1. Assessing sustainable engagement
among expatriate employees
Global organisations recognise the
importance of having experienced
and well-informed Global Mobility/
HR teams to support their expatriate
employee communities, not only
before their departure and during
the assignment, but also on their
repatriation to the home country.
Gonzalo Shoobridge,
Senior Consultant,
Organisational Surveys
and Insights, EMEA
Billy Turriff, Leader,
Data Surveys and
Technology, Middle East
Lesley Brown, Director
of Organisational Surveys
and Insights, Asia-Pacific
Whilst the benchmarking of expatriate employee
policies against other organisations worldwide and
across all industries are key for human resource
international mobility decision making, this will not
necessarily offer feedback on how effective or popular
specific policies are and how these impact the
sustainable engagement of expatriate employees.
The effectiveness of long term assignment (LTA)
policies can be measured through an ‘Expatriate
Engagement Survey’ that tackles two different angles:
LTA Policies and the resulting expatriate employee
levels of sustainable engagement. The results of such
investigation will provide decision makers with useful
information for them to assess their policies, take
actions and support decisions as necessary for their
expatriate employee communities.
The data presented is derived from an in-depth
engagement survey implemented by Towers Watson
together with the RES Forum (The Community for
International HR and Mobility Specialists) in which
expatriate employees working in five different
multinational organisations were surveyed. The
purpose of the survey was to gain an understanding
of the meanings and interpretations attached
to the specific role of expatriate managers in their
host organisations:
•• What are the organisations’ expatriate employee
engagement levels?
•• What drives expatriate employee engagement/
retention/productivity?
•• Impact of demographic/organisational
factors on expatriate employee engagement?
•• Which areas can we address to improve
expatriate employee engagement?
•• What are the most popular LTA policies?
How do expatriate employee feel about
these policies?
Q&A
Opinion categories in the expatriate survey
Engagement
Enablement
Energy (well-being)
Retention
Productivity
Recognition
Development
Performance appraisal
Supervision
Client focus
Communication
Cooperation
Efficiency
Empowerment and innovation
Pay and benefits
Your expatriation experience
Effectiveness of LTA
interventions
2. How do we measure engagement
among expatriate employees?
Engagement measures the level of
connection expatriate employees feel about
their host organisation, as demonstrated by their
willingness and ability to help their host company
succeed, largely by providing discretionary effort
on a sustained basis. It also takes into account
the rational part of the engagement equation, how
employees connect with their host company’s goals
and values, and their emotional connection, such
as the employee’s pride in the host organisation.
So, how engaged are
expatriate employees?
It is essential for expatriate employees
to demonstrate an ability to establish,
promote and protect the core values of the
corporations they work for in other geographies,
and this can only be achieved through a well
engaged expatriate employees community. There
are unique elements of expatriate engagement,
which stem from the nature of their jobs.
Expatriate employees seem to pay more attention
to all factors related to a company’s future and
actions of senior leadership, as well as their
engagement tends to be more driven by one’s
individual outlook and future prospects compared
to non-expatriate employees.
Our research shows that engagement among
expatriate employees is particularly high, 92%
agree with the goals and objectives of their host
organisation, 84% would recommend their host
organisation as a good place to work, and 97%
would be willing to offer discretionary effort to help
their host organisation succeed. These scores
outperform those of non-expatriate employees in
similar positions in their home organisations.
So, what drives engagement
among expatriate employees?
The drivers of engagement among
expatriate employees are:
•• Recognition of personal contributions
in the host organisation.
•• Cooperation and teamwork within the
host organisation.
•• Adequate use of the expatriate employee's skills
and competencies by the host organisation.
•• Good communication with the host organisation
line manager/leader.
Which expatriate employees are more
at risk of leaving the organisation?
Most expatriate employees, especially
those in their first assignment, consider
their international assignment as recognition for
their good work and an important step in their
career progression within the organisation. Not
surprisingly, the key drivers of expatriate employee
retention are:
•• Levels of satisfaction with their international
assignment to date.
•• Good promotion/career prospects.
•• Good relationship with their line-manager in their
host organisation.
Interestingly enough, pay and benefits is not a
key driver of retention for expatriate employees
per se, however, of course, it is linked to the
overall satisfaction of the expatriate employees'
international assignment to date, which is the
most significant key driver of retention.
The expatriation process involves many technical
and professional aspects, but also contains
personal, social, cultural and organisational items,
that are often the trigger that make expatriates
choose to return to his country ahead of schedule.
Q
A
A A
A
Q
Q
Q
““…the accompanying partner is impacted enormously by
the decision to accept an expat assignment. The partner
is required to give up their work and occupation to move
into a foreign country, learn a new language, leave their
family and friends, travel for long hours and are not
compensated by an exciting new professional challenge,
but are pushed into a supporting role...”
Survey respondent
2 Assessing sustainable engagement among expatriate employees towerswatson.com
3. So, what is the expatriate employee
profile most at risk of leaving the
international assignment?
Based on our survey results, expatriate
employees most at risk of leaving are:
•• Those aged between 45 and 54.
•• Those single or married with their spouse in the
home country.
•• Those with a local/country level job role scope
(rather than regional or global).
•• Those in their second non-consecutive expatriation.
•• Those with short length assignments (less than
six months).
•• Those close to finishing their assignments or
recently repatriated.
•• Those assigned to the Middle East.
•• Female expatriate employees (one in four
surveyed expatriate employees were female)
show less positive results than their male
counterparts, especially in areas linked to
productivity, empowerment, innovation, pay and
benefits, and the overall expatriation experience.
Major factors contributing to failure include the
expatriate employee's inability to adjust to the
new job, inability to adjust to the new culture, or
an expatriate employee's spouse and family’s
inability to adjust to the host country. The
expatriate employee's family is a strategic piece
in the expatriation process. In many cases, due
to uncertainty, employees with families reject
expatriation altogether when repatriation is not
well planned in advance.
It is important to note that the knowledge
of the local language has no impact on the
overall expatriation experience. Also, expatriate
employees whose partners are nationals of the
host country express more positive opinions in
their whole expatriation experience.
In general those whose expatriation was initiated
by their host company (rather than by themselves
or their home organisation) show the most
positive survey results.
A
Q
““It is essential for expatriate employees to demonstrate an
ability to establish, promote and protect the core values
of the corporations they work for in other geographies,
and this can only be achieved through a well engaged
expatriate employee community.”
The view from abroad – expatriate
employees in the Middle East
Billy Turriff, Leader of Data Surveys and Technology, at Towers Watson in
the Middle East believes expatriate employees need to be well prepared
before relocating. "Expatriate employees will need to be mindful of falsely
based expectations," he says. "The majority of expatriate employees who
move to the Middle East tend to encounter problems because they do not
have sufficient practical information about their new home. There are a
number of challenges faced by expatriate employees in the Middle East,
particularly when they first land. Areas that expatriates find challenging
are around schooling for their children and also securing housing
provision that meets their expectations."
There are also challenges both in and out of the work place to consider.
"In addition to the above, the administration requirements for new
joiners such as, opening bank accounts, visa, connecting utilities
can be frustrating especially if minimum support is provided by the
company," Turriff states. "Challenges in the work place typically focus
around a lack of empowerment by senior management and also the
capability and skill to manage and work with a very diverse workforce."
Depending on the location of the expatriate employee in the Middle
East there may also be challenges for the wider family, for example, wife
obtaining suitable employment in certain countries.
Turriff also stresses the importance of planning and proper research
before making any move. "The significance of the Muslim statute and
acceptance of ‘western’ ways also apply differently in each country, so
it’s important to do some research on the future expatriate employee
destination, and to make sure expatriate employees have some base
of information established before they move to their host country in the
Middle East," he adds. "Let’s not forget each country claims its own
unique nature/characteristics and therefore has its own relationship
with foreigners."
Finally, expatriate employees can expect a gradual transition into
settling into their chosen country. "Overall most expatriate employees
enjoy the experience of the Middle East," Turriff summarises. "However,
it is not uncommon for expatriate employees and their families
to require a six month settling in period to really understand how
organisations and society works."
Assessing sustainable engagement among expatriate employees 3towerswatson.com
4. How sustainable are those high levels
of expatriate employee engagement?
The concept of ‘Sustainable Engagement’
adds an element of ‘Enablement’ (a work
environment that supports productivity and
performance in the host organisation) and
‘Energy’ (individual physical, social, and emotional
well-being at work in the host country) to the
expatriate employee engagement equation.
In general, expatriate employees feel enabled
within their host organisations: 75% of expatriate
employees feel they do not face obstacles at
work, they consider they have all the necessary
equipment, tools and resources to do their job well
(76%), and most importantly, the people they work
with cooperate to get the job done (88%).
A
Q
Engaged
Enabled
Energised
Supported by
the local
work environment
Sustained by
well-being at work
Bienestar físico
y emocional en
el trabajo
Willing to expend
discretionary effort
““It is important to know the level of responsibilities and
expectations before departure. In my case, these were
explained to me in vague detail and have seriously
impacted my motivation and morale upon arriving and
learning that the role I am expected to play is miles away
from what I was expecting.”
In terms of well-being (Energy), expatriate
employees feel they are able to sustain the
necessary level of energy throughout the day to
get the job done (90%) and the type of work they
perform in their host organisations give them a
sense of personal accomplishment (89%). However,
58% of surveyed expatriate employees feel that
the level of stress that they experience at work
seriously reduces their effectiveness, this result
is very much in-line with similar non-expatriate
employee managerial positions.
We can determine that the high levels of expatriate
employees engagement are sustainable in the mid-
to-long-term due to the high scores registered in
the areas of enablement and well-being.
Survey respondent
4 Assessing sustainable engagement among expatriate employees towerswatson.com
5. Q
A
““Companies in emerging markets are
increasingly turning to expatriate managers
and executives for specialised knowledge to
help in steering overseas operations; hence
the surge in demand for expatriate employee
talent in developing markets is increasing.”
Has the expatriate employee's
productivity been affected by the
international assignment?
In order to be adequately equipped, the
future expatriate must acquire knowledge
about the organisational culture they are entering,
as well as its differences. They must also become
competent in cross culture communication. This
does not happen immediately and adequate
preparation time is needed before departing from
one’s home country.
In general, only 6% of expatriate employees feel
that their productivity has decreased since they
were assigned to their new host organisation, 40%
feel there has not been any change and 54% feel
that their productivity has increased. So, what
drives productivity among expatriate employees?
•• Ensuring the level of responsibility in the host
company matches the description that was
given to the expatriate employee before departure.
•• Adequate use of the expatriate employees' skills
and competencies.
•• Clear understanding of the goals and
objectives of the expatriate employees'
international assignment.
•• The belief that the international assignment
is beneficial to the expatriate employees' future
career advancement.
•• The support provided by the host organisation
to help the expatriate employee adapt to the
new environment.
Expatriation success cannot be fully achieved
without an understanding of the nature of the
role that expatriate employees are playing in the
company’s internationalisation process, and what
components of this role are open to change.
The company benefits that have contributed the
most to the expatriate experience and subsequent
levels of productivity are:
•• General logistical support (housing,
car, schooling).
•• Allowance for flights to the home country.
•• Administration support (tax, medical visa).
•• Introduction to new work environment
(stakeholders, culture, markets).
•• Co-ordinated HR support from home and
host countries.
•• Understanding and relationship with the line
manager in the host country.
support
work
team
home environment
housing
host
medical
insurance
country
schooling
car
salary
manager
mobility
country benefits
allowance health
The view from abroad – Asia-Pacific
organisations and expatriate employees
Lesley Brown, Director of Organisational Surveys and Insights, at
Towers Watson, Asia-Pacific believes the growth of the region has
impacted on the flow of expatriate employees in and out of the area.
“Due to the region's increased global importance the Asia-Pacific
organisations are currently experiencing a rise in both the import
and export of expatriates as they regionalise and globalise their
businesses,” she says. “This is most evident in Japan, China,
Hong Kong, South Korea and Singapore but no country in the region
is immune from managing this challenge – especially when it comes
to the rising cost of living in these countries which is making it more
difficult for organisations to attract and retain the right calibre of
expatriate employees.”
Benefits that have contributed the most to your expatriate experience
Assessing sustainable engagement among expatriate employees 5towerswatson.com
6. Expatriate employee survey results vs Towers Watson Global Management Norm
Ranked by difference from benchmark Differences from benchmark
Energy (wellbeing)
Enablement
Engagement
Recognition
Performance appraisal
Retention
Empowerment and innovation
Cooperation
Supervision
Efficiency
Development
Communication
Pay and benefits
5
4
3
1
1
0
-1
-2
-8
-12
-16
-28
-29
Let us not forget that the impact of expatriate
employees is felt not only by those assigned to
international postings, but also by their host-country
managers and colleagues. Specific HR practices
need to be put in place for expatriate employees to
remain competitive and sustainably engaged within
their host organisation. HR practitioners who are
new to managing international assignments should
not treat expatriate employees in a similar fashion
to those who are based in the home country.
Due to the nature of the expatriate manager role
in the company and their specific needs and
expectations for their international assignment, the
opinion gap between non-expatriate and expatriate
managers is markedly noticeable, especially in
the areas of: pay and benefits, communication,
development, efficiency and supervision. This
is reflected in the bar chart showing our survey
results below. These are areas where expatriate
employees require additional support from their
home and host organisations, it is a mistake to
simply expect expatriate staff members to adapt
to their host-country ways of doing things. If HR
practitioners take into account these gaps in
opinion and support expatriate employees integrate
positively and effectively into their new workplace/
host country, this is likely to avoid unnecessary
misunderstanding, uneasy working relationships
and potential loss of business for both the home
and host organisations.
““One year away from contract ending and still have no idea
where or if I will end up in the company. There have been
no formal discussions with me other than performance
review and that was only very brief with no detail to
what may be available or where resources like me may
be needed.”
Survey respondent
6 Assessing sustainable engagement among expatriate employees towerswatson.com
7. How are companies managing their
international assignment processes?
Companies in emerging markets are
increasingly turning to expatriate managers
and executives for specialised knowledge to
support overseas operations; hence the surge
in demand for expatriate employee talent in
developing markets is increasing. Many companies
solely concentrate on soaring expatriate employee
compensation packages, but tend to leave by the
side those areas that really impact retention and
engagement which would attenuate the battle
for spiralling expatriation packages. Our survey
indicates that surveyed companies need to
address the following areas:
•• Development: Although international
assignments are considered an important
milestone in immediate career development,
once abroad, expatriate employees show
uncertainty on their next assignment and long
term professional development prospects due to
the lack of contact with the home organisation.
•• Pay and benefits: While not a driver of
engagement; expatriate employees that took
part in this survey felt other organisations
in their host country offered better pay and
benefits than they currently receive. The latter
affects the levels of satisfaction with their
international assignment to date, which is a
driver of retention.
•• Supervision: The relationship between
expatriate employees and their line-managers
in the host country is key and could improve.
Expatriate employees would welcome additional
support from their host organisations to help
them adapt to the new environment.
•• Communication: Although communications
with colleagues and line-managers are good,
expatriate employees do not feel well informed
about wider/higher level company matters that
affect their jobs.
•• Efficiency in expatriation experience: Expatriate
employees would appreciate additional support
from their home organisation after being
posted to their host organisation. In the eyes
of expatriate employees, efficiency relates
to dealing with the logistics of settling up in
another country effectively: sorting out the
personal technology problems quickly to enable
one to start work; enabling systems to pay
expenses; offering support for administrative
tasks such as work permits, taxation, medical
scheme-support or schooling for children. It
makes the whole moving process easier and
enables the expatriate employee to have better
focus on the job and assignments especially on
the first few months.
The results of this survey show that adequate
support from the home organisation is highly
valued by expatriate employees. Results also
indicate that monetary factors and positive effect
on career advancement are strong factors in the
initial motivation to go abroad and the levels of
satisfaction with their international assignment to
date. Despite this, the softer values, like intellectual
self-improvement, recognition, adequate use of skills
and competencies, improved cultural awareness
through cooperation, teamwork and the relationship
with the host country colleagues and leadership
become the most important traits in expatriate
employee engagement once the expatriation
assignment is well underway. Recognising these
softer factors is crucial for any company willing
to tap into the full potential of their employees
operating in key developing markets overseas.
Q
A
Assessing sustainable engagement among expatriate employees 7towerswatson.com
