Marshall Pattie

Is expatriation good for my career? The impact of expatriate assignments on perceived and actual career outcomes

This study examines the impact of expatriate assignments on career growth and the external marketability of US employees of a large professional services firm. We use survey and archival data to compare expatriates currently overseas, repatriates, and domestic US employees on compensation, recent promotions, and external recruiting contacts. We then examine how actual pay, promotions, and external recruiting influences anticipated salary growth within the firm and external employment opportunities. We find that despite little or no impact on their current careers, employees with overseas work experience perceived greater internal and external opportunities than domestic US employees. Implications for managers and researchers are discussed.

What makes them move abroad? Reviewing and exploring differences between self-initiated and assigned expatriation

Only in recent years have self-initiated expatriates (SIEs) been distinguished from assigned expatriates (AEs). But there is still a lack of empirically based comparative results. Statistical analysis, performed on data from 193 expatriates (NAE = 67; NSIE = 126), indicates that self-initiated foreign work experience is significantly more likely to be chosen by women and those having lower job levels. Furthermore, boundaryless and protean career orientation only partially predicted which career path is chosen. SIEs have higher organizational mobility preferences, but do not differ from AEs in their boundaryless mindset and protean career attitude. Implications of these findings for research in expatriation are discussed.

The homecoming: a review of support practices for repatriates

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the prevalence of repatriate support practices in organizations within the context of the current literature in this field of study.Design/methodology/approach – A total of 42 firms employing 3,234 expatriates were surveyed regarding human resource practices that support repatriation. Analysis focused on support practices as predictors of voluntary and involuntary turnover.Findings – Results indicate that the majority of firms surveyed used two or fewer repatriate support practices. While 60 percent of firms offered logistical assistance, such as relocation services, less than 70 percent offered career and training support for repatriates. The most common cause of involuntary turnover is the lack of job openings in the home organization upon reentry, while the most common cause of voluntary turnover is the organizations poor utilization of the expatriates skills acquired on the overseas assignment. Organizations with more support practices reported a low...

Exploring the Literature on Relationships Between Gender Roles, Intimate Partner Violence, Occupational Status, and Organizational Benefits

Studies of intimate partner violence (IPV) and work have been primarily conducted with women in low-wage low-status (LWLS) positions, as much of this research has focused on poverty, welfare, and homelessness. Although women in LWLS positions represent a large percentage of working women in the United States, it is also important to investigate experiences of women in high-wage high-status (HWHS) positions because a growing number of women are employed within such jobs. We propose gender role theory can be used to explain occurrences of IPV among women in HWHS positions and their utilization of organizational benefits. We suggest those in HWHS positions may be likely to have access to organizational benefits (e.g., medical, vacation, and flexible work schedules) and the ability to utilize the Family and Medical Leave Act. However, prevailing gender roles existing in organizations may render women in HWHS positions unlikely to use benefits or to take leave.

Adjustment, turnover, and performance: the deployment of minority expatriates

While in the domestic work environment, minorities are more likely to have turnover intentions and receive lower performance evaluations; the findings in this study indicate that minorities, when deployed overseas, receive higher performance evaluations than Caucasian expatriates. For Caucasian expatriates, cultural adaptability improved interaction adjustment and reduced turnover intentions, but not to the extent to which minority status improved these outcomes. These findings suggest that studying minority expatriates is a critical but overlooked factor in understanding expatriate success.

Making a difference in the workplace

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to report on the sixth international conference on occupational stress and health.Design/methodology/approach – In March 2006, the sixth international conference on occupational stress and health was held jointly by the American Psychological Association (APA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in Miami. The conference title was “Work, Stress, and Health 2006: Making a Difference in the Workplace” . Papers presented at the conference provided important insight on the growing body of diversity literature.Findings – Specifically, researchers found that diversity plays a significant role in understanding the effects of occupational stress. Stress may be preceived differently, dealth with differently and may have different outcomes for minorities than with male Caucasians.Practical Implications – The session on Interpersonal violence suggested that researchers should consider the employment status and occupational level of victims. Furt...

Cashing-in: understanding post-acquisition CEO stock option exercise

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to explore post-acquisition compensation management and examine how the two most commonly used theories to explain CEO stock option exercise, agency theory and CEO overconfidence, expect CEOs to manage their stock options following an acquisition. Design/methodology/approach – Using logistic regression analysis, the authors investigate whether CEOs are more or less likely to exercise options following an acquisition, and the effect which CEO tenure and acquisition history may have on option exercise. Findings – The results suggest that CEOs are more likely to exercise options following an acquisition. The authors also find that CEO tenure and acquisition experience are both linked to an increase in option exercise. Research limitations/implications – The findings suggest that future research should expect agency effects to outweigh overconfidence effects when considering CEO stock option exercise behavior within the post-acquisition firm context. Practical implicatio...

Who Needs Security? Entrepreneurial Minorities, Security Values, and Firm Performance

In this study, the authors seek to enhance their understanding of why minority and majority entrepreneurs succeed at different rates, by going beyond surface-level demographic variables and investigating deep-level differences between these groups. The present research suggests that minorities exhibit differences in security values. This helps explain previous evidence that minority-owned small businesses perform worse than their majority-owned counterparts. Results suggest that security values fully mediate the relationship between ethnicity and firm performance. In addition, the authors’ analysis suggests that access to capital helps explain the influence of security values on firm performance. An explanatory model is proposed.

Interns’ perceptions of HR practices and their influence on fit and intentions to join

Abstract This study examines interns’ perceptions of HR practices and their influence on person–organization fit, person–job fit, and intentions to join the organization. The hypotheses are developed with signaling theory and attraction, selection, attrition (ASA) theory. Utilizing a time lagged study design of 71 interns employed in a United States based service firm, we found positive perceptions of HR practices rated early in the internship were related to increased person–organization fit, person–job fit, and intentions to join the organization at the end of the internship. Our findings also showed that person–organization fit and person–job fit fully mediated the relationship between HR practices and intentions to join the organization.