shuen, A. (1997). Dynamic capabilities and strategic management. Strategic Management Journal, 18(7), 509–533.
Trompenaars, F., & Hampden-Turner, C. (1997) Riding the Waves of Culture (2nd ed.). Londres, Reino Unido: Nicholas Brealey Publishing.
Tung, R. (1984). Strategic management of human resources in the multinational enterprise. Human Resource Management, 23(2), 129–143.
Tungli, Z., & Peiperl, M. (2009). Expatriate practices in Germany, Japanese, U.K. and U.S. multinational companies: A comparative survey of changes. Human Resource Management, 48(1), 153–171.
Von Borell, F., Broseghini, N., & Fiorio, A. (2013). Suporte organizacional e adaptação de cônjuges e expatriados: Uma análise por meio de equações estruturais. Revista Gestão & Tecnologia Pedro Leopoldo, 13(3), 51–76.
Wang, C., & Ahmed, P. (2007). Dynamic capabilities: A review and research agenda.
International Journal of Management Reviews, 9(1), 31–51.
Wang, Y., & Tran, E. (2012). Effects of cross-cultural training and language training on expatriates‘ adjustment and job performance in Vietnam. Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources, 50(3), 327–350.
Williamson, O. (1975). Markets and Hierarchies: Analysis and Antitrust Implications. Nueva York, NY: Free Press.
Zahra, S., Sapienza, H., & Davidsson, P. (2006). Entrepreneurship and dynamic capabilities: A review, model and research agenda. Journal of Management Studies, 43(4), 917–955.
Zatko, M. (2014). La gestión de expatriados: La adaptación cultural en la Argentina (Trabajo de graduación para optar al título de Contador Público y Administración de empresas). Universidad de San Andrés, Argentina. Recuperado de https://repositorio.udesa.edu.ar/jspui/handle/10908/10838
By submitting a contribution to consideration of the Editorial Board of Fórum Empresarial, the authors attest that it is an original, unpublished work, which has not been nor will be simultaneously submitted to another journal for consideration and publication; that they are responsible for the work carried out and the content of the article; and they have the corresponding copyrights.
The authors grant the right of first publication of their work to Fórum Empresarial, in any medium and physical and electronic format, including internet. Publication shall be subject to the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License, which allows third parties to share the work, provided that the author and Fórum Empresarial (as a first publication) are cited.
The journal allows authors to retain publishing rights without restrictions. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in Fórum Empresarial.