Self-initiated expatriation: Implications for HRM

Howe-Walsh, L.; Schyns, B.

doi:10.1080/09585190903509571

Self-initiated expatriation: Implications for HRM

Howe-Walsh, L.; Schyns, B.

Authors

L. Howe-Walsh

Professor Birgit Schyns birgit.schyns@durham.ac.uk
Professor

Abstract

The decision of an employee to move from their home country in order to work in another country/culture will create a myriad of issues for the employees to face. Every year, many employees take the decision to migrate. So far the literature has focused on the motivation to expatriate, on the one hand, or Human Resource Management (HRM) for international assignments within an organization, on the other hand. Little regard is paid to the opportunities HRM can play in supporting the adjustment of self-initiated expatriates to the new organization and culture. The paper derives assumptions based on Black, Mendenhall and Oddou's (1991) model of adjustment to help self-initiated expatriates to adjust and reach their performance potential more quickly. We argue that organizations should consider whether their current practices enhance or hinder the successful employment of self-initiated expatriates. Besides work-related HRM practices, HRM for self-initiated expatriates should consider expanding support into non-work areas, such as supporting partner relocation or helping to find accommodation.

Citation

Howe-Walsh, L., & Schyns, B. (2010). Self-initiated expatriation: Implications for HRM. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 21(2), 260-273. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585190903509571

Journal Article Type	Article
Publication Date	Feb 1, 2010
Deposit Date	Nov 23, 2010
Publicly Available Date	Jan 7, 2011
Journal	International Journal of Human Resource Management
Print ISSN	0958-5192
Electronic ISSN	1466-4399
Publisher	Taylor and Francis Group
Peer Reviewed	Peer Reviewed
Volume	21
Issue	2
Pages	260-273
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1080/09585190903509571
Keywords	Expatriates, HR practices, International HRM, Self-initiated.
Public URL	https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1536638

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Copyright Statement
This is an electronic version of an article published in Howe-Walsh, L. and Schyns, B. (2010) 'Self-initiated expatriation : implications for HRM.', International journal of human resource management., 21 (2). pp. 260-273. International journal of human resource management is available online at: http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/ with the open URL of your article.