Effective Pre-departure Training Paper Example

INTRODUCTION

The role of Human resources (HR) is very significant for businesses to compete and succeed in the global market. HR is used to denote the people who work for a particular organization or company and the responsible departments that manage the resources related to employees. HR managers are therefore accountable for recruiting, paying, promoting, vetting, selecting, hiring, funding, and firing employees and well as contractors. HR encompasses accumulated stock of knowledge, skills, and capabilities the people bear which the firms have structured over some time. The Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) can build their capital in the HR through training and development schemes. Given the expansion of markets and the demand for internationalization, many MNEs have even established their training centers internationally. Pre-departure training involves cross-cultural training which is not very important to expatriates but also the local employees to enhance their cultural awareness and skill in working with various nationals. As HR Director for small and medium-sized enterprise (SME), I understand that pre-departure training to my employees before they travel to the host countries is very critical. This will adjust their social skills and that of their families as well. The training will enhance business performance. I understand the expatriate who has improved his or her cultural spectra can quickly develop a good relationship and respects for local counterparts as well as a business partner.

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COMPONENTS OF EFFECTIVE PRE-DEPARTURE TRAINING PLAN

The first section criterion for many organizations is the technical capability of the current employees. The literature on pre-departure training has focused on the development of cultural awareness. Hence in many occasions, when employees have been regarded for international assignments, the next step is to consider them for pre-departure training. Many firms consider this kind of training as the critical focus of better for the performance of the expatriate in foreign countries. Proper cultural training is essential since it helps the expatriates to adapt to new cultures. This would enable them to gain intercultural experience that would boost their cross-cultural collaboration. A few decades ago many firms in the US were reluctant to provide the pre-departure training. However, today things have significantly changed- they have adapted to the plan. All the same, many firms or MNEs still find its challenges to offer this kind of training, especially where the expatriates are to be accompanied by their families. The mode in which this training is also provided various from firms to firms. Pre-departure training in my view is a critical step that all companies should offer to their employee who is destined for international assignments.

Cultural Awareness Plan

A well-shaped cultural awareness training scheme is thus very critical to make the expatriates adopt to the social system in the foreign country. The expatriates need to understand the culture of the host country to improve their behavior when they interact with the locals. The training is also significant to help the expatriate employees adopt in the system of the host country. In this context, cultural awareness training remains the basic pre-departure training that expatriate employees should systematically go through. Now, the frameworks of the educational training program will consider the nature of the international assignment- the training will take into consideration the duration, purpose of the transition, and the provider of such schemes. The five major components of cultural training that I would like my employees to go through include environmental briefing, and cultural orientation, language training, field experiences, sensitivity training, and culture assimilators. On the other hand, if the assignment requires a high level of interaction and that the cultural difference is high then the training would focus more on the cross-cultural training. This is opposed to occasions where there are fewer diversities.

Preliminary Visits

Preliminary visits is another critical aspect of training international employees. This involves sending the expatriate employees to the host country to the candidates and their spouse to have a glance of the host country and try to examine their interest in an assignment in the country. The visits also expose the expatriate employees on the context of the possible task or job and help them to enhance their pre-departure preparation. This should also focus on the position of the candidate on the work. It would make them make initial adjustments before they arrive in the host country for the official assignment. The trip can also be utilized by the candidates to be familiar with their intended location of residence, secure housing, and child education as well as another aspect that are very vital for the relocation to the host country. The international employees may make their decision during the visits to even reject the assignments if they feel that the host country is not favorable and that they fear underperformance. Thus, a combination of cross-cultural training and preliminary visits is a critical aspect of pre-departure training.

Language Training

Language training is another critical component of pre-departure training for international employees. Consideration of this scope of perspective needs to illuminate a few areas. The importance ears to consider here is the role of English in the world business; the host country language skills and adjustment; and the knowledge of the corporate language. It is true that English dominates the world business. Therefore the pre-departure training will consider whether the expatriate is a national of Anglo-Saxon or English speaking countries such as USA, Britain, Canada, Australia or New Zealand. More focus is not always put in language training for international employees whose origins are the English speaking countries. However, the language training will be a significant component of pre-departure training if the expatriate is not had English language background. Another aspect of this training will also consider how the host country English Language skills. This is important when the expatriate from English-speaking country is going to work in a country that many of the nationals don't use English. Sometimes the international employees will be forced to be accompanied by translators.

Practical Assistance

The element of exercise makes a crucial contribution to the expatriate and his or her family to adapt to the new location. The spectrum includes all the types of support both before and during an assignment. For instance, the component could consist of preparing expatriate`s visas; shipping his or her belongings to the host country; fixing the employees house in the host country; and employing aides for the expatriate among other spectra of practical assistance. Unfortunately, studies have shown that many firms do not sufficiently provide practical assistance to international employees. Again, nowadays, instead of directly getting engage in the useful assistance exercise for the employees, many firms seek the service of the relocation specialists. The adequate provision of possible assistance to the expatriates also acts as a motivation even before they get engaged in the intended assignment.

Security Briefing

This is a new component of the pre-departure training. It has been occasioned by the fact that some of the expatriates may relocate to areas with security concerns. Therefore, it is very crucial for them to understand some of the threats to their health, safety, and security. Many factors could pose a danger to the life of the expatriates. They include hostile political environments, natural disasters, diseases, travel accidents, and other related transition matters. The security briefing will solely depend on the location if the assignment. The presentation will also train the expatriate on the evacuation procedures in cases of emergency. The firms should also be responsible for attending to the crises, i.e., by helping the expatriate to relocate to safer areas or relevant embassies. The security is very critical since this can make the international employees reject the assignment or result in premature return.

Training for Training Role

In certain occasions, the expatriates are usually used in training purpose because of inadequate staff in the host location. However, in many instances, expatriates often find themselves training the host-country nationals as the substitutes. A critical mind would ask how the expatriates are groomed for this training responsibility. It is evident that the way people learn and understand concepts varies. Therefore organization should focus on the best ways to improve the expatriates' skills for the role of training others. This should be reflected in the cross-cultural training and other components. The transfer of knowledge from the expatriates to the host-country nationals will depend on the individual readiness to transfer the experience and the acceptance of the understanding by the firm. The firms should do thorough research on the concept for an effective transition.

MEASURING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE PRE-DEPARTURE TRAINING

As an HR administrator, I understand that it would be very crucial to measure the effectiveness of the pre-departure training offered to my employees by an external consultant. The effectiveness of the training can be estimated based on both short-term and long term scope. I would measure the cognitive, practical and experiential of cross-cultural training and language training by doing a brief interview with the employees. This is because expatriates who underwent thorough pre-departure training would exhibit cultural proficiency earlier and would appear to have job satisfaction. The measurement can also span to long-term scope such as the performance of the employees in the host countries. The short-term scope of measurement is very critical because it would provide opportunities to mend messes before the employees are sent to foreign countries.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Since pre-departure training feature sections on fundamentals of ethics, culture shock and cultural level skills, and fundamental research ethics, it is very critical for all employees who are to carry out international assignments. Hence, firms or MNEs should provide or the requirement for the fulfillment of the training. The provision should cater for both expatriates and their families. It is upon the HR managers to make sure that their employees have been thoroughly undergone the pre-departure training. This should be evaluated through interviews with the employees. This assessment is critical and would enable the expatriates to adopt as soon as they conduct a preliminary visit. Again, HR managers should critic...