Question 1

Describe some of the advantages to a multinational firm of host-country nationals (HCNs) over parent-country nationals (PCNs).

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Question 2

Employees sent on overseas assignments from a few weeks to a year in length are known as "boomerangs."

Accepted Answer

Employees sent on overseas assignments from a few weeks to a year in length are typically referred to as "expatriates" or "expats," not "boomerangs." "Boomerangs" usually refer to employees who leave an organization and then return to it at a later date.

Question 3

A big risk associated with posting PCNs abroad as expatriates is that they often lack an understanding of the local business environment, particularly early on, so some multinationals target immigrants when recruiting, hoping to plug them into key company positions in their native countries. The immigrants are known as "boomerangs."

Accepted Answer

"Boomerangs" refer to individuals who have lived abroad and then return to their home country, bringing with them a blend of international experience and local knowledge. Multinationals often target these individuals for positions in their native countries to leverage their understanding of both the global business environment and local cultural nuances.

Question 4

The expatriate population has actually been decreasing in recent years because more companies are engaging in international business than ever before and want to hire more HCNs and TCNs.

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Question 5

One of the forces impacting multinationals' efforts to develop their international workforces is the demand for skilled, flexible employees who are culturally sophisticated.

Accepted Answer

Multinationals require a workforce that is not only skilled and adaptable but also culturally aware to navigate the complexities of global markets effectively. This demand influences their international workforce development strategies.

Question 6

Second-generation expatriates are immigrants who are naturalized citizens of a multinational's home country and then are posted abroad for at least one year to a country other than where they were born.

Accepted Answer

Second-generation expatriates are immigrants who are naturalized citizens of a multinational's home country, so they are not born in the country they are posted to.

Question 7

Many U.S. multinationals that depend on foreign markets have done more in recent years to fill top positions with executives who have significant international experience, but do little to provide a pipeline of international opportunities for lower-level managers.

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Question 8

Some multinationals with extensive foreign operations have created global training programs to cover large groups of employees, including expatriates with goals such as raising cultural awareness and making multicultural teams work well.

Accepted Answer

Many multinational corporations implement global training programs to address the challenges of operating in diverse cultural environments, aiming to enhance cultural awareness among employees and improve the effectiveness of multicultural teams. These programs often include expatriates and are designed to foster a cohesive and inclusive workplace culture.

Question 9

Define what is meant by a "boomerang" employee and describe some of the challenges they may face when they find themselves back in their home cultures.

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Question 10

What are some of the commonly cited reasons to send PCNs abroad long term as expatriates?

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Question 11

Common reasons to send PCNs abroad long term as expatriates include the belief that local employees in a foreign subsidiary lack relevant skills and that a PCN is the best way to monitor foreign operations and instill corporate values.

Accepted Answer

Sending Parent Country Nationals (PCNs) abroad as expatriates is often motivated by the perception that local employees may not possess the necessary skills or knowledge for certain roles, and by the desire of the parent company to ensure its corporate culture, practices, and values are consistently applied and monitored across its global operations.

Question 12

Explain the difference between domestic internationals and international commuters.

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Question 13

Compare the role of "just-in-time expatriates" with that of "short-term international assignees."

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Question 14

Multinationals that use third-country nationals (TCNs) and regional transfers to develop international cadres perform worse than multinationals that rely on traditional expatriates.

Accepted Answer

Multinationals that use third-country nationals (TCNs) and regional transfers to develop international cadres often do so to leverage diverse perspectives, local insights, and international experience, which can enhance global strategy and performance rather than detract from it.

Question 15

Korean and Japanese multinationals tend to use PCNs (traditional expatriates) in foreign subsidiaries more than European or American multinationals, in part because they value high power distance.

Accepted Answer

Korean and Japanese multinationals often prefer to use parent-country nationals (PCNs) in their foreign subsidiaries due to cultural values such as high power distance, which emphasizes respect for hierarchy and authority, and a desire to maintain tight control and ensure the subsidiary aligns closely with the headquarters' corporate culture and practices.

Question 16

Compare traditional expatriates with second-generation expatriates.

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Question 17

Cross-cultural training programs have veered away from superficial efforts to explain business practices and etiquette used in other countries to training that stresses open-mindedness, understanding, and respect.

Accepted Answer

Cross-cultural training programs have evolved to focus more on fostering open-mindedness, understanding, and respect among individuals from different cultures, rather than merely explaining superficial aspects of business practices and etiquette. This shift aims to build deeper intercultural competencies.

Question 18

Everything else being equal, multinationals based in low power distance countries tend to rely on expatriates more, probably because national values reinforce the belief that higher levels of control are necessary overseas.

Accepted Answer

Multinationals based in high power distance countries are more likely to rely on expatriates because they believe in maintaining a higher level of control overseas, reflecting their national values that emphasize hierarchy and authority.

Question 19

Compare the approach used by multinational firms with a geocentric staffing philosophy to those with an ethnocentric staffing philosophy.

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Question 20

U.S. multinationals seem to have higher rates of expatriate failure (often 30% to 40%) than European firms (failure rates typically around 10%) possibly because Europeans are exposed to a wider variety of languages and intercultural experiences than their American counterparts.

Accepted Answer

European firms generally report lower expatriate failure rates compared to U.S. multinationals, partly because Europeans, due to the geographical proximity of diverse countries, often have greater exposure to different languages and cultures, which can enhance their adaptability and success in international assignments.

Quiz 11: Global Staffing Alternatives: Expatriates and Beyond