The Use and Management of Non-traditional Expatriates Working for South Korean MNEs in China
This chapter focuses on the use and management of non-traditional expatriates in MNEs, especially non- Western contexts, which has attracted little research attention thus far. More specifically, the current study explores the trend of using and managemen
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The Use and Management of Non- traditional Expatriates Working for South Korean MNEs in China
Introduction International assignees have dominated the agenda of IHRM research over the last few decades (Collings et al. 2007). Such assignees, commonly referred to as ‘expatriates’, are employees assigned to work and live in other countries for a stipulated period of time. Expatriates play a critical role in subsidiary leadership, filling the gaps in skills, management, and organizational development and, ultimately, helping ensure that international business ventures are successful (Dowling et al. 2013). Much of the previous IHRM research focused on what could be termed ‘traditional’ expatriates (Bonache and Noethen 2014), those employees who are taking up international assignments and who relocate to a host country for a year or more (Bonache et al. 2001). Increasingly, we are witnessing a variety of international assignees who differ from traditional expatriates. Assignments for these expatriates tend to be shorter and often do not involve family relocation. In part, this is a result of technological advances where MNEs are able to manage international business differently from how it was done in the past. As the growing use of non-traditional expatriates is a more recent phenomenon, these various types of expatriates have not been the focus of sustained research and the complexities involved in managing them have often been underestimated in IHRM research (Collings et al. 2007). This deficiency has been compounded by the fact that the research on non-traditional © The Author(s) 2017 H. Kang, J. Shen, International Human Resource Management in South Korean Multinational Enterprises, DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-3093-2_7
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expatriates has been largely conducted in Western MNEs (Demel and Mayrhofer 2010; Tharenou and Harvey 2006; Welch et al. 2003). As a result, knowledge about non-traditional expatriates in non-Western MNEs, where organizational structures and management may be different (Whitley 1992), is rather limited. This chapter bridges the literature gap by exploring the use and management of non-traditional expatriates of South Korean MNEs in China. South Korea is Asia’s fourth-largest economy. South Korean MNEs such as Samsung and Hyundai have grown rapidly and have become major players in international business (Yoon 2007). Unlike their Western counterparts where the senior management team is normally involved in the decision-making process, South Korean MNEs, known as chaebols, have conglomerate structures (Whitley 1992). These companies are normally based on a strong vertical hierarchy, with much authority resting in the office of the chairman (Rowley and Bae 2004). However, it remains unknown how these unique organizational characteristics influence expatriation practices. In this chapter, we will firstly review the literature on the definition of non-traditional expatriates, the trend of using non-traditional expatriates, the reasons for using these expatriates, and the m
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