Capturing strategic orientation toward inpatriation in management staffing policies of global organizations.

Abstract

This dissertation examines the judgment of international human resource managers in global organizations entering emerging markets about the appropriateness of inpatriation practice. First, the strategic drivers and the operating limitations relative to the inpatriation process are outlined. Second, the knowledge-based theoretical perspective on global management staffing is utilized to develop the key research propositions. Third, the analytical approach of policy capturing is used to model the judgment of managers about the appropriateness of inpatriate assignments. Finally, the data on the managers' judgments are analyzed and the results and the findings discussed in terms of the theoretical propositions. The results indicate that the environmental uncertainty of the inpatriate assignment is the most relevant variable in the managerial judgment. The hypothesis of the importance of the unique competence of inpatriates to manage the environmental uncertainly and risk in emerging markets is supported in this study. In conclusion, future directions of the research on inpatriation are suggested.