INTERNATIONAL MOBILITY AND THE CHALLENGE OF EXPATRIATION: THE CASE STUDY OF EXPATRATE’S MANAGER IN VIETNAM

• Main Authors: TRAN, Van Nhu, Mangilii, Sarah
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: ĐHQGHN 2015
• Subjects: expatriation; cross-cultural adaptation; international human resource management; Vietnam
• Online Access: http://repository.vnu.edu.vn/handle/VNU_123/1553
• Institution: Vietnam National University, Hanoi

Although the global economic crisis has caused most companies to review their costs of international assignments, the expatriation remains the best way of creating a global mindset among managers. Expatriation is a big challenge both for expatriates and companies itself, especially while the arrived country is Vietnam – the fast growing emerging market. From the expatriate point of view, it is to face a different culture and adapt his personal and professional life, for the sending company, it is to have a good return on investment, since this investment is significant. Our research aims to analyze how the assignment phase is experienced by the individual expatriate. This finding is also served as a tool for the Vietnamese managers to better understand what international managers really think about their country and the way people are working, and what could be changed in order to be compete better in this globalizing world. The other aim of our research is, subsequently, to find out from the expatriates whether or not their companies tend to implement modern International Human Resource approach to maximize the efficiency of its staff. The structured in-depth interviews have been conducted on 25 Hanoi’s expatriate managers in September 2008. The various interviewees composing the sample have been randomly picked up in business directories of foreign Investment companies in Vietnam, and more particularly Hanoi. Our main findings have showed that most of the respondents have experienced the environmental pressures and cultural shocks, but they demonstrated their tenacity in overcoming the various cross-cultural issues and all of them revealed optimism, sincerity and open-mindedness. Different tactics according to the profiles have been implemented to adjust. Few disillusions appeared among some of the respondents who found their experience especially fastidious and who struggled more than the others to cope with their working environment and personal social life. These disillusion engendered a feeling of rejection for the country in very few cases. The expatriate who adjust in living and working in Vietnam tend to have established a very special relation with the country and their people, however without trying to become Vietnamese themselves. The International Human Resource Management aspect showed in most cases a minor investment from the sending organization on the expatriate. This mainly in terms of preparation and support during the assignment phase and it prevails among the younger expatriates without long professional experience. The management of the expatriation as a whole cycle is often true, however only in terms of bureaucracy.