Much to their surprise
repatriates returning from an international
assignment typically find adjusting to their home country and their home
company harder than the culture shock they had when they first went
overseas. And the costs of a bumpy return, also known as reverse culture
shock, can spread far and wide: an unhappy and unproductive employee
(repats leave their companies at twice the rate of those who don't go
overseas), bad publicity for expat assignments inside your organization
(people are reluctant to sign up to go abroad when they see what happens
when people return), and the potential loss of invaluable (and very
expensive) global expertise (when the unhappy repat leaves to work for your
competition!)
But all of this can be prevented if organizations prepare their employees
(and families) for returning home. Knowing what the personal and
professional challenges are of coming home doesn't make those challenges go
away, but it does make the returnee better prepared to deal with them. Just
as predeparture training sets up the expat for a smooth entry into the
foreign culture, repatriation training can minimize the impact of coming
home. And the softer the reentry, the sooner the employee is back on his/her
feet adding value to the company.
A GOOD RETURN is currently being used by
Citibank N.A. Human Resources in Tokyo, Harmon International, Tucker
International,Berlitz, CET Academic Services,
Notre Dame School of Business, Tufts University, Worcester Polytechnic,
The
East West Center, Earlham College, ICI and Ryutsu Kagaku University.
This 28 minute video highlights the key issue of repatriation, and why returnees
are often unhappy in their jobs back home and includes a Facilitators Guide written
by Craig Storti
Much to their surprise
repatriates returning from an international
assignment typically find adjusting to their home country and their home
company harder than the culture shock they had when they first went
overseas. And the costs of a bumpy return, also known as reverse culture
shock, can spread far and wide: an unhappy and unproductive employee
(repats leave their companies at twice the rate of those who don't go
overseas), bad publicity for expat assignments inside your organization
(people are reluctant to sign up to go abroad when they see what happens
when people return), and the potential loss of invaluable (and very
expensive) global expertise (when the unhappy repat leaves to work for your
competition!)
But all of this can be prevented if organizations prepare their employees
(and families) for returning home. Knowing what the personal and
professional challenges are of coming home doesn't make those challenges go
away, but it does make the returnee better prepared to deal with them. Just
as predeparture training sets up the expat for a smooth entry into the
foreign culture, repatriation training can minimize the impact of coming
home. And the softer the reentry, the sooner the employee is back on his/her
feet adding value to the company.