The Job Satisfaction of Expatriate American Managers:
- PDF / 2,714,608 Bytes
- 9 Pages / 532.8 x 769.2 pts Page_size
- 23 Downloads / 212 Views
Abstract. This paper presents the results of a study concernedwith the need satisfactionsof Americans who are assigned to international managerialpositions. The results of the study indicate that regional location and prior internationalwork experience influence the job satisfactionof overseasmanagers.It is suggestedthat jobs in different partsof the world may be viewed differently because of previous internationalwork experience, career aspiration and control exerted by the parentorganization. * Is there any relationship betweenthe job satisfactionof expatriateAmericanmanagersand INTRODUCTION their previous internationalwork experience and the regional location of their presentforeign assignment? The results of the investigation reported in this article indicate that regional location and prior internationalwork experience influence the perceivedjob satisfaction of overseas managers.In particular,experiencedmanagersassignedto WesternEuropeanlocations were more satisfied than their inexperiencedcolleagues.Conversely,experiencedmanagersin Latin America were less satisfied than their inexperienced associates assigned to the same regionallocation. It is the intent of this study to extend and enlarge upon previous researchconcerned with perceived need satisfactions of Americans who are assigned to managerialpositions in the foreign subsidiaries of U.S. multinational corporations. The study of job satisfaction of managerialpersonnel has been the subject of considerableinterestand research;however,much of the evidence which has been collected pertains to American managerswho are working within the United States. Only limited interest has been shown with respect to the need satisfactionsof Americanswlhoare in managerialpositions overseas. The paucity of researchon the motivation and need satisfactionsof Americans assigned to overseas managerialposts is puzzling in view of (1)the level of U.S. corporate investment overseas;(2) the large numberof expatriateAmericanmanagers;and (3) the centrality of the overseasmanager'srole in the destiny of the foreignsubsidiary. Research focusing on expatriate American managers' behavior ranges all the way from an overabundanceof wisdom literatureto a sprinklingof researchthat lends itself to empirical verification. Some of the more notable empirical studies have been concerned with cross-culturalinvestigationsof managerialand professionalpersonnel.Haire,Ghiselli,andPorter in their study of managersrepresentinga wide variety of companies and industriesin 14 countries found that autonomy and self actualization needs were the least satisfied need categories for managers throughout the world.' In a study of managers in a single multinational company, Sirota reported that in most countriesthe managersrated individual achievementas the most importantgoal.2 Ivancevich& Bakerin a study of the job attitudesof middle level managersworking in the United States and Europefound that the perceivedneed satisfactions of managerswho are assigned to domestic operations are different from their counterpart
Data Loading...
