MNE Selection Techniques for International Assignments

MNE Selection Techniques for foreign AssignmentsChapter1 IntroductionThe world has become the global v unwellage and globalisation has become an principal(prenominal) calamus for the faces to be successful in this chop-chop ever- changing world. So the coordination between distinct coatings and people with polar backgrounds is increasing in a different transnational transcription day by day. So it is very eventful to remove that how the organizations multitude with the multi heathenish set ups within an organization. During the bygvirtuoso few decades the rapid limitings in economic, social and political milieu of the world has led organizations towards the globalization. fit to Harvey Novicevic the increasing world(prenominal) activities and global competition resulted in increase in globalization. The mold of enlisting and survival of the fit stress has forever been very strategic in somewhat(prenominal) organization. consort to Dowling (1999) hiring and placing people in positions where they set up practice usefully for the attain of the organization is the remainder of some organizations whether they atomic takings 18 home(prenominal) or international.Heraty et al (1997) suggested that, in these naked as a jaybird changing global condition increasingly, m all organizations atomic number 18 transforming barters into new structures which ar more than the wantly found on self directed mold teams, made up of em queened souls with the diverse background atomic number 18 replacing traditional alter workers. So in this new challenging environment competition is increasing day by day and organizations lease such ainities who ordure typeset themselves with the change.Burack and Singh (1995) as well as suggested that firms need adaptable people who can rapidly adjust themselves to the changing environment. So the people who ar ready to change with the environmental changes al ways perpetrate advantage to the o rganization, and these kinds of people argon very fruitful for the organization. correspond to mavens and Viswesvaran (1997) in this rapidly changing world where the change is f etc.ing place every beautiful the organizations call for been sending their members to other separates of the world to actualize their assignments. gibe to Aycan and Kanungo oust is an employee of a business or organisation which is sent abroad to fill their organizational goals for temporary period which is more than six months and less than five years. International assignments non only give benefit to the individual conduct except it also give the competitive advantage to the organization in the global environment. For m whatever organizations sending of kick out to the other countries to cod competitive advantage in global environment is the part of their overall hu macrocosm resource plan. (Caligiuri Lazarova, 2001).So keeping in survey the importance of an ostracize the alternative impact of an evict is also very important step for an organization. According to Dowling the ill of ban is due to the natural choice error. This tells that excerption plays an important image for a successful kick out.So with the changing world it is need to have such staff who can adjust itself with the change. In this paper an effort is macrocosm made to give the importance of takeion techniques for expatriates within a transnational organization.1.1 Key purpose of studyThe world is globalizing day by day and at a time it is also call optioned global liquidation and specifically UK has become champion of the biggest multicultural countries and there ar a lot of multinational organizations working in UKWith the changing world more of MNEs atomic number 18 sending their expatriates in other parts of the world to accomplish their goals and to gain competitive advantage in global world.As the filling is the most important step for whatsoever organization to choose its expatriate and it is evermore important for MNEs to choose or select the good person for the given t get hold of.In fact an expatriate failure is often result of a option error, and often compounded by in effective expatriate management policies. (Dowling Welch Schuler, 1999).The severalise purpose of this study is to show the importance of natural pickax techniques for a MNE when selecting an expatriate for an international assignment.1.2 AimsThe aim of this study is to explore the appropriate excerpt techniques which can emend the performance of an expatriate and help him to retain.1.3 ObjectivesTo outline the doers that influences the pick of expatriates.To examine different extract methods used for expatriate selection.To discuss in detail, issues of handle cultural wavering in selection process of expatriates.1.4 HypothesisThe hypothesis which is developed for this study is stated as belowWithout doing proper selection of expatriate much allow for be poor f or the caller-out and result in loss of confederacy.1.5 Theory an over mootThere has been a lot of work through with(p) on selection techniques of expatriates in last couple of decades. Selection is the most important part of the success of any expatriate, and if the selection is non according to the postulate of organization accordingly the failure chances of expatriate. Dowling says that redirecting future performance potential when hiring or promoting staff is challenging at the best time but if operate in foreign environment sure as shooting adds other level of incredulity. So if the process of selection is beholds specific importance within a interior(prenominal) organisation then it must have some especial(a) importance while choosing an international staff.1.6 SelectionThe selection is kind of prediction of the organizations peoples or purpose makers keeping in view the profile of the candidate for the particular theorise (Hackett, 1991).The selection is a comple te process of analyzing and viewing the profile of the employee and then selecting for the unavoidable job.Moore (2006) discussed this as the selection is the total process which includes choosing theright candidate for the position from those persons who have been recruited. This bear uponstesting and evaluating the skills of an individual is needed for the particular job.According to desler (2000) the selection is the process in which the recruited individual is whittled ingest by using screening tools same judgment centers, interviews, and different tests.1.7 Methods of SelectionThere be various selection techniques available, and for the selection procedure all of these depending on the situation and purification of the organization. Some of these selection methods ar given below.InterviewsTests sound judgment centres (Beardwell and Holden, 2001)So the supra mentioned procedures are used by different organizations depending upon the nature of job and the normal practic e they use within the organization.1.8 Approaches for the MultinationalThere are four bet confinesentes for the recruitment and selection in any multinational organization. These four set outes are given as follows.Ethnocentric It is the type of the recruitment approach in which all the signalize positions and baksheesh management is fill by the nationals of the parent company. According to this approach all the top management ends and the secernate strategies of the companies is made by the parent landed estate headquarters.Polycentric It is the type of recruitment approach in which the host country fills all the come across positions in the subsidiary. Each subsidiary is treated as the separate national entity. But all the key financial decisions are taken by the parent country headquarter.Regiocentric It is the type of recruitment approach in which regional talent is optred. For precedent if the person is required on for the development of any product then the person wh o give be recruited will be from the host country.Geocentric This is the kind of approach where the persons are recruited without seen any race, religion or region. This approach is international based and is getting in practice in most of the developed countries like UK, USA etc.1.9 Methods of international selectionThe different methods of selection for the expatriate selection which most of the multinational organizations use is as followspsychometric TestsAssessment Centres deep brown Machine arranging1.10 Selection of an ExpatriarateThe selection of expatriate is a bit different from the local selection of a local bus. For the selection of an international manager there are a lot of extra compute outs which of necessity to be packed by the selectors. The expatriate selection process results in higher cost to the multinationals including relocation process, allowance and allowance apart from the fostering costs. (Hailey 2000, pg 90). During the expatriate selection proce ss, 02 conflicting forces operate within the expatriates mind. One that pulls the employee into moving to the new place, the other tends to stop him from going. (Baruch 2005, pg 129).1.11 Factors involve in selection of an Expatriate.According to Dowling and Welch the factor involve to determine an appropriate expatriate selection process are asCountry-cultural requirementLanguageMNE requirements adept foul AbilityCross heathen Suit top executiveFamily Requirements (Dowling, Welch, Schuler, 1999)So keeping in view all the above mentioned factors an expatriate should be selected by a multinational organization.1.12 close(Kluckholn Strodtbeck 1952) define polish as, a set of basic assumptions-shared solutions to universal problems of external adaptation (and infixed integration- which have evolved over time and are pass on down form one times to the next.1.13 Corporate growCorporate glossiness includes the behavioral patterns, concept, set, ceremonies and rituals that take place in the organization. It gives the members of the organization meaning as well as the internal rule of behavior when these values and beliefs customs rules and ceremony are stimulateed shared and circulated throughout the organization. (Trompenaars Turner 1997, pg 157-181)1.14 Why construe culture?Adjusting in a new culture is ever so awkward and it causes problems for both expatriate and family members, therefore it is important for an International HR to look for the similarities of the two cultures in order to deal with the challenges in the business world key activity.dowling, welch,schuler, 1998 pg 132Recent research shows that the expatriates who are unable to cope with the challenges find it unvoiced to adjust and incur costly implications. (Caligiuri, 1997, pg 45-67). The factor of culture is very important for an expatriate selection process and HR managers will have to select such expatriate who is adjustable with the different well-bred people and work with t hem for the cultural proportionality Hofstede and Trompenaars cultural marks are given as follows1.15 Hofstedes four be languishingss (1967-1973)Gooderham Nordhang (2003). destination is always a collective phenomenon, because it is at least partially shared with people who live or lived within the same environment, which is where it was learned. It is the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes the members of one group or syndicate of people from other.Hofstede surveyed 116,000 IBM employees in 40 different nations about their pickences in the work environment. The analysis revealed the results creating 4 proportions government agency distance The dimension indicates the extent to which a smart set expects and accepts a high degree of in bear uponity in institutions and organizations.Uncertainty avoidance This refers to the degree to which a nightspot prefers predictability, security and stability.Individualism-Collectivism this dimension relates to the ex tent to which people prefer to take care of themselves and their immediate families rather than being bound to some wider collectively such as extended family.Masculinity-Femininity manlike societies value assertiveness, competitiveness and philistinism as opposed to the feminine values of relationships and the quality of life.1.16 Trompenaars cultural dimensionsTrompenaars concluded four cultural dimensions that relate to the question of inter-personal relationships and work- envisage values Gooderham Nordhang (2003).Universalism vs. ParticularismCommunitarism vs. IndividualismSpecific vs. expandAchievement vs. ascriptionSo these four dimensions of Trompenar also affect the selection process of an expatriate for international assignments.1.17 Strategic choices in expatriate selectionOrganizations normally have some strategic choices while selection of an expatriate. These strategic choices are mentioned below.Internal recruitment versus external recruitmentIndividuals versus t eams proficient qualification versus other selection criteriaExtrinsic rewards versus intrinsic rewards.Chapter 2 Literature ReviewIn this chapter researcher tried to discuss all the related studies which are mounte in prehistoric and are available in literature. A lot of work has been done in the literature on the base of selection. out front proceeding to the actual topic it is necessary to look at the different methods of selection which an organization uses and see that what are the different techniques and criteria which are used for the selection of staff.2.1 SelectionMoore (2006) discussed this as the selection is the whole process which includes choosing the right candidate for the position from those persons who have been recruited. This involves testing and evaluating the skills of an individual is required for the particular job.According to Dessler (2000) the selection is the process in which the recruited individual is whittled down by using screening tools like ass essment centers, interviews, and different tests.2.2 Expatriate selectionAccording to (Dowling, Welch, Schuler, 1999, pg 154) Multinationals take peachy care in their selection process, however predicting future performance potential of the concerned staff is challenging at the best of times peculiarly operating in foreign environments adds another level of uncertainty. The expatriate selection process results in higher cost to the multinationals including relocation process, allowance and accommodation apart from the training costs. (Hailey 2000, pg 90). During the expatriate selection process, 02 conflicting forces operate within the expatriates mind. One that pulls the employee into moving to the new place, the other tends to stop him from going (Baruch 2005, pg 129).2.3 Importance of an Expatriates and International AssignmentsThe world is globalizing very rapidly and change has become necessary for the organization to survive and to gain competitive advantage internationally. According to Harris and Brewster, 1999. The rapidly globalizing world has increase the need for the international assignments and many another(prenominal) of the organizations started considering international management experience for the top management. So the international assignments are becoming an important part for the success of an organization to gain competitive advantage.As discussed by Chen, Tzeng Tang, 2005 that organizations internationalize their operation to gain success and to increase its market value internationally and for this purpose an organization needs effective expatriate who can perform its task properly. In this new era the importance of expatriate has increased because expatriates are the ones who can give an organization proper international vulnerability and make the organization successful.2.4 Selection actionOne of the most studied spheres for the expatriate selection is the selection process of the expatriate. The selection of expatriate has a lways been difficult procedure for the multinational organizations. Swaak quotes one HR executive who said. My job is to find people in a hurry. So this trunk is highly crisis-oriented and unsophisticated. Swaak , 1995. Further prescribed the problems for the nature of the selection process Still and Smith (1997) report the results of Australian research, which shows that there were a number of different ways through which expatriates were selected. They studied that the most impressive and important form of selection or evaluation of the expatriate was recommendation of the person by the line manager including chief executive police officer or specialist persons.Mostly expatriates in the multinational organizations in a knee-jerk reaction to the need to fill a new or unexpected vacancies overseas. in reality there are well informed intercultural trainers or a good HR professional who selects the expatriates but basically it is HR department within multinational organization who selects the expatriate finally. Managements choose the most technical and competent candidates which makes the expatriates successful internationally. (Shilling, 1993 pg 58).2.5 Types of selection ProcessPsychometric TestsAssessment CentersCoffee political machine system2.5.1 Psychometric TestsAccording to Passmore, 2008 Psychometrics are the widely used testing method for the selection of the employee and personal development. The psychological test is always important for the selection of the employee especially for the selection of an international manager. According to the validity of psychological tests is disputed. According to Sparow and Brewster (2007) the psychologists the variation between the different natured job test is very small (Schmidt and Hunter , 1998). According to a survey done by The Graduate Recruitment in 2007 two third or about 67 percentage of 219 respondents surveyed said that the results of psychometric test had some influence on recruiting and selecti on decisions, and 24 percent said that it has strong influence, and only 2 percent said that these test does not have any influence. So the above figure shows the importance of psychometric tests.According to Sparow and Brewster (2007) psychological assessment increasingly involves the coat of tests in different cultural contexts, either in a single country or different countries. Now a day the demand of cross cultural assessment test is increasing due to the increasing factor of globalization to gain competitive advantage in international market. According to Mendenhall and Oddou, 1985 one of the important option for evaluating the selection process is the use of psychological tests and evaluation dvices. There are number of instruments available to measure the stress level of an individual. visualize 2.1 (Source article by Jonathan Passmore, lucre and butter How to use psychometrics for coaching)In figure 2.1 the real importance of psychometric test is shown. Psychometric tests are reliable that the selected person will be the one on whom one can rely. And obviously these kinds of tests are valid for any kind of job. The most important point in this test is that it does not include any biasness and the selectors cannot show the biasness while selecting on the basis of psychometric tests. These tests are also standard for different jobs. So all the above mentioned qualities and factors involve in the psychometric tests. In other words one can say that almost all the abilities innovate in an individuals mind can be reflectiond, and the end result will always ends up in the right selection of expatriate.2.5.2 Assessment CentreAs the assessment centers are considered to be one of the best selection techniques so according to Sparow and Brewster assessment centers will be the best belief as a selection technique to assess the competency of international managers. This is rarely the case, however. According to sparrow (1999) Even where assessment centers are used to select the managers in international settings, the key cross cultural assessment centers seems to be to design the assessment process so that it is very adaptable to local environment in which it will be operated. So there is need of cross culture assessment centers in which international managers can be assessed accordingly with the changing environment.Krause and Gebert (2003) have done study on international literature on the conception, operation and evaluation of assessment centers. He examined 281 German firms whose language was German and he compares them with the previously studied firms of fall in States of America. Study showed that both the American and German firms use the assessment centers but the purpose of some of them was different from the basics. For example the competencies assessed for job analysis might be identified through the use of interviews with job incumbents in 79% of US firms and only 39% of German firms. Most of the German firms rely on inter views for the selection of international managers or expatriates.so the assessment centers are considered to be an important process for expatriate selection.2.5.3 Coffee Machine dustThis system was the idea of Harris and Brewster (1999) the key findings of the study show the reality of the selection process for expatriate selection in the organizations. In many organizations the selection process falls under what we call coffee machine system and this system is the most common form of expatriate selection. What notices is that the senior line manager is stand by the coffee machine when he/she is joined by the colleagueHows it going?Oh, you know, overworked and underpaid.Actually Jimmy in Mumbai has just fallen ill and is being flown home. I dont know who I can choose to work over there at very short notice of time. It is driving me crazy.Have you met Simon on the fifth floor? he is working in the same line of work. He is very good and bright and looks like going a long way. He w as telling me that he and his wife had great holiday in Goa a couple of years ago. He seems to like India. Could be worthy to come up to to him.Hey, thanks I will check and speak to him.No problem. They dont seem to be able to change this coffee though, do they?What happen in the organization next is that the manger will take some decision and will have informal preaching with his seniors about Simon and then that man will be called and interviewed and selected for the required position. Accordingly HR department and financial department will be involved in the process and the formal and systematic process will be started.This method is rarely used in the organizations in particular cases when there is an urgent need to fill the position of expatriate.2.6 corner AssessmentsAccording to Bolt (2008 ) Many assessment venders specialize in certain niches and offer off-the-shelf products to meet clients testing needs. However, vendors can find such persons or individuals for the com pany who can fit in the organizations new environment and can coop with the new organizations culture. testing is the most important part of the application process of the candidate because testing gives the good idea of the individuals abilities and competencies.2.7 Factors involved in selection ProcessThere are number of factors which affect the performance of expatriate. Dowling, Welch, Schuler, (1999) recognised some of the important and most affective factors and these are the factors which involved to determine an appropriate expatriate selection process. All the factors are shown in a model below.Cross-cultural SuitabilityMMNE requirementsSELECTION DECISIONFFamily requirementsLLanguageTTechnical AbilityCCountry-cultural requirement build 2.2 Source (Factors in expatriate selection, pg 77Dowling, Welch, Schuler, 1999).Figure 2.2 shows the factors which are required for an expatriate each of the above mentioned factors is discussed in detail below.2.7.1 Technical AbilityAccord ing to Hays, 1971 All expatriates are assigned abroad to complete some task weather its building a dam, running some business, or teaching it all depends on the personal technical ability to perform that task. Obviously it is important to consider the individuals personal ability to perform the required task assigned to the expatriate. So in selection it is another important area which needs to look at. Different research findings show that the multinational organization give a lot of importance to the technical abilities of the individuals going abroad for international assignments at the time of their selection.According to Harvey and Novicevic,(2001) that technical and functional expertise has been the primary criterion for selecting expatriate managers for assignments. Hixon found that the selection was based on technical ability and willingness to reside abroad. If the individual is selected without keeping in view its technical ability. It can create the big problems for the m ultinational organizations to complete its related task or assignment. Reinforcing the stress on technical skills is the relative ease with which the multinational may assess the potential candidates potential, since technical and managerial competence can be determined on the basis of past performance of the individual who is going to be selected as expatriate.In fact domestic selection cannot be equal to the international selection but person can be selected on the basis of past domestic records which he has performed domestically as the basic criteria is always the same in all the multinational organizations so on the basis of past abilities there should not be any problem for the organizations to select the expatriates. This approach is also found by Foster and Johnsen,(1996) who report the results of the research into the expatriate selection practices for the newly internationalized UK organizations which shows that organizations keep in view the technical skills, and previou s domestic records while selecting expatriate for international assignments.2.7.2 Cross Cultural SuitabilityThe environment and the culture where an expatriate is going is an important factor for an expatriate. So the selectors of the expatriates should always consider the factor of culture for the expatriate. Although these factors does not guarantee for an expatriate for his successes but if these factors are not considered it can lead it towards the failure of expatriate. If the culture is considered then it is always important to study the Hofsteds dimensions for cross culture and Trompenaars dimensions so these researches are explained in detail as follows.2.7.3 CultureCulture is always important for any expatriate selection, so it is very necessary for HR managers and selectors to keep the factor of culture in view while selecting expatriate for international assignments.There have been a lot of studies on culture and there are a lot of different definitions of culture some of them are given below.(Kluckholn Strodtbeck 1952) define culture as, a set of basic assumptions-shared solutions to universal problems of external adaptation (and internal integration- which have evolved over time and are hand down from one generation to the next.The life style of people living in the society is called culture it includes the social, economical, political, religious, life style of the individuals in the country. According to Drennan, 1992 whatever is going nigh is called culture.Culture is the way of life of a group of people. There are obvious differences between the different cultures such as language, dress, religion, beliefs, and behaviours of the people, and there are also unverbalized differences between the two cultures such as in values, assumptions about how things should be.so these different degrees of explicitness are often called the culture.(ScullionLinehan,2005). So the culture is very important factor for the selection of expatriate because the individuals move from one culture to another culture for the completion of their assignment.2.7.4 Hofstedes Cultural DimensionsGreet Hofstedes cultures consequences (1980, 2001) explores the differences in thinking and social action at the country level between members of 50 nations and three regions. Hofstede originally used IBM employees answers to company attitude survey conducted twice, around 1968 and 1972. The survey generated more than 116,000 questionnaires with the number of respondents used in the analysis being approximately 30,000 in 1969 and 41000 in 1973. Hofstede identified and pass four cultural dimensions from respondents pattern answers. For each dimension, he presented possible origins as well as predictors and consequences for management behavior.Hofsteds four dimensions are as followsPower DistanceUncertainty schemeIndividualism versus CollectivismMasculinity versus FemininityAnother dimension which is fifth dimension presented by Michael Bond is Long term ve rsus Short term druthers was subsequently developed from a research to accommodate non-western orientations and has been adopted from the Chinese Culture Connection study.Power distance The dimension indicates the extent to which a society expects and accepts a high degree of inequality in institutions and organizations. It refers to the relationship between supervisors and subordinates. It reflects the extent to which the less powerful members of organisations expect and accept that power is distributed unequally.In organisations an instance of a high power distance score is generally represented as a highly vertical graded pyramid. Subordinates are often told or ordered about a particular task but they are not normally entitled to discuss the decision made by the top management so basically the meaning of power distance is that higher the person in hierarchy the more difficult will be this person to approach. So there are some barriers for that person to see their top managemen t. The barriers can be of different ways like the person barriers or the employee is not allowed to see the top manager or they are not allowed to attend the high managerial level meetings in which decisions are made. So basically power distance shows the distance between a supervisor and his employee.Uncertainty avoidance This refers to the degree to which a society prefers predictability, security and stability. According to Hofsted the extent to which the members of a culture feel threatened by uncertain or unknown situations. He argued that high uncertainty avoidance is expressed for example by a companys need for regulations which tends to minimize in the behaviour of its employees. Company rules are such thing which cannot be broken by the employees even if he think that breaking the rule is in companys best interest in such sort of environment the work stress is more and uncertainty avoidance is high. On the other hands if the employees are less affected by uncertainty is cal led low uncertainty avoidance.Individualism-Collectivism this dimension relates to the extent to which people prefer to take care of themselves and their immediate families rather than being bound to some wider collectively such as extended family. Hofsted ask the IBM individuals that how important is to keep in view his work goals rather than the organisation. If there is preferred work goals stress dependence on organisation. For example good strong-arm working condition, good spreading enough space individualism in the work place can be seen. Collectivism can be seen in preference of collective organisMNE Selection Techniques for International AssignmentsMNE Selection Techniques for International AssignmentsChapter1 IntroductionThe world has become the global village and globalization has become an important tool for the organizations to be successful in this rapidly changing world. So the coordination between different cultures and people with different backgrounds is increasin g in a different multinational organization day by day. So it is very important to study that how the organizations deal with the multicultural set ups within an organization. During the past few decades the rapid changes in economic, social and political environment of the world has led organizations towards the globalization.According to Harvey Novicevic the increasing international activities and global competition resulted in increase in globalization. The process of recruitment and selection has always been very important in any organization. According to Dowling (1999) hiring and placing people in positions where they can perform effectively for the benefit of the organization is the goal of most organizations whether they are domestic or international.Heraty et al (1997) suggested that, in these new changing global condition increasingly, many organizations are transforming jobs into new structures which are more likely based on self directed work teams, made up of empowered individuals with the diverse background are replacing traditional specialized workers. So in this new challenging environment competition is increasing day by day and organizations need such personalities who can adjust themselves with the change.Burack and Singh (1995) also suggested that firms need adaptable people who can rapidly adjust themselves to the changing environment. So the people who are ready to change with the environmental changes always give advantage to the organization, and these kinds of people are very fruitful for the organization.According to ones and Viswesvaran (1997) in this rapidly changing world where the change is taking place every minute the organizations have been sending their members to other parts of the world to complete their assignments.According to Aycan and Kanungo expatriate is an employee of a business or government which is sent abroad to accomplish their organizational goals for temporary period which is more than six months and less than five years. International assignments not only give benefit to the individual expatriate but it also give the competitive advantage to the organization in the global environment. For many organizations sending of expatriate to the other countries to gain competitive advantage in global environment is the part of their overall human resource plan. (Caligiuri Lazarova, 2001).So keeping in view the importance of an expatriate the selection process of an expatriate is also very important step for an organization. According to Dowling the failure of expatriate is due to the selection error. This tells that selection plays an important role for a successful expatriate.So with the changing world it is need to have such staff who can adjust itself with the change. In this paper an effort is being made to give the importance of selection techniques for expatriates within a multinational organization.1.1 Key purpose of studyThe world is globalizing day by day and now it is also called globa l village and specifically UK has become one of the biggest multicultural countries and there are a lot of multinational organizations working in UKWith the changing world more of MNEs are sending their expatriates in other parts of the world to accomplish their goals and to gain competitive advantage in global world.As the selection is the most important step for any organization to choose its expatriate and it is always important for MNEs to choose or select the right person for the given task.In fact an expatriate failure is often result of a selection error, and often compounded by in effective expatriate management policies. (Dowling Welch Schuler, 1999).The key purpose of this study is to show the importance of selection techniques for a MNE when selecting an expatriate for an international assignment.1.2 AimsThe aim of this study is to explore the proper selection techniques which can improve the performance of an expatriate and help him to retain.1.3 ObjectivesTo outline th e factors that influences the selection of expatriates.To examine different selection methods used for expatriate selection.To discuss in detail, issues of cross cultural variation in selection process of expatriates.1.4 HypothesisThe hypothesis which is developed for this study is stated as belowWithout doing proper selection of expatriate much will be poor for the company and result in loss of company.1.5 Theory an overviewThere has been a lot of work done on selection techniques of expatriates in last couple of decades. Selection is the most important part of the success of any expatriate, and if the selection is not according to the needs of organization then the failure chances of expatriate. Dowling says that redirecting future performance potential when hiring or promoting staff is challenging at the best time but if operating in foreign environment certainly adds other level of uncertainty. So if the process of selection is beholds specific importance within a domestic organ isation then it must have some extra importance while choosing an international staff.1.6 SelectionThe selection is kind of prediction of the organizations peoples or decision makers keeping in view the profile of the candidate for the particular job (Hackett, 1991).The selection is a complete process of analyzing and viewing the profile of the employee and then selecting for the required job.Moore (2006) discussed this as the selection is the whole process which includes choosing theright candidate for the position from those persons who have been recruited. This involvestesting and evaluating the skills of an individual is required for the particular job.According to desler (2000) the selection is the process in which the recruited individual is whittled down by using screening tools like assessment centers, interviews, and different tests.1.7 Methods of SelectionThere are various selection techniques available, and for the selection procedure all of these depending on the situati on and culture of the organization. Some of these selection methods are given below.InterviewsTestsAssessment centres (Beardwell and Holden, 2001)So the above mentioned procedures are used by different organizations depending upon the nature of job and the normal practice they use within the organization.1.8 Approaches for the MultinationalThere are four approaches for the recruitment and selection in any multinational organization. These four approaches are given as follows.Ethnocentric It is the type of the recruitment approach in which all the key positions and top management is filled by the nationals of the parent company. According to this approach all the top management decisions and the key strategies of the companies is made by the parent country headquarters.Polycentric It is the type of recruitment approach in which the host country fills all the key positions in the subsidiary. Each subsidiary is treated as the separate national entity. But all the key financial decision s are taken by the parent country headquarter.Regiocentric It is the type of recruitment approach in which regional talent is preferred. For example if the person is required on for the development of any product then the person who will be recruited will be from the host country.Geocentric This is the kind of approach where the persons are recruited without seen any race, religion or region. This approach is international based and is getting in practice in most of the developed countries like UK, USA etc.1.9 Methods of international selectionThe different methods of selection for the expatriate selection which most of the multinational organizations use is as followsPsychometric TestsAssessment CentresCoffee Machine System1.10 Selection of an ExpatriarateThe selection of expatriate is a bit different from the local selection of a local manager. For the selection of an international manager there are a lot of extra factors which needs to be considered by the selectors. The expatria te selection process results in higher cost to the multinationals including relocation process, allowance and accommodation apart from the training costs. (Hailey 2000, pg 90). During the expatriate selection process, 02 conflicting forces operate within the expatriates mind. One that pulls the employee into moving to the new place, the other tends to stop him from going. (Baruch 2005, pg 129).1.11 Factors involve in selection of an Expatriate.According to Dowling and Welch the factor involve to determine an appropriate expatriate selection process are asCountry-cultural requirementLanguageMNE requirementsTechnical AbilityCross Cultural SuitabilityFamily Requirements (Dowling, Welch, Schuler, 1999)So keeping in view all the above mentioned factors an expatriate should be selected by a multinational organization.1.12 Culture(Kluckholn Strodtbeck 1952) define culture as, a set of basic assumptions-shared solutions to universal problems of external adaptation (and internal integration - which have evolved over time and are handed down form one generation to the next.1.13 Corporate cultureCorporate culture includes the behavioral patterns, concept, values, ceremonies and rituals that take place in the organization. It gives the members of the organization meaning as well as the internal rule of behavior when these values and beliefs customs rules and ceremony are accepted shared and circulated throughout the organization. (Trompenaars Turner 1997, pg 157-181)1.14 Why consider culture?Adjusting in a new culture is always difficult and it causes problems for both expatriate and family members, therefore it is important for an International HR to look for the similarities of the two cultures in order to deal with the challenges in the business world key activity.dowling, welch,schuler, 1998 pg 132Recent research shows that the expatriates who are unable to cope with the challenges find it difficult to adjust and incur costly implications. (Caligiuri, 1997, pg 45-67) . The factor of culture is very important for an expatriate selection process and HR managers will have to select such expatriate who is adjustable with the different cultured people and work with them for the cultural dimension Hofstede and Trompenaars cultural dimensions are given as follows1.15 Hofstedes four dimensions (1967-1973)Gooderham Nordhang (2003). Culture is always a collective phenomenon, because it is at least partially shared with people who live or lived within the same environment, which is where it was learned. It is the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes the members of one group or category of people from another.Hofstede surveyed 116,000 IBM employees in 40 different nations about their preferences in the work environment. The analysis revealed the results creating 4 dimensionsPower distance The dimension indicates the extent to which a society expects and accepts a high degree of inequality in institutions and organizations.Uncertainty avoi dance This refers to the degree to which a society prefers predictability, security and stability.Individualism-Collectivism this dimension relates to the extent to which people prefer to take care of themselves and their immediate families rather than being bound to some wider collectively such as extended family.Masculinity-Femininity Masculine societies value assertiveness, competitiveness and materialism as opposed to the feminine values of relationships and the quality of life.1.16 Trompenaars cultural dimensionsTrompenaars concluded four cultural dimensions that relate to the question of inter-personal relationships and work-related values Gooderham Nordhang (2003).Universalism vs. ParticularismCommunitarism vs. IndividualismSpecific vs. diffuseAchievement vs. ascriptionSo these four dimensions of Trompenar also affect the selection process of an expatriate for international assignments.1.17 Strategic choices in expatriate selectionOrganizations normally have some strategic c hoices while selection of an expatriate. These strategic choices are mentioned below.Internal recruitment versus external recruitmentIndividuals versus teamsTechnical qualification versus other selection criteriaExtrinsic rewards versus intrinsic rewards.Chapter 2 Literature ReviewIn this chapter researcher tried to discuss all the related studies which are done in past and are available in literature. A lot of work has been done in the literature on the topic of selection. Before proceeding to the actual topic it is necessary to look at the different methods of selection which an organization uses and see that what are the different techniques and criteria which are used for the selection of staff.2.1 SelectionMoore (2006) discussed this as the selection is the whole process which includes choosing the right candidate for the position from those persons who have been recruited. This involves testing and evaluating the skills of an individual is required for the particular job.Accor ding to Dessler (2000) the selection is the process in which the recruited individual is whittled down by using screening tools like assessment centers, interviews, and different tests.2.2 Expatriate selectionAccording to (Dowling, Welch, Schuler, 1999, pg 154) Multinationals take great care in their selection process, however predicting future performance potential of the concerned staff is challenging at the best of times especially operating in foreign environments adds another level of uncertainty. The expatriate selection process results in higher cost to the multinationals including relocation process, allowance and accommodation apart from the training costs. (Hailey 2000, pg 90). During the expatriate selection process, 02 conflicting forces operate within the expatriates mind. One that pulls the employee into moving to the new place, the other tends to stop him from going (Baruch 2005, pg 129).2.3 Importance of an Expatriates and International AssignmentsThe world is global izing very rapidly and change has become necessary for the organization to survive and to gain competitive advantage internationally. According to Harris and Brewster, 1999. The rapidly globalizing world has increased the need for the international assignments and many of the organizations started considering international management experience for the top management. So the international assignments are becoming an important part for the success of an organization to gain competitive advantage.As discussed by Chen, Tzeng Tang, 2005 that organizations internationalize their operation to gain success and to increase its market value internationally and for this purpose an organization needs effective expatriate who can perform its task properly. In this new era the importance of expatriate has increased because expatriates are the ones who can give an organization proper international exposure and make the organization successful.2.4 Selection ProcessOne of the most studied areas fo r the expatriate selection is the selection process of the expatriate. The selection of expatriate has always been difficult procedure for the multinational organizations. Swaak quotes one HR executive who said. My job is to find people in a hurry. So this system is highly crisis-oriented and unsophisticated. Swaak , 1995. Further confirming the problems for the nature of the selection process Still and Smith (1997) report the results of Australian research, which shows that there were a number of different ways through which expatriates were selected. They studied that the most impressive and important form of selection or evaluation of the expatriate was recommendation of the person by the line manager including chief executive officer or specialist persons.Mostly expatriates in the multinational organizations in a knee-jerk reaction to the need to fill a new or unexpected vacancies overseas. Actually there are well informed intercultural trainers or a good HR professional who sel ects the expatriates but basically it is HR department within multinational organization who selects the expatriate finally. Managements choose the most technical and competent candidates which makes the expatriates successful internationally. (Shilling, 1993 pg 58).2.5 Types of selection ProcessPsychometric TestsAssessment CentersCoffee machine system2.5.1 Psychometric TestsAccording to Passmore, 2008 Psychometrics are the widely used testing method for the selection of the employee and personal development. The psychological test is always important for the selection of the employee especially for the selection of an international manager. According to the validity of psychological tests is disputed. According to Sparow and Brewster (2007) the psychologists the variation between the different natured job test is very small (Schmidt and Hunter , 1998). According to a survey done by The Graduate Recruitment in 2007 two third or about 67 percent of 219 respondents surveyed said that the results of psychometric test had some influence on recruiting and selection decisions, and 24 percent said that it has strong influence, and only 2 percent said that these test does not have any influence. So the above figure shows the importance of psychometric tests.According to Sparow and Brewster (2007) psychological assessment increasingly involves the application of tests in different cultural contexts, either in a single country or different countries. Now a day the demand of cross cultural assessment test is increasing due to the increasing factor of globalization to gain competitive advantage in international market. According to Mendenhall and Oddou, 1985 one of the important option for evaluating the selection process is the use of psychological tests and evaluation dvices. There are number of instruments available to measure the stress level of an individual.Figure 2.1 (Source article by Jonathan Passmore, Bread and butter How to use psychometrics for coaching)In fig ure 2.1 the real importance of psychometric test is shown. Psychometric tests are reliable that the selected person will be the one on whom one can rely. And obviously these kinds of tests are valid for any kind of job. The most important point in this test is that it does not include any biasness and the selectors cannot show the biasness while selecting on the basis of psychometric tests. These tests are also standard for different jobs. So all the above mentioned qualities and factors involve in the psychometric tests. In other words one can say that almost all the abilities present in an individuals mind can be noticed, and the end result will always ends up in the right selection of expatriate.2.5.2 Assessment CentreAs the assessment centers are considered to be one of the best selection techniques so according to Sparow and Brewster assessment centers will be the best idea as a selection technique to assess the competency of international managers. This is rarely the case, how ever. According to sparrow (1999) Even where assessment centers are used to select the managers in international settings, the key cross cultural assessment centers seems to be to design the assessment process so that it is very adaptable to local environment in which it will be operated. So there is need of cross culture assessment centers in which international managers can be assessed accordingly with the changing environment.Krause and Gebert (2003) have done study on international literature on the conception, operation and evaluation of assessment centers. He examined 281 German firms whose language was German and he compares them with the previously studied firms of United States of America. Study showed that both the American and German firms use the assessment centers but the purpose of some of them was different from the basics. For example the competencies assessed for job analysis might be identified through the use of interviews with job incumbents in 79% of US firms an d only 39% of German firms. Most of the German firms rely on interviews for the selection of international managers or expatriates.so the assessment centers are considered to be an important process for expatriate selection.2.5.3 Coffee Machine SystemThis system was the idea of Harris and Brewster (1999) the key findings of the study show the reality of the selection process for expatriate selection in the organizations. In many organizations the selection process falls under what we call coffee machine system and this system is the most common form of expatriate selection. What happens is that the senior line manager is standing by the coffee machine when he/she is joined by the colleagueHows it going?Oh, you know, overworked and underpaid.Actually Jimmy in Mumbai has just fallen ill and is being flown home. I dont know who I can choose to work over there at very short notice of time. It is driving me crazy.Have you met Simon on the fifth floor? he is working in the same line of wo rk. He is very good and bright and looks like going a long way. He was telling me that he and his wife had great holiday in Goa a couple of years ago. He seems to like India. Could be worthy to speak to him.Hey, thanks I will check and speak to him.No problem. They dont seem to be able to improve this coffee though, do they?What happen in the organization next is that the manger will take some decision and will have informal discussion with his seniors about Simon and then that man will be called and interviewed and selected for the required position. Accordingly HR department and financial department will be involved in the process and the formal and systematic process will be started.This method is rarely used in the organizations in particular cases when there is an urgent need to fill the position of expatriate.2.6 Niche AssessmentsAccording to Bolt (2008 ) Many assessment venders specialize in certain niches and offer off-the-shelf products to meet clients testing needs. Howeve r, vendors can find such persons or individuals for the company who can fit in the organizations new environment and can coop with the new organizations culture. Testing is the most important part of the application process of the candidate because testing gives the good idea of the individuals abilities and competencies.2.7 Factors involved in selection ProcessThere are number of factors which affect the performance of expatriate. Dowling, Welch, Schuler, (1999) recognised some of the important and most affective factors and these are the factors which involved to determine an appropriate expatriate selection process. All the factors are shown in a model below.Cross-cultural SuitabilityMMNE requirementsSELECTION DECISIONFFamily requirementsLLanguageTTechnical AbilityCCountry-cultural requirementFigure 2.2 Source (Factors in expatriate selection, pg 77Dowling, Welch, Schuler, 1999).Figure 2.2 shows the factors which are required for an expatriate each of the above mentioned factors is discussed in detail below.2.7.1 Technical AbilityAccording to Hays, 1971 All expatriates are assigned abroad to complete some task weather its building a dam, running some business, or teaching it all depends on the personal technical ability to perform that task. Obviously it is important to consider the individuals personal ability to perform the required task assigned to the expatriate. So in selection it is another important area which needs to look at. Different research findings show that the multinational organization give a lot of importance to the technical abilities of the individuals going abroad for international assignments at the time of their selection.According to Harvey and Novicevic,(2001) that technical and functional expertise has been the primary criterion for selecting expatriate managers for assignments. Hixon found that the selection was based on technical ability and willingness to reside abroad. If the individual is selected without keeping in view its t echnical ability. It can create the big problems for the multinational organizations to complete its related task or assignment. Reinforcing the emphasis on technical skills is the relative ease with which the multinational may assess the potential candidates potential, since technical and managerial competence can be determined on the basis of past performance of the individual who is going to be selected as expatriate.In fact domestic selection cannot be equal to the international selection but person can be selected on the basis of past domestic records which he has performed domestically as the basic criteria is always the same in all the multinational organizations so on the basis of past abilities there should not be any problem for the organizations to select the expatriates. This approach is also found by Foster and Johnsen,(1996) who report the results of the research into the expatriate selection practices for the newly internationalized UK organizations which shows that o rganizations keep in view the technical skills, and previous domestic records while selecting expatriate for international assignments.2.7.2 Cross Cultural SuitabilityThe environment and the culture where an expatriate is going is an important factor for an expatriate. So the selectors of the expatriates should always consider the factor of culture for the expatriate. Although these factors does not guarantee for an expatriate for his successes but if these factors are not considered it can lead it towards the failure of expatriate. If the culture is considered then it is always important to study the Hofsteds dimensions for cross culture and Trompenaars dimensions so these researches are explained in detail as follows.2.7.3 CultureCulture is always important for any expatriate selection, so it is very necessary for HR managers and selectors to keep the factor of culture in view while selecting expatriate for international assignments.There have been a lot of studies on culture and there are a lot of different definitions of culture some of them are given below.(Kluckholn Strodtbeck 1952) define culture as, a set of basic assumptions-shared solutions to universal problems of external adaptation (and internal integration- which have evolved over time and are handed down from one generation to the next.The life style of people living in the society is called culture it includes the social, economical, political, religious, life style of the individuals in the country. According to Drennan, 1992 whatever is going around is called culture.Culture is the way of life of a group of people. There are obvious differences between the different cultures such as language, dress, religion, beliefs, and behaviours of the people, and there are also implicit differences between the two cultures such as in values, assumptions about how things should be.so these different degrees of explicitness are often called the culture.(ScullionLinehan,2005). So the culture is very import ant factor for the selection of expatriate because the individuals move from one culture to another culture for the completion of their assignment.2.7.4 Hofstedes Cultural DimensionsGreet Hofstedes cultures consequences (1980, 2001) explores the differences in thinking and social action at the country level between members of 50 nations and three regions. Hofstede originally used IBM employees answers to company attitude survey conducted twice, around 1968 and 1972. The survey generated more than 116,000 questionnaires with the number of respondents used in the analysis being approximately 30,000 in 1969 and 41000 in 1973. Hofstede identified and validated four cultural dimensions from respondents patterned answers. For each dimension, he presented possible origins as well as predictors and consequences for management behavior.Hofsteds four dimensions are as followsPower DistanceUncertainty AvoidanceIndividualism versus CollectivismMasculinity versus FemininityAnother dimension whic h is fifth dimension presented by Michael Bond is Long term versus Short term Orientation was subsequently developed from a research to accommodate non-western orientations and has been adopted from the Chinese Culture Connection study.Power distance The dimension indicates the extent to which a society expects and accepts a high degree of inequality in institutions and organizations. It refers to the relationship between supervisors and subordinates. It reflects the extent to which the less powerful members of organisations expect and accept that power is distributed unequally.In organisations an illustration of a high power distance score is generally represented as a highly vertical hierarchical pyramid. Subordinates are often told or ordered about a particular task but they are not normally entitled to discuss the decision made by the top management so basically the meaning of power distance is that higher the person in hierarchy the more difficult will be this person to approac h. So there are some barriers for that person to see their top management. The barriers can be of different ways like the person barriers or the employee is not allowed to see the top manager or they are not allowed to attend the high managerial level meetings in which decisions are made. So basically power distance shows the distance between a supervisor and his employee.Uncertainty avoidance This refers to the degree to which a society prefers predictability, security and stability. According to Hofsted the extent to which the members of a culture feel threatened by uncertain or unknown situations. He argued that high uncertainty avoidance is expressed for example by a companys need for regulations which tends to minimize in the behaviour of its employees. Company rules are such thing which cannot be broken by the employees even if he think that breaking the rule is in companys best interest in such sort of environment the work stress is more and uncertainty avoidance is high. On the other hands if the employees are less affected by uncertainty is called low uncertainty avoidance.Individualism-Collectivism this dimension relates to the extent to which people prefer to take care of themselves and their immediate families rather than being bound to some wider collectively such as extended family. Hofsted ask the IBM individuals that how important is to keep in view his work goals rather than the organisation. If there is preferred work goals stress dependence on organisation. For example good physical working condition, good ventilation enough space individualism in the work place can be seen. Collectivism can be seen in preference of collective organis