INTERNATIONAL HUMAN

RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
INE3023

INTERNATIONAL
TRAINING,
DEVELOPMENT
& CAREERS
Mai Anh
Lecturer, International School-VNU
anhmd@isvnu.vn
SESSION 8
OVERVIEW
o The role of training in international business
operations
o Components of effective pre-departure training
programs
o Global leadership development
o Training and developing international management
teams
o Issues related to global training & development
and broader international career issues

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ACRONYMS USED IN TODAY’S SEMINAR

IHR – International Human Resource

IHRM – International Human Resource Management
T&D – Training & Development

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INTERNATIONAL TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
DEFINITIONS

Training: aims to improve employees’ current work

skills and behaviour.

Development: aims to increase abilities in relation to

some future position or job.

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INTERNATIONAL TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
TO RECAP

Human Resource: refers to the accumulated stock of

knowledge, skills, and abilities that the individuals
possess, which the firm has built up over time into an
identifiable expertise.

Source: Kamoche, K 1996, ‘Strategic Human Resource Management with a resource-capability view of the
firm’, Journal of Management Studies, vol. 33, no. 2, p. 216.

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INTERNATIONAL TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
INTERNATIONAL ASSIGNMENT AS A TRAINING &
DEVELOPMENT TOOL
Expatriates are trainers
- part of knowledge & competence transfer
- expected to help train & develop HCNs
Expatriates ensure adoption
- show how systems & processes work
- monitor HCN performance
Expatriates are mgmt. under development
- job rotation  broader perspective
- they become global operators
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INTERNATIONAL TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
RECRUITMENT CONSIDERATIONS

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CULTURAL AWARENESS PROGRAMS
ESSENTIAL COMPONENTS OF
PRE-DEPARTURE TRAINING
Cultural awareness training
 Information-giving, affective and immersion approach
Preliminary visits
 Try before you buy
Language training
 The role of English as the language of world business
Assistance with practical day-to-day matters
 Fend for yourself?
Security briefings
 Used where personal safety may be a concern

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TRAINING FOR THE TRAINING ROLE
BLACK & MENDENHALL’S 3 KEYS FOR CROSS-
CULTURAL TRAINING

1. Training methods
2. Levels of training rigor
3. Duration of training relative to
 Expected degree of interaction
 Culture novelty = how different host culture is
from native culture

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TRAINING FOR THE TRAINING ROLE
INFORMATION-GIVING APPROACH

Emphasize information-giving approach:

o Area or cultural briefings
o Lectures, movies, books
o Interpreters
o ‘Survival-level’ language training

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TRAINING FOR THE TRAINING ROLE
INFORMATION-GIVING APPROACH

Emphasize affective approach:

o Role-playing
o Critical incidents
o Culture assimilator training
o Case studies
o Stress reduction training
o Moderate language training
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TRAINING FOR THE TRAINING ROLE
INFORMATION-GIVING APPROACH

Emphasize immersion approach:

o Assessment center
o Field experiences
o Simulations
o Sensitivity training
o Intercultural web-based workshop
o Extensive language training
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INTERNATIONAL TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
GUIDELINES FOR DESIGNING TRAINING
1. Influence of environment
2. Progress according to trainees’ capability
3. Basic competencies
o Cognitive competency
 Acquisition of knowledge and facts about cultures
o Behavioral competency
 Ability to adapt to diverse conditions
o Performance competency
 Ability to perform well in the assigned business
4. Adjustment skills
5. Counseling

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INTERNATIONAL TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
GUIDELINES FOR DESIGNING TRAINING
Think and act globally
 Prepare for a presence in all the critical markets
Equidistant global learning organization
 Learn from all cultures, anytime, in any manner possible
Focus on the global system
 Development programs focus on breaking down the silos
Global leadership skills
 Requires global leadership competencies different from
domestic

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INTERNATIONAL TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
GUIDELINES FOR DESIGNING TRAINING CONT.
Empower teams to create a global future
 Use of cross-border and virtual teams to perform projects
Learning as a core competency
 Become a global learning organisation
Reinvent yourself and the global organization
 Constant self-development

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QUESTION:

HOW EFFECTIVE DO YOU

THINK PRE-DEPARTURE
TRAINING IS?

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INTERNATIONAL TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
PERCEIVED VALUE OF CROSS-CULTURAL
PREPARATION OF EXPATRIATES

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INTERNATIONAL TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
ISSUES RELATED TO GLOBAL TRAINING &
DEVELOPMENT
Choice approaches between:
 Localisation
 Integration
Problems linked to localisation:
 Choice of trainers
 Differences and preferences
 Language issues
 Should courses for management development be handled
differently?
 Different training for different subsidiaries?
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INTERNATIONAL TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
SOME TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT TRENDS
1. Host countries continue to pressure for local T&D
2. Growing realization that competence learning depends on
national context & HC institutions
3. Increasing awareness of NGOs’ importance
4. Increasing interest in T&D focused on China
5. T&D literature is realizing need to address
 global,
 comparative, &
 national contexts for T&D
(just as IHRM is starting to do)
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INTERNATIONAL TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
LOCALISED APPROACH TO GLOBAL TRAINING &
DEVELOPMENT
Education Levels and
Culture
Form

T&D Issues
Language Localization Local T&D Laws
Issues

Learning Styles Transfer of Learning

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CASE STUDY
– TRAINING MANAGERS IN MALAWI
Read the class handout. Then consider the following question:
How do cultural practices impact training and development
programs?

American and Western models of innovation, motivation,

leadership, etc., will not work well in Malawi
Status-conscious Malawian managers will resent being ordered
to attend a training program
Training methods must be consistent with employee learning
styles

Then answer the questions associated with the case study (on
the handout)
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INTERNATIONAL TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
VIRTUAL AND GLOBAL TEAMS
Virtual teams are becoming more common thanks to:
 Delocalisation
 Disassemble of work in manufacturing and services
 Development of new technologies
Team success is driven by:
 Trust
 Commitment
 Accountability
 Conflict management
 Expertise
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RE-ENTRY & CAREER ISSUES
EXPATRIATION INCLUDES REPATRIATION

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QUESTION:

WHAT WERE THE CAUSES

FOR INTERNATIONAL
ASSIGNMENT FAILURE
(EXPAT)?

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INTERNATIONAL TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
EFFECTIVENESS OF WAYS TO REDUCE
EXPATRIATE TURNOVER

In most to least effective order:

Opportunity to use experience 35%

Position choices upon return 22%

Recognition 16%

Repatriation career support 13%

Improved performance evaluation 9%

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QUESTION:

FACTORS INFLUENCING
REPATRIATE ADJUSTMENT?

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INTERNATIONAL TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
FACTORS INFLUENCING REPATRIATE
ADJUSTMENT

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INTERNATIONAL TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
WHAT ABOUT THE MNE?
MNE must have a well designed repatriation process in order to maximise the
benefits of international assignments.
Staff availability and career expectations:
 Capitalise on international experience
 ‘Boundaryless careerist’
Return on Investment (ROI)
 MNE localise through the use of HCNs
 Short-term or non-standard assignments
Knowledge transfer
 Cross-fertilisation of ideas and practices
 MNE’s endeavour to retain key staff and extract and build upon their
international experience
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INTERNATIONAL TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
DESIGNING A REPATRIATION PROGRAM

What should be covered in a repatriation program:

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INTERNATIONAL TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
TO RECAP
o The role of expat training in supporting adjustment and on-
assignment performance
o Components of effective pre-departure training programs
o The importance of cultural awareness training
o The need for language training
o The overall process of repatriation
o ‘Re-entry shock’ and career issues upon re-entry
o MNE responses to repatriates
o Designing effective repatriation programs

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DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Summarize the key challenges faced in training expatriate
managers.
2. Assume you are the HR director for a SME that has begun
to use international assignments. You are considering
using an external consulting firm to provide pre-departure
training for employees, as you do not have the resources
to provide this “in-house”. What components will you
need covered?
3. How does an international assignment assist in developing
a ‘cadre’ of international operators? Why is it necessary to
have such a ‘cadre’?
4. Why do some MNEs appear reluctant to provide basic pre-
departure training?
(To be completed in groups)
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CONCLUSION
OF SEMINAR 8
SEE YOU NEXT TIME
FOR SEMINAR 9

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