Determinants of Expatriate Success: An Empirical Study of Singaporean Expatriates in The Peoples Republic of China

ABSTRACT

Globalization of business operations has assumed an increased significance in contemporary business strategy across the developed and developing world. Assignment of staff overseas is one of the most critical areas of the global business operations. While there have been numerous studies on various aspects of expatriate performance, such as selection, training, and compensation of expatriates, these studies have been mostly “americentric” in their scope and approach. Keeping in view the growing importance of China as a favored recipient of Foreign Direct Investment not only from the United States and Europe, but also from other Asian countries such as Japan and Singapore this study has examined factors that determine the success of Singapore expatriates in China. One of the significant findings of the study is that there is a discrepancy between perception of success factors between the expatriates themselves and the human resource directors (HRDs) of the multinational corporations who have an important role in the assignment of those expatriates. Thus this study argues that in addition to the knowledge of what constitutes success in overseas ventures it is important to achieve a common agreement on the factors determining such success.     

The Research‐Practice Gap in Human Resource Management: A Cross‐Cultural Study

In this study, we examine the cross‐cultural differences in human resource (HR) managers’ beliefs in effective HR practices by surveying HR practitioners in Finland (N = 86), South Korea (N = 147), and Spain (N = 196). Similar to previous studies from the United States, the Netherlands, and Australia, there are large discrepancies between HR practitioner beliefs and research findings, particularly in the area of staffing. In addition, we find that interpersonal‐oriented aspects of HR practices tend to be more culturally bound than technical‐oriented aspects of HR practices. We interpret the differences using Hofstede's cultural dimensions (Power Distance, Individualism versus Collectivism, Masculinity versus Femininity, Long‐Term Orientation versus Short‐Term Orientation, and Uncertainty Avoidance). We discuss the overall nature of the science‐practice gap in HR management, and the implications for evidence‐based management. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Career plateauing: reactions and moderators among managerial and professional employees

Questionnaire data obtained from managerial and professional employees in Singapore (N = 141) were used to examine reactions to and moderators of career plateauing. Zero-order correlation coefficients revealed that the perceptual measure of career plateauing was more significantly negatively related to the work attitudes and behaviours than was job tenure. Moderated regression analyses results also revealed that, in general, the perceptual measure of career plateau explained more of the variance in the work attitudes and behaviours than did job tenure. Further, the moderated regression analyses revealed that of the three moderators (job tenure, supervisor support and job characteristics) and the six work attitudes and behaviours examined, supervisor support and job challenge significantly positively moderated only the effects of career plateauing on in-role behaviours. Limitations of the study, directions for future research and implications of the findings are discussed.     

世界主要发达国家物联网的发展现状

物联网技术是目前各国重点发展的网络技术。各国相继制定了物联网发展的规划战略,加快推进下一代网络基础设施的建设步伐。文章主要介绍了美国、欧盟、日本、韩国和新加坡5个国家和地区的物联网发展现状,以期为我国的物联网发展提供借鉴。     

Smallest Meaningful Pay Increases: Field Test,Constructive Replication,and Extension

The authors extend prior literature by examining, in two distinct field settings, smallest meaningful pay increases (SMPIs) in terms of magnitude, behavioral intention, and affective reactions. In Study 1, a two‐wave study of 177 employees of a university medical center in the United States, the authors find stable thresholds of about 5.0 percent for positive reactions to pay increases (magnitude [5.4 percent], behavioral intentions [4.2 percent], and affective reactions [5.6 percent]). In Study 2, a sample of 495 university employees in Finland, the authors also find stable but slightly higher thresholds of about 8 percent for behavioral intentions (8.4 percent) and positive affective reactions (7.2 percent) to pay increases. They also find threshold effects of ?5.7 percent for behavioral intentions and ?5.8 percent for negative affective reactions in response to restricted future pay increases levied in the transition to a new pay system. Discussion of the results centers on pay raise administration and future research regarding implied and direct pay reductions. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Impact of supplier relationship management practices on buying firm performance: comparison of the United States and China

In 2007, Krause, Handfield, and Tyler examined the relationship between various aspects of social capital and buyer performance in the buyer-supplier dyad by surveying buying firms within the United States. This study extends the (Krause et al. in J Oper Manag 25:528–545, 2007) study by replicating it in two different contexts (industry and China). The original study was conducted in the automotive and electronic industries in the United States, while the current study was conducted in both manufacturing and service industries in the United States and China. We found that the difference of information sharing between the two United States populations is the only difference attributed to industry differences. Overall, study results indicate that buyer commitment positively impacted buying firm performance in China; while buyer commitment and shared values impacted buying firm performance in the United States. These findings suggest that certain aspects of social capital are important in China, but differences do exist between the two countries that may be attributed to culture. Therefore, researchers should consider the impact of country culture when conducting studies in China.     

Foreign remedies for local difficulties: the case of three Scottish manufacturing firms

Literature on Japanese transplant manufacturing firms in the automotive sector often emphasise the importance placed on attitude as opposed to skills in the hiring decisions for line workers. In this paper, a case study of one second-tier components supplier for a major Japanese automotive assembler in the Midwestern United States provides the opinions of senior managers and human resource associates regarding recruitment and selection practices. In-depth interviews, carried out over a two-week period in August 2000, are used to develop an understanding of the recruitment and selection process for line workers as well as to investigate the desired skills and value of previous Japanese experience. Results of the case study analysis are compared with two models from the literature: (1) a model of recruitment and selection at Japanese automotive-related firms in Japan and (2) a model of recruitment and selection at Japanese transplant automotive-related firms abroad. Deviations from the two models point not to a new paradigm of ‘second-generation’ Japanese transplants – those that have moved into regions quite familiar with Japanese firms and related management and production methods – but rather to overall weaknesses in the stereotypical models. Managerial opinions within the case study firm place limited value on familiarity with a Japanese environment, considering such experience secondary to attitudes and work ethics that are in line with the philosophy of the case study firm.     

从新、美两国经验看我国BIM发展战略

通过对新加坡和美国BIM的发展和应用情况进行分析,总结了两国在BIM发展战略中的成功经验。结合我国的国情,提出应注重多角度着手,多部门合作,充分发挥政府的作用;注重人才培养,建立符合BIM发展所需要的人才队伍;制定和完善法律法规,建立良好地整体环境;注重国际合作,应用实用化的开放标准等几个方面入手,引导我国BIM的快速发展。     

Canadian and American Reactions to Drug and Alcohol Testing Programs in the Workplace

We investigated U.S. and Canadian reactions to workplace drug and alcohol testing programs. Canadian truck drivers (n = 183) deemed drug and alcohol testing policies less fair, and were less accepting of these policies, than their American counterparts (n = 153). We also compared the perspectives of recipients versus third-party observers with regard to their reactions to a drug testing program. Unlike the pattern observed among American observers, the responses by Canadian observers were highly similar to those of the recipients. Canadian observers were more inclined to file a formal protest regarding the implementation of a drug and alcohol testing program than were U.S. observers. The results also showed that procedural and interactional justice principles contributed to the program's fairness, acceptance, and lower levels of protest intentions in both Canada and the United States. We propose that scholars and practitioners can gain a better understanding of multinational reactions to drug and alcohol testing by considering not only cultural but also historical, social, political, and other environmental factors that can shape reactions to personnel practices.     

The location of cross-border and national mergers and acquisitions within the United States

Research on the location choice of foreign direct investment (FDI) focuses on the choice between countries. The within-country location choice is either not analyzed at all or restricted to greenfield investments only. The majority of FDI, however, takes the form of cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&As). We develop and test a pair of hypotheses regarding location-target selection for both cross-border and national M&As across the United States, expecting differences in line with the liability of foreignness argument. Using a detailed firm-level data set for M&As in the period 1985–2012, we compare location choices of cross-border versus national M&As. We find that cross-border M&As are more spatially concentrated, and tend to sort into larger agglomerations than national M&As. This finding holds both for urban agglomerations in isolation, as well as for agglomerations that take the economic geography of the United States into account.     

How does cultural intelligence affect organisational culture: the mediating role of cross-cultural role conflict,ambiguity, and overload

Drawing on the tenets of role stress theory for insight into the cross-cultural and relational effects of role stressors, adaptability and organisation, we explain the mediating effect of these stressors to identify the extent of relationships across a broad scope of cultural settings. The current study examines cross-cultural role conflict, ambiguity and overload – the three role stressors – as mediators of the relationship between cultural intelligence and organisational culture. Survey data were collected from 299 employees across high-risk industries in four countries: Australia, the United Kingdom, United States of America and Singapore. Results demonstrated that cultural intelligence is positively related to organisational culture, while cross-cultural role conflict, ambiguity and overload are negatively associated with organisational culture. Moreover, results from mediation analysis highlighted that cross-cultural role conflict, ambiguity and overload partially mediate the relationship between cultural intelligence and organisational culture, providing a broader understanding of its connective influence both locally and in a cross-border setting. Implications for theory and managerial practice, along with avenues for future research, are discussed.     

中国金融科技:面临障碍与发展路径

金融科技是金融和科技的深度融合,随着互联网技术和大数据技术的快速发展,金融科技以颠覆式的速度和方式对传统金融进行了解构和重塑,改变了社会经济增长方式。金融科技通过加速信用资本化进程、提高金融风控能力、降低金融成本等提升了金融服务实体经济的效率,并在我国取得了快速发展,但仍面临数据隐私、数据确权、技术垄断、数据垄断、信息不对称等问题。美国、英国、新加坡等国金融科技的发展对我国具有借鉴意义,可通过加强金融消费者保护、鼓励金融科技创新、加强金融科技监管等措施促进我国金融科技的健康发展。     

Nonparametric bounds on the returns to language skills

This paper applies the theoretical literature on nonparametric bounds on treatment effects to the estimation of how limited English proficiency (LEP) affects wages and employment opportunities for Hispanic workers in the United States. I analyse the identifying power of several weak assumptions on treatment response and selection, and stress the interactions between LEP and education, occupation and immigration status. I show that the combination of two weak but credible assumptions provides informative upper bounds on the returns to language skills for certain subgroups of the population. Adding age at arrival as a monotone instrumental variable also provides informative lower bounds. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

To create a happy reading at library

This paper draws the advanced experiences of library from Singapore, the United States, Japan, and other developed countries. It is put forward that our university library should start from the concept of library management, library environment, library resources, equipments, human services, professionalism of librarian, service attitude, and so on. Employing library becomes the place where the knowledge is respected, school development is promoted, teachers/students feel convenient, fashion, and comfortable. Making university library become the “heaven on earth”, where the readers can freely enjoy the pleasure of reading.     

Executive stress: A ten-country comparison

In recent years, many companies have become conscious of the dire effects of excessive managerial stress on the performance of the organization, as well as on the health of their executives. Moreover, the so called “boss's disease” was long considered strictly a phenomenon of the affluent, industrialized Western world. The results of this investigation, however, reveal that the spectre of executive stress is not only taking on critical dimensions for companies in developing countries (in terms of mental well being and job satisfaction) but that its incidence is worrying, especially in newly industrialized Japan. The pressures on managers to perform in a climate of rapid sociological, technological, and economic change in emerging countries such as Brazil, Nigeria, Egypt, and Singapore, as well as Japan, are beginning to produce negative effects. Executives in all five countries show a higher incidence of mental stress symptoms and job dissatisfaction than their counterparts from other highly industrialized countries surveyed, e.g., the United States, Sweden, and West Germany.     

美国药品淘汰机制对我国药品淘汰管理的启示

目的:通过了解美国的药品淘汰机制,为完善我国的药品淘汰管理提供一些建议。方法:分析比较美国的药品淘汰制度。结果和结论:我国的药品监督管理部门有必要进一步明确药品淘汰的概念与内涵,进一步完善药品淘汰制度,保证疗效不确、不良反应大或者其他原因危害公众健康的药品及时从市场撤出,包括那些危害大于益处的药品。     

美国地方政府治理体制的研究与借鉴

美国经过200多年的发展,形成了较为完善的行政管理体制,美国地方政府治理体制的特点主要体现在如何界定联邦政府与地方政府之间的权力关系,如何设立分工合作、独立运行的行政执行系统两个方面。对完善我国当前的地方政府治理体制有重要的借鉴作用,要研究符合我国国情的中央政府与地方政府之间的权力关系、研究构建新型的行政执行体系、适当缩小省级政府的规模、适度减少行政层级,从而构建符合我国国情的地方政府治理体制。     

The impact of liquidity on inflation-linked bonds: A hypothetical indexed bonds approach

Sovereigns mainly issue inflation-linked bonds (ILB) in order to save money. More than 15 years’ experience with this financial instrument in the United States has led to the conclusion that these bonds are characterized by low liquidity issues. Recently, various papers have started to analyze the impact of liquidity on ILB yields. This paper develops a new strategy for estimating the liquidity premium based on Campbell and Shiller's (1996) hypothetical ILB yields. We find significant effects of ILB-specific liquidity measures for the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada. Based on these findings, we derive the liquidity premium in ILB yields, liquidity-adjusted estimates for the break-even inflation rate and the inflation risk premium. In the United States, for instance, the average of the liquidity premium is 0.56%-points, and the average liquidity-adjusted break-even inflation rate and inflation risk premium amount to 2.67%-points and 0.22%-points, respectively.     

Liquefied Natural Gas: Redefining Nature,Restructuring Geopolitics,Returning to the Periphery?

The liquefied natural gas (LNG) industry began as a means of making use of natural gas resources in socially remote regions and of natural gas associated with oil production. Natural gas was transformed from a waste product into LNG that could be moved thousands of miles to market, redefining “waste” as a valuable raw material. As the newest large-scale LNG exporter, the United States entered the LNG industry based on another redefinition of nature: the extraction of natural gas previously economically and technologically inaccessible in shale formations. Hydraulic fracturing and new drilling technologies have created reserves of natural gas that are driving down prices with excess production and provoking a search for new markets via LNG exports. Liquefied natural gas is reshaping economies, communities, industries, and ecosystems in the United States and in other parts of the world. This article analyzes the role of the LNG industry with a particular focus on the economic and geopolitical consequences for the United States. The United States is returning to its historical role of energy exporter. Some view the return to this role as an economic and geopolitical boon that will enhance the U.S. economy and the nation’s global standing. A contrasting interpretation sees the United States sliding into the extractive periphery, serving the energy demands of a growing China, much like the United States once did for Europe and especially Great Britain. This view condemns what it views as the exploitation of U.S. natural resources to meet China’s energy needs while leaving large areas of the United States with depleted resources, damaged ecosystems, and disrupted communities.     

中美经营性道路运输比较研究

从服务性质、服务对象及辅助性标准等三方面对中美两国经营性与非经营性道路运输的划分标准进行了比较,发现两国都经历了从客观性标准到主观性标准的转变,但在服务对象要件上存在一定的差异;美国存在着辅助性标准,我国则没有。