Expatriate return on investment in global firms: executive summary for participating firms and their expatriates

[Extract]\ud This report is one of a series of industry reports released by Monash University on expatriate return on investment in global firms, including Measuring expatriate return on investment in global firms: Industry report for participating firms (2007), and Measuring expatriate return on investment in global firms: Industry report for participating firms and their expatriates (2009). This third and final report provides an executive summary and an overview of key findings, and represents a condensed and summarized version of a much larger 500-page doctoral thesis on this topic. \ud Key features of this report include a comparative summary of the similarities and differences between mobility managers and expatriate employees pertaining to the management and operationalisation of expatriate ROI in practice; an introduction to the conceptual framework to explain expatriate ROI in global firms, which was developed and tested in this research project; an extensive discussion of the managerial implications arising from the research project; and a discussion of new trends and research streams emerging within the global mobility field.\ud This report commences with an introduction and overview of the research, followed by a discussion relating to the importance of measuring ROI, including reasons why ROI may be unimportant for some firms. Next the methodology pertaining to the studies which form the basis of this research is presented and explained. Key findings are then presented. This is followed by presentation of the conceptual framework to explain expatriate ROI in global firms, along with implications for practice. The report concludes with a discussion regarding future research and next steps, a summary of key definitions, notes about the author, and a list of publications and references pertinent to the overall research.\ud \ud Research Background: \ud For the past decade scholars and practitioners have been challenged by how best to measure and manage the value that can be gained from the risks and uncertainties associated with global staffing practices, and in particular, long-term international assignments of expatriates. Many practitioner-oriented reports as well as academic publications point to expatriate return on investment (ROI) as an important business challenge which, when combined with the apparent shortage of empirical studies available on the topic, demonstrates that there is a need for more\ud research in this domain.\ud \ud Research Contribution:\ud This report is one of a series of industry reports released by Monash University on expatriate return on investment in global firms. This third and final report provides an executive summary and an overview of key findings, and represents a condensed and summarized version of McNulty's 500-page doctoral thesis on this topic.\ud \ud Research Significance:\ud The report includes a comparative summary of the similarities and differences between mobility managers and expatriate employees pertaining to the management and operationalisation of expatriate ROI in practice; an introduction to the conceptual framework to explain expatriate ROI in global firms, which was developed and tested in this research project; an extensive discussion of the managerial implications arising from the research project; and a discussion of new trends and research streams emerging within the global mobility field.\u