Chapter 5

Training and
Development
1
Chapter Objectives
 Training

Trainingaims
aimsto
toimprove
improveemployees’
employees’current
currentwork
workskills
skills
and
andbehavior,
behavior,whereas
whereasdevelopment
developmentaimsaimsto toincrease
increase
abilities
abilitiesin
inrelation
relationtotosome
somefuture
futureposition
positionororjob.
job.
 In

Inthis
thischapter,
chapter,we weexamine
examinehow howthe
theinternational
international
assignment
assignmentisisaavehicle
vehiclefor
forboth
bothtraining
trainingand
and
development,
development,as asreflected
reflectedininthe
thereasons
reasonswhy
why
international
internationalassignments
assignmentscontinue
continueto toplay
playaastrategic
strategic
role
rolein
ininternational
internationalbusiness
businessoperations.
operations.
 The

Therole
roleofoftraining
trainingin
inpreparing
preparingandandsupporting
supporting
personnel
personnelon oninternational
internationalassignments
assignmentsisisalso
also
considered.
considered.We Weexamine
examinethethefollowing
followingissues:
issues:
 (cont.)

(cont.)
2
Chapter Objectives
(cont.)
 The

Therole
roleof
oftraining
trainingin
insupporting
supportingexpatriate
expatriateadjustment
adjustment
and
andon-assignment
on-assignment performance.
performance.
 Components

Componentsof ofeffective
effectivepre-departure
pre-departuretraining
trainingprograms
programs
such
suchasascultural
culturalawareness,
awareness,preliminary
preliminaryvisits
visitsand
and
language
languageskills.
skills.Relocation
Relocationassistance
assistanceand
andtraining
trainingfor
for
trainers
trainersare
arealso
alsoaddressed.
addressed.
 The

Theeffectiveness
effectivenessof ofpre-departure
pre-departuretraining.
training.
 The

Thedevelopmental
developmentalaspect
aspectof
ofinternational
internationalassignments
assignments
and
andits
itsrelation
relationto
tointernational
internationalcareer
careerpaths.
paths.
 Training

Trainingand
anddeveloping
developinginternational
internationalmanagement
management
teams.
teams.
 (cont.)

(cont.)
3
Chapter Objectives (cont.)

Reflecting
Reflecting the
the general
general literature
literatureonon this
this topic,
topic,the
the
focus
focus of
of the
the chapter
chapter isis on
on the
thetraditional,
traditional,
expatriate
expatriate assignment.
assignment. However,
However, where
where possible,
possible,
we
we will
will draw
draw out
out training
training and
and development
development
aspects
aspects relating
relatingtotoshort-term
short-term assignments,
assignments,non- non-
standard
standard assignments
assignments and and international
international business
business
travelers.
travelers.

4
International Assignments as a
Training and Development Tool
 Expatriates are trainers
 Expatriates show how systems and procedures work, ensure adoption,
and monitor performance of HCNs
 International assignments are a form of job rotation to gain a broader
perspective – management development, and to assist in developing a
pool of capable global operators.

5
International Training and Development

6
Components of Effective Pre-departure
Training
 Cultural awareness programs
 Preliminary visits
 Language training
 Practical assistance
 Training for the training role
 TCN and HCN expatriate training
 Non-traditional assignments and training

7
The Mendenhall, Dunbar and Oddou
Cross-cultural Training Model

8
 Cultural Awareness Training and
Assignment Performance

IBUS 618, Dr. Yang 9

Language Training

 Therole of English as the language of

world business
 Hostcountry-language skills and
adjustment
 Knowledge of the corporate language

10
The Impact of Language on Power

11
Practical Assistance
 Information that assists relocation
 Assistance
in finding suitable
accommodation and schooling
 Further language training
 Makes an important contribution to
adaptation of expatriate and
accompanying family members to the
host location
12
Effectiveness of Pre-departure Training

 Limited data on how effective such training is and

what components are considered most essential:
 Use of mixture of methods makes evaluation of which
method is most effective difficult to isolate
 Large diversity of cultures involved
 What works for one may not work for another
 Complex jobs in multiple cultural contexts
 Integrated cross-cultural training exhibited cultural
proficiency earlier and appeared to have greater job
satisfaction than those with lesser training.

13
Developing Staff through International
Assignments

 Management Development
 Individuals
gain international
experience which assists career
progression
 Multinationalgains through having a
pool of experienced operators on which
to draw for future international
assignments

14
Developing Staff through International
Assignments
 Organizational Development
 Accumulating a stock of knowledge,
skills and abilities
 Developing a global mindset
 Expatriatesas agents of direct control
and socialization in the transfer of
knowledge and competence.

15
Expatriate Career Decision Points

16
How international teams benefit the
multinational
 Fosters innovation, organizational learning and transfer of knowledge
 Assists breaking down of functional and national boundaries
 Encourages diverse inputs
 Assists in developing broader perspectives
 Develops shared values

17
Developing International Teams through
International Assignments

18
Chapter Summary

This chapter has concentrated on the issues relating to

training and developing expatriates for international
assignments. In the process, we have discussed:
 The role of expatriate training in supporting
adjustment and on-assignment performance.
 The components of effective pre-departure training
programs such as cultural awareness, preliminary
visits, language skills, relocation assistance and
training for trainers.
(cont.)
19
 Chapter Summary (cont.)
 How cultural awareness training appears to assist in
adjustment and performance and therefore should
be made available to all categories of staff selected
for overseas postings, regardless of duration and
location.
 The need for language training for the host country
and in the relevant corporate language.
 The impact that an international assignment may
have on an individual’s career.
(cont.)

IBUS 618, Dr. Yang 20

Chapter Summary (cont.)
 The international assignment as an important way
of training international operators and developing
the international ‘cadre’. In this sense, an
international assignment is both training (gaining
international experience and competence) and
managerial and organizational development.
 How international assignments are connected to
the creation of international teams.

21
Tutorial 5

1) Explain repatriation.
2) Discuss organization development and
management development.
3) Elaborate the effectiveness of pre-
departure training.
4) Explain the component of an effective
pre-departure training.
5) How does an expatriate transfer their
knowledge to other subordinates?

IBUS 618, Dr. Yang 22