Women expatriates: a research history

This chapter traces the history and provides a critical review of the extant literature on women's participation in expatriation. It begins by reviewing the literature from the 1980s, examining Nancy J. Adler's seminal work and how her three key 'myths' (relating to supply and demand, namely that women do not want international careers, organizational reluctance to send women abroad and presumed lack of host country acceptance of women expatriates) provide explanations for their minimal expatriate representation (just 3 per cent in the early 1980s) and set the scene for over three decades of female expatriate research. The following three sections examine the female expatriate literature on these themes in depth and in so doing provide analysis at the individual, organizational and societal levels. They preview: evidence concerning the individual choices that women make and the effect of family constraints upon these; organizational decision-making, particularly in relation to expatriate selection; and the effects of societal cultures (at home and abroad) on women's expatriate participation. These issues are framed theoretically, set within the global context, and within women's participation in international management, more generally. While women's expatriate representation has increased over the years, women still remain in the minority, comprising around one-fifth of the expatriate population today (Brookfield, 2012). This proportion has changed little over the last decade, suggesting that this may represent the limit of female international assignment participation

The ‘expat factor’: the influence of working time on women's decisions to undertake international assignments in the oil and gas industry

This article examines the effect of working time on women’s willingness to go on expatriate assignments in the oil and gas exploration and production sector. The research draws upon an analysis of two case study firms’ international assignment and working time policies, semi-structured interviews with 14 Human Resource staff responsible for policy design and implementation, and a survey of the views of 71 women expatriates, supported by in-depth interviews with 26 of the survey respondents. The research identifies an ‘expat factor’: assignees state that long hours are inherent in expatriation and necessary to further their careers. However in practice, working time is not excessive and flexible working practices are utilised. Hours of work have little effect on women’s decisions to undertake long-term assignments but alternatives such as short-term and commuter assignments are unpopular as their working patterns are disruptive to family life. This article contributes to theory development by linking two discrete frameworks that explain women’s career choices when they strive to balance their career goals with their families and by identifying a career compromise threshold when expatriation is rejected in favour of family considerations. A model is proposed to link working time/patterns to women’s international assignment participation

Supporting Ghanaian micro-entrepreneurships: The role of mobile technology

Purpose. The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of mobile technology and related service platforms in supporting informal micro-entrepreneurships in rural Ghana. It aims to extend our knowledge through the development of a conceptual model. Design/methodology/approach. A qualitative research design used in-depth semi-structured interviews with five micro-entrepreneurship owners in the Kwahu South District in the Eastern region of Ghana. Identification of potential case firms was facilitated by a local official. Interview data were analysed thematically. Findings. Mobile technology engendered pride and emotional connectedness and, being easy to use, helped to increase business confidence. Adoption advantages included improved communications with customers and business partners, and effective stock control, providing competitive advantage. Further understanding of mobile technology’s role in improving business processes is needed. Research limitations/implications. This exploratory research is based on five micro-entrepreneurships in one Ghanaian rural area. Further research is needed using larger samples, additional locations and sectors and larger businesses, to identify other factors influencing mobile technology adoption and associated benefits and problems. Practical implications. Government policy supporting growth of informal micro-entrepreneurships using mobile phone technology could increase economic advantage. Micro-business owners need education and training in understanding business processes. Telecommunications companies can highlight technological, business and socio-cultural benefits of mobile phone adoption in rural Ghana. Originality/value. The paper draws upon the experiences of a range of rural-based Ghanaian micro-entrepreneurships to propose a model setting out and linking the technical, business and socio-cultural benefits of mobile phone adoption in supporting business processes

Networking

This chapter examines networking as a career intervention. I begin by setting out the historical background, drawn from the extant literature from the 1970s to date, as a prelude to the presentation of a practical application. The purpose and nature of organizationally initiated networking as a career intervention for a minority group are explained, the models underpinning the method are articulated, and the materials and resources needed and populations involved are highlighted. I then set out a case study example to illustrate this career intervention in practice. The chapter concludes with references that act as a resource for researchers and practitioners in this field

International assignment reward policies: the importance of compensation and benefits to women’s expatriate participation

Since the first studies on expatriate gender diversity were conducted, men have comprised the majority of expatriates (Altman and Shortland, 2008). Although around one-quarter of expatriate roles are held by women today (Brookfield, 2016), the male-dominated picture of expatriate gender diversity looks set to continue. Gender diversity in expatriation is regarded as an asset to business given women’s success in their international assignments (Shortland, 2016) and, as such, various studies have explored why women’s expatriation remains low in comparison to men’s. Issues identified as having some bearing include: women’s choices and family constraints; organisational decision-making (for example in selection, and in relation to their human and social capital); societal cultural explanations; and institutional effects, such as gendered labour market structures (Shortland, 2014). Yet, currently there is little published research on the effects of international reward and how this might affect the gendered nature of expatriation (Shortland and Perkins, 2016). This chapter therefore sets out to address this issue. It examines which elements of international assignment reward policy and practice have the strongest influence on women’s acceptance of international assignments, and of different lengths and patterns of expatriation. Reflecting its exploratory nature, this research employs a case study design (Eisenhardt, 1989; Yin, 2009). It is set in the oil and gas exploration and production sector. This industry is selected because it uses large and increasing numbers of expatriates (Air Inc., 2016, 2017), is known for its relatively attractive provision of expatriate compensation and benefits (IDS, 2002), and yet has low expatriate gender diversity (ORC Worldwide, 2007). This study sets out to identify the main reward policy items that women regard as critical preconditions to assignment acceptance and to outline recommendations to employers where policy and practice improvements might make a difference to increasing expatriate gender diversity across a range of assignment types. In this way it contributes both to our knowledge of expatriate reward and to our understanding of women’s expatriate representation. The study sets out to address the following research question: to what extent and how do the elements of international assignment reward policy support women’s expatriation in different assignment lengths and patterns

Segmenting international assignments: organizational justice

This chapter begins by briefly examining the typical content of expatriate reward policy. Following on from this, it addresses the trend to segment international assignment policies to reflect different assignment types and provide flexibility to organisations, while simultaneously attempting to reduce costs and maximise expatriate return on investment. It then takes as its focus theoretical frameworks that can help expatriate reward professionals to predict outcomes of their policy design choices. In so doing, it first examines the role of equalising differences or compensating differentials theory (Rosen, 1986) as a basis to justify differential treatment in expatriate reward within a segmented international assignment policy suite. Next, it reviews the impact of equity (and perceived inequity) (Adams, 1963) within a segmented policy approach on assignees’ potential willingness to accept assignments and remain satisfied with - and motivated by - reward policy while on assignment. Finally, the chapter draws upon the organisational justice literature to consider the reasonableness of procedures, the context surrounding these and the (unintended?) consequences of policy outcomes (Byrne and Cropanzano, 2001; Colquitt, Greenberg and Zapata-Phelan, 2005; Hansen, Byrne and Kiersch, 2013). ‘Distributive’ justice (Chory and Kingsley Westerman, 2009; Homans, 1961) is proposed as an appropriate theoretical framework to help predict assignees’ evaluation of what they receive compared to others; ‘procedural’ justice is set out as a frame to assist policy implementers to determine how outcomes are allocated (Palaiologos, Papazekos and Panayotopoulou, 2011); and ‘interactional’ justice is presented to address how decisions are communicated and implemented (Brown, Bemmels and Barclay, 2010; Gilliland, Gross and Hogler, 2014)