Performance appraisal mainly encompasses the assessment process of the employees’ performance in work in terms of its requirements and looking for ways to improve their performance. Expatriate performance assessment aims at improving the employees’ involvement, work satisfaction, and personal development in the organization (McNulty & Selmer, 2017). It requires an orderly manner for evaluation by comparing various job-related aspects against individual traits. The periodic assessment helps managers to have a better judgment of the skills of their employees with the aim of training and to improve their abilities. The five variables that need to be addressed in the expatriate performance management system are compensation package, task and roles, cultural adjustment, headquarters ‘ support, and host environment.
These factors are crucial and should be considered in the appraisal process of the employees. The compensation package is one of the essential elements determining the performance of the expatriates. A well-compensation program from the organization enhances happiness and productivity among the expatriates (Kim et al., 2016). It is essential in driving the motivation and removing the dissatisfaction that they may encounter at workplaces. Money is one of the most vital motivators for any expatriate. People tend to give their best when assigned to a complicated and challenging task compared to an easier task. The nature of the job an emigrant is assigned has a significant influence on his performance. The headquarters ‘ office is essential in offering the desired support to the worker sent overseas. It should help provide the moral support required to motivate their emigrant workers in different cultural settings.
The environment that the expatriate is working in influences their performance. A hostile environment is likely to dampen the productivity of the expatriate as they even have a scare of losing their lives (Nadeem & Mumtaz, 2018). A war-torn country will discourage foreign workers from working in such war-torn countries and thus reduce their output. An environment that encourages the safety of the personnel will enhance productivity. The cultural adjustment entails how the expatriate will quickly adapt and fit in the alien culture (Wang & Varma, 2017). The expatriates need to be sensitive to the culture of the people in their working environment. Emigrant workers should cope with the people’s language in their immediate surroundings and develop a positive attitude. They should demonstrate maturity when relating to the members of the society they are working in.
Many challenges may be encountered when doing the performance assessment for the expatriates. The person who also conducts the appraisal may be biased and thus not give accurate information concerning the status of the expatriate (Molla, 2020). There may be a halo effect where the raters tend to rate one depending on the behavior or error of central tendency where all the employees rated at a midpoint. The expatriate may end up developing the feeling evaluation is not done on a fair basis. The time distance and geographical separation between the expatriate and the organization may make it difficult to conduct regular assessments of their worker (Rao & Ravindranath, 2017). This may make it easier to transfer unreliable data across boundaries that may not reflect the actual status within the organization. The frequency to conduct the appraisal may not often be and thus making to improve the output of the expatriate. There may be a hostile environment that may hinder the effective conduction of assessment. The cultural adjustment that the expatriate is facing may bring a different judgment of the evaluator towards the foreign worker.
References
Kim, K., Halliday, C. S., Zhao, Y., Wang, C., & Von Glinow, M. A. (2016). Rewarding self-initiated expatriates: A Skills-based approach. Thunderbird International Business Review, 60(1), 89–104. Web.
McNulty, Y., & Selmer, J. (Eds.). (2017). Research handbook of expatriates. Edward Elgar Publishing (22-30).
Molla, Y. (2020). Assessment of performance appraisal practices and challenges: The case of commercial bank of ethiopia, north addis ababa district city branch (Doctoral dissertation, St. Mary’s university). Web.
Nadeem, S., & Mumtaz, S. (2018). Expatriates adjustment through transformation of social identity of Chinese expatriates working in Pakistan. Cross-Cultural & Strategic Management, 25(4), 642–669. Web.
Rao, G., & Ravindranath, C. (2017). NO:2545. Performance management: A need and indeed of organizational goals. Web.
Wang, C.-H., & Varma, A. (2017). Cultural distance and expatriate failure rates: The moderating role of expatriate management practices. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 30(15), 2211–2230. Web.