Exploring international work: types and dimensions of global careers

Abstract

Contemporary global work comprises a wide and growing array of different modes of international work configurations. In this article, we offer a multidimensional framework for conceptual (theoretical and practical) underpinning of these different modes. Building on the extant literature and the Delphi approach, seven dimensions emerged: (i) time of exposure; (ii) intensity of international contact through work; (iii) breadth of interaction; (iv) legal context; (v) international work instigator; (vi) extent of cultural gap between an individual's country-of-origin and the context in which the international work takes place; and (vii) key cultural-related requirements of one's job/role. To these dimensions, we add individual and organizational contextual variables, e.g. diversity and occupational patterns, as well as career systems with a particular focus on the importance of globally orientated work. Furthermore, we list the major modes of global careers and draw a global career glossary. Both the multidimensional framework and the glossary should facilitate scholars and managers to systematize, analyse, manage and further develop their expatriation and repatriation career strategies, policies and practices.

How global careers unfold in practice: Evidence from international project work

“…Thus, while the concept of boundaryless careers has emerged from a domestic (mainly US) perspective, it is relevant to international business. Consequently, Baruch et al (2013Baruch et al ( : 2370 comment that there is a ''need to integrate the literatures of international HRM and careers''. There has been some interest in investigating careers that can be classified as both boundaryless and borderless.…”

“…For example, Jokinen, Brewster, and Suutari (2008) comment on the limited empirical evidence about career issues encountered by people working abroad. The lack of the individual perspective may be due to the stage of conceptual development, with the concentration on description and typologies (see for example Baruch, Dickman, Altman, & Bournois, 2013), rather than on how global careers evolve in practice. Indeed, Le Pargneux (2014: 2043) note that their research only captured expatriate participants' perceptions and attitudes, not on ''how their career will actually unfold''.…”

Career Mobility in a Global Era: Advances in Managing Expatriation and Repatriation

“…There is a significant 'flow of talent' across organizations, sectors, and nations whereby geographical mobility has to be positioned alongside psychological mobility (Sullivan & Arthur, 2006). Extant practices manifest how the forces in the system work, with the flow switching from solely unidirectional (expatriation from headquarters in developed countries to operations in host countries), to multidirectional, such as inpatriation, TCN, off-shoring and other types (Baruch et al, 2013) and to a counter-flow from developing economies to developed economies (Aguzzoli & Geary, 2014;Muratbekova-Touron & Pinot de Villechenon, 2013), demonstrating a shift from brain-drain to brain-circulation (Saxenian, 2005) as a consequence of the ascent of the BRICS countries, among others. The ecosystem nature of global labor markets facilitates the analysis of causes and consequences of global moves and the factors influencing them at various levels, such as the way boundaries become increasingly permeable.…”

Reverse flow in academic mobility from core to periphery: motivations of international faculty working in Kazakhstan

“…Expatriate is generally defined as those who relocate across national borders, change their dominant place of residence, and hold legal work status (Boyle et al 1998; United Nations 1998). In more nuanced analyses, several authors point out the need to differentiate the types of mobile professionals: assigned expatriates (AEs), self-initiated expatriates (SIEs), and migrants (Briscoe et al 2009;Al Ariss 2010;Baruch et al 2013). AEs are employees dispatched by companies to offshore branch offices; SIEs are individuals who actively seek out employment overseas; and migrants are individuals who move due to economic and political upheaval (Froese 2012;Andresen et al 2015).…”