What makes expatriates such an important part of the modern business is the cultural diversity in knowledge and information they can offer. Different organizations might have different needs for expats: some send local employees for a training in a different country, others hire internationals that already have an international experience. In both cases, however, the return benefits for the organization are immense. Expats carry a unique global and cross-cultural mindset, as well as, out-of-the-box thinking which is a great benefit for business that are competing on a global marketplace, working with international clients, partners, investors and alliances. They can see and have seen, for example, how different business practices work in similar situations and so on, which allows them to blend into a diverse workforce, find and apply solutions to problems that people with only local experience might not be able to think of.
Furthermore, expats need to experience and overcome a lot of challenges in their personal life, as well, as their careers. Often, they go far away from their comfort zone, have to deal with learning a new language and trying to get their ideas work where the communication process is difficult, manage to build and maintain new connections and expand their network on this new place with new culture. By overcoming all problems that occur from those situations and developing the personal and professional qualities that come with it, expats double their value on the marketplace in comparison to people who don’t have such experience.
However, when can the cultural diversity turn into a risk for the organization and actually become more disadvantageous rather than advantageous? The key word here is: cultural differences. What does this mean? Simple example is: if in the western culture a handshake is the proper way to great someone, in some eastern cultures this is substitute by a bow. Even on a deeper level, if western culture expects more direct openness during business meetings, in the eastern culture this can be read as rude and inappropriate, where avoiding responses that might be construed as disrespectful is the preferred behaviour. Such behaviour and mindset are embedded in the essence of different countries and cultures. If both the employer or employees and the expats don’t have good understanding of each other’s ingrained cultures, this can lead to unsuccessful performance, miscommunication and turn day-to-day work activities into conflicts. Furthermore, it is not unimaginable that sometimes the organizational culture is different and incompatible with certain cultures and an expatriate with such background and mindset would not be a fit despite the knowledge and skill he/she could contribute with for the business. This is a case where the cultural difference can overweight the experience in a negative manner.
Moreover, expats in comparison to non-expatriates, as we mentioned before, experience and have to deal with greater levels of stress and change. And even though this helps them build extremely strong character and adaptation skills, change management skill, clear self-management and good critical thinking, all of which are exceptionally beneficial skills in modern business life, such stressful environment can also lead to higher risk of burnout at the work place. After all, expats have to deal with a lot of factors, such as language barrier, being away from their closest people, experiencing isolation and possibly clash with a new culture, that combined might be difficult for some to handle. The cultural shock can play a very negative role in the work environment.
When choosing expats, one has to measure the pros and cons of such opportunity. What are the goals of the organizations, the culture and work environment, how can an expat contribute and what the risks are, as well as, what can the organization offer to such a person. The key for successful communication and performance, in circumstances where diversity of any sort is involved, is to have a clear understanding of the situation and to approach it with an open mind and positive attitude towards change. Adding expatriates to your team in not any different.
By: Iva Plocheva