copyright atomic dog publishing, 2008copyright atomic dog publishing, 20 international personal...

Copyright Atomic Dog Publishing, 2008Copyright Atomic Dog Publishing, 20

International Personal Selling and Personnel Management

Dana-Nicoleta Lascu

Chapter 15

Copyright Atomic Dog Publishing, 2008

Chapter Objectives

• Examine companies' expatriate management strategies.

• Describe the different types of employees suited for international operations.

• Address issues related to expatriate management, such as motivating international employees and ensuring successful assignment performance and repatriation.


International Personnel Issues

• Hiring decisions are a function of the company’s involvement in the market.

• Market presence, entry mode and commitment to market determine: Size of the sales team. Types of sales representatives.

• Companies using home-country intermediaries, such as trading companies or an export management companies, rely on the sales force of the intermediary for international sales and limit sales activity to the domestic market.

• Personal selling becomes a very important component in international marketing communications for companies using host-country intermediaries and those companies directly involved in the international target market.


Types of International Personnel: Order Taker

• Order taker • Individual who processes routine orders from the

customer. • Likely to be a local employee who is familiar with the

local customs and culture.

Order taker selling Dutch semi-prepared food. The order taker is knowledgeable and makes informed recommendations regarding product preparation.


Types of International Personnel: Order Getter

• Order getter• Individual who actively generates potential leads. • Persuades customers to purchase the firm’s products.• Can be local or international staff.• Highly skilled technically, as well as trained in conducting

negotiations.• In international marketing, most order getters work in the

business-to-business area as field salespeople, going to customers to solicit business.

• Order getters selling to other businesses would go to their clients’ places of business. Order getters selling to consumers directly would go to consumers’ homes.


Issues:• Infrastructure issues:

In high-income countries, telemarketing is often used in selling products.

For telemarketing to be successful, companies need access to a reliable telephone system, which may not be available in low-income countries.

• Technology issues:Companies often rely on electronic data interchange (EDI), whereby buying and selling firms are able to share important data on production, inventory, shipping, and purchasing.

EDI relationships are possible primarily if the firms have the appropriate resources and trust their local partner with the information.


Issues (contd.)

• Legal issues:After a sale is closed, companies sign contracts that address the terms of the transaction, costs involved, and the term of the relationship.

In many countries, a written contract does not mean much: Sellers and buyers can readily choose to ignore the agreement without any penalty.

The legal systems may endorse contracts but not defend them.

In many cultures, a contract may have little value, while someone’s word or a handshake may be fully reliable.


Employees of the International Firm

• The foreign sales force of the multinational corporation is composed of:

• Expatriates• Employees working in a foreign country.• Types:

Home-country nationals

Third-country nationals

• Local employees.


Expatriates: Home Country Nationals

• They are the traditional expatriate (expat).• Employees from the home country of the international

company, with experience working for the company, and who are assigned by that company to work overseas.

• Preferred by companies whose selling function relies on highly-specialized information.

• However, these employees…• Are expensive • Tend to have difficulty adapting to new international

environments. Experience high cultural barriers Lack local personal connections. Difficulty finding employees willing to take on international

assignments


Expatriates: Third-Country Nationals• Employees working temporarily in the assignment

country who are NOT nationals of that country OR of country in which headquarters is located.

• Speak numerous languages.• Familiar with customs and business practices in

different environments.• Have learned, through experience, to adapt optimally

for international assignments.• Cost less than home-country nationals.


Host-Country Nationals (Locals)• Local salespeople who work in the home country for

an international corporation. • Understand the business environment and business

practices in the company’s home country and have established relationships in the local business and government community.

• Well trained technically.• Willing to return to home country to work for the

multinational firm.


Long Distance International Selling

• Selling via the Internet or mail is likely an important venue used in approaching new international customers.

• Costs of distance selling are lower, allowing for greater market coverage.

• However:

The selling infrastructure (mail, Internet accessibility) lags behind in low-income countries and emerging markets.

It is difficult to coordinate internationally due to cultural differences.


Managing International Employees

Companies that attempt to transplant personnel policies proven successful in the home country will run against obstacles in different international environments.

• Issues related to culture come into play.


Buyer-Seller Interactions

• Certain selling approaches work better than others Hard sell is inappropriate in many countries in Asia. Eye-to-eye contact may be seen as aggressive. Business cards are handed with both hands and

received with both hands in certain cultures to convey respect.

Negotiation differs depending on culture; in many environments, it is expected that a personal relationship is established before the negotiation.


Negotiation and Culture

• National character: Individualism Power Distance Uncertainty Avoidance Masculinity/Femininity

• Organizational culture• Low context cultures use formal, direct

communication that is verbally expressed.• High context cultures use extensive nonverbal

information to convey the message.

• Individual personality also comes into play.


Successfully Managing Expatriates

Successful expatriate management requires:

1) Effective screening and recruitment.

2) Appropriate training and development strategies.

3) Motivating for peak performance.

4) Ensuring successful repatriation.

50% of expatriateassignments FAIL


Screening and Recruiting Expatriates

• The ideal expatriate has…• A high cultural sensitivity and awareness.• The ability to adapt behavior in cross-national

settings.• A high level of resiliency.• Extensive international knowledge and

willingness to gain it. • A strong desire to work overseas.


Attenuating Culture Shock

Western managers often face culture shock when they are assigned in Asia.


Attenuating Culture Shock

• Culture Shock is a pervasive feeling of anxiety resulting from one’s presence in an unfamiliar culture.

• Culture shock is lessened by adequately training the employees; this is done with:

Short courses in cross-cultural communications.

Cultural immersion.

• Culture shock is also lessened by creating appropriate expectations for the employees.

Employers should help them anticipate their physical and social environment.


Incentives for International Post Assignments• In order for the international assignment to be

successful, the employee must be highly motivated by both intrinsic aspects of motivation and by extrinsic factors.

• Some compensation incentives include:• Cost of living/post adjustment:

A compensation incentive whereby the company adjust expatriate salaries to reflect the costs of living in the new environment at standards in the expatriate’s home country.

• Housing allowance: A compensation incentive whereby the company covers part or the entire cost of housing for the expatriate employee while abroad.May include covering for the cost of household help and security.


Incentives for International Post Assignments (contd.)• Education allowance

• A compensation incentive whereby the company agrees to cover the cost of children’s education at an international private school in the country of assignment.

• May include covering costs of attending a boarding school in the expatriate’s home country.

• Home-leave allowance• A compensation incentive whereby the company pays for

employee and family to vacation in the home country.


Incentives for International Post Assignments (contd.)

• Moving allowance• A compensation incentive whereby the company pays for

relocation expenses for moving the family household abroad and back to the home country.

• Repatriation allowance• A large sum paid for the successful completion of the

international assignment.

• Other Types of Allowances: • There are many other types of allowances. Non-

compensation incentives, such as guaranteed promotion upon return are also very important.


Expatriate Obstacles

• Factors such as restrictions imposed on interactions with foreigners in some countries impede expatriates' immersion in the local culture and acceptance of their new environment.

• Gravitating toward home-country expatriates and relying extensively on expatriate groups and forums (websites that unite expatriates in a region, newspapers, etc.) will also impede immersion in the local culture.

Isolation Going Native


Repatriation Issues• When expatriates return to the home country, they often

experience reverse culture shock, or a feeling of anxiety attributed to:

• A longing for the international environment left behind.• Difficulty readjusting to the home country.• Difficulty readjusting to the corporate culture at one’s own firm.

• Culture shock is exacerbated by:• Vast company changes in expatriate employee’s absence.• Loss of status during absence.• Lack of social circle at work and at home; relationships may have

changed over time.

• Multinational corporations offer incentives upon repatriation in order to attenuate culture shock.

• Reverse culture shock can be avoided by maintaining connection to company headquarters.


Chapter Summary

• Addressed expatriate management strategies.

• Described the different types of employees hired for firms’ international operations.

• Addressed issues related to ensuring the success of international assignments.

copyright atomic dog publishing, 2008copyright atomic dog publishing, 20 international personal...

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