Female expatriates' motivations and challenges: the case of oil and gas

Lists

Shortland, Susan (2018) Female expatriates' motivations and challenges: the case of oil and gas. Gender in Management: An International Journal, 33 (1). pp. 50-65. ISSN 1754-2413

[thumbnail of Female expatriates accepted.pdf]

Preview

PDF
Female expatriates accepted.pdf - Accepted Version
Download (432kB) | Preview

Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1108/GM-02-2017-0021

Abstract

Purpose
This case study is designed as a teaching exercise and to highlight key issues for organisations expatriating women within masculine industry sectors and/or into challenging international environments.
Design/methodology/approach
This case study draws together key published findings relating to women’s expatriation in the oil and gas exploration and production sector. It demonstrates a triangulated research design, drawing upon organisational policy from two oil and gas firms, semi-structured interviews with 14 Human Resource professionals and 26 female expatriates, as well as from 71 female assignees’ questionnaire responses.
Findings
Career and financial drivers underpin women’s motivations for accepting organisationally-assigned expatriation. Women expatriates engage in satisficing and career compromise. The main challenges women face in masculine industries include: access to expatriate roles due to limited female networks; family concerns; managing working time and work-life balance; and coping with loneliness.
Research limitations/implications
The oil and gas case findings are based on a cross-sectional research design. The majority of female expatriates undertook long-term assignments; limited numbers engaged in flexpatriation.
Practical implications
While organisational policy supporting expatriation does not usually address gendered expatriate concerns specifically, inclusion of interventions that are identified by women as helpful to their expatriate participation can assist in increasing expatriate gender diversity.
Originality/value
This oil and gas research case brings together and presents a summary of the motivations, problems and challenges faced by women in male-dominated expatriate environments, together with relevant theoretical approaches and organisational interventions to help us understand and increase expatriate gender diversity.

Item Type:	Article
Identifier:	10.1108/GM-02-2017-0021
Keywords:	Gender; expatriates; careers; reward; networking; dual career couples
Subjects:	Business and finance > Business and management Business and finance
Depositing User:	Susan Shortland
Date Deposited:	20 Oct 2017 10:29
Last Modified:	06 Feb 2024 15:54
URI:	https://repository.uwl.ac.uk/id/eprint/4052

Downloads

Downloads per month over past year

Actions (login required)

View Item

References

References
Adler, N.J. (1984), “Expecting international success: female managers overseas”, Columbia Journal of World Business, Vol. 19 No. 3, pp. 79-85.

Air Inc. (2016), 2016 Mobility Outlook Survey, Air Inc., Cambridge, MA.

Altman, Y. and Shortland, S. (2008), “Women and international assignments: taking stock – a 25 year review”, Human Resource Management, Vol. 47 No. 2, pp. 199-216.

Andersen, T. and Scheuer, S. (2004), “Attitudes toward foreign assignments among Danish economists”, Thunderbird International Business Review, Vol. 46 No. 6, pp. 725-741.

Anker, R. (2001), “Theories of occupational segregation by sex: an overview”, in Loutfi, M.F. (Ed.), Women, Gender and Work: What is Equality and How Do We Get There?, International Labour Organization, Geneva, pp. 129-155.

Author Anonymised

Bonache, J. (2005), “Job satisfaction among expatriates, repatriates and domestic employees: the perceived impact of international assignments on work-related variables”, Personnel Review, Vol. 34 No. 1, pp. 110-124.

Brookfield (2014), Global Relocation Trends: 2014 Survey Report, Brookfield Global Relocation Services, Chicago, IL.

Brookfield (2016), Global Mobility Trends Survey, Brookfield Global Relocation Services, Chicago, IL.

Caligiuri, P. and Lazarova, M. (2002), “A model for the influence of social interaction and social support on female expatriates’ cross-cultural adjustment”, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 13 No. 5, pp. 761-772.

Catalyst (2003), “Women in leadership: comparing European and U.S. women executives”, available at: http://lenus.ie/hse/bitstream/10147/42684/1/2067.pdf (accessed 4 April 2013).

Corby, S. and Stanworth, C. (2009), “A price worth paying? Women and work – choice, constraint or satisficing”, Equal Opportunities International, Vol. 28 No. 2, pp. 162-178.

Crompton, R. (1999), “The decline of the male breadwinner: explanations and interpretations”, in Crompton, R. (Ed.), Restructuring Gender Relations and Employment: The Decline of the Male Breadwinner, Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp. 1-25.

Crompton, R. and Harris, F. (1998a), “Explaining women’s employment patterns: ‘orientations to work’ revisited”, British Journal of Sociology, Vol. 49 No. 1, pp, 118-136.

Crompton, R. and Harris, F. (1998b), “Gender relations and employment: the impact of occupation”, Work, Employment & Society, Vol. 12 No. 2, pp. 297-315.

Demel, B. and Mayrhofer, W. (2010), “Frequent business travellers across Europe: career aspirations and implications”, Thunderbird International Business Review, Vol. 52 No. 4, pp. 301-311.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (2013), “The business case for equality and diversity”, available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-business-innovation-skills (accessed 3 February 2017).

Doherty, N., Dickmann, M. and Mills, T. (2011), “Exploring the motives of company-backed and self-initiated expatriates”, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 22 No. 3, pp. 595-611.

Festing, M., Budhwar, P.S., Cascio, W., Dowling, P.J. and Scullion H. (2013), “Current issues in international HRM: alternative forms of assignments, careers and talent management in a global context”, Zeitschrift für Personalforschung, Vol. 27 No. 3, pp. 161-166.

Fischlmayr, I.C. and Kollinger, I. (2010), “Work-life balance – a neglected issue among Austrian female expatriates”, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 21 No. 4, pp. 455-487.

Gordon, L. (2008), “The Shell ladies project: making and remaking home”, in Coles, A. and Fechter, A.-M. (Eds.), Gender and Family among Transnational Professionals, Routledge, London, pp. 21-39.

Harris, H. (2002), “Think international manager, think male: why are women not selected for international management assignments?”, Thunderbird International Business Review, Vol. 44 No. 2, pp. 175-203.

Harris, H. (2004), “Global careers. Work-life issues and the adjustment of women international managers”, Journal of Management Development, Vol. 23 No. 9, pp. 818-832.

Harvey, M. (1997), “Dual-career expatriates: expectations, adjustment and satisfaction with international relocation”, Journal of International Business Studies, Vol. 28 No. 3, pp. 627-658.

Harvey, M. (1998), “Dual career couples during international relocation: the trailing spouse”, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 9 No. 2, pp. 309-331.

Harvey, M. and Wiese, D. (1998), “The dual-career couple: female expatriates and male trailing spouses”, Thunderbird International Business Review, Vol. 40 No. 4, pp. 359-388.

Haslberger, A. and Brewster, C. (2009), “Capital gains: expatriate adjustment and the psychological contract in international careers”, Human Resource Management, Vol. 48 No. 3, pp. 379-397.

Hearn, J., Jyrkinen, M., Piekkari, R. and Oinonen, E. (2008), ““Women home and away”: transnational managerial work and gender relations”, Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 83 No. 1, pp. 41-54.

Hutchings, K., Metcalfe, B.D. and Cooper, B.K. (2010), “Exploring Arab Middle Eastern women’s perceptions of barriers to, and facilitators of, international management opportunities”, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 21 No. 1, pp. 61-83.

Kroeck, K.G. and Von Glinow, M.A. (2015), “Total rewards in the international context”, in Harzing, A.-W. and Pinnington, A.H.(Eds.), International Human Resource Management, Sage, London, pp. 429-467.

Lauring, J. and Selmer, J. (2009), “Expatriate compound living: an ethnographic field study”, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 20 No. 7, pp. 1451-1467.

Linehan, M. and Scullion, H. (2001), “Challenges for female international managers: evidence from Europe”, Journal of Managerial Psychology, Vol. 16 No. 3, pp. 215-228.

Linehan, M., Scullion, H. and Walsh, J.S. (2001), “Barriers to women’s participation in international management”, European Business Review, Vol. 13 No. 1, pp. 10-18.

Linehan, M. and Walsh. J.S. (1999), “Senior female international managers: breaking the glass border”, Women in Management Review, Vol. 14 No. 7, pp. 264-272.

Mainiero, L.A. and Sullivan, S.E. (2005), “Kaleidoscope careers: an alternate explanation for the “opt-out” revolution”, Academy of Management Executive, Vol. 19 No. 1, pp. 106-123.

Mäkelä, L. and Suutari, V. (2011), “Coping with work-family conflicts in the global career context”, Thunderbird International Business Review, Vol. 53 No. 3, pp. 365-375.

Markus, U. (2015), Oil and Gas: The Business and Politics of Energy, Palgrave, London.

Mayerhofer, H., Hartmann, L.C. and Herbert, A. (2004), “Career management issues for flexpatriate international staff”, Thunderbird International Business Review, Vol. 46 No. 6, pp. 647-666.

Mayerhofer, H., Müller, B. and Schmidt, A. (2010), “Implications of flexpatriates’ lifestyles on HRM practices”, Management Revue, Vol. 21 No. 2, pp. 155-173.

McDonnell, A., Collings, D.G., Mellahi, K. and Schuler, R. (2017), “Talent management: a systematic review and future prospects”, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 11 No. 1, pp. 86-128.

McNulty, Y. (2014), “Modern expatriation through the lens of global careers, psychological
contracts, and individual return on investment”, Global Business and Organizational Excellence, Vol. 33 No. 3, pp. 6-22.

Mendenhall, M.E. and Stahl, G.K. (2000), “Expatriate training and development: where do we go from here?”, Human Resource Management, Vol. 39 No. 2/3, pp. 251-266.

Meyskens, M., Von Glinow, M.A., Werther, W.B. and Clarke, L. (2009), “The paradox of international talent: alternative forms of international assignments”, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 20 No. 6, pp. 1439-1450.

Moore, M.J. (2002), “Same ticket, different trip: supporting dual-career couples on global assignments”, Women in Management Review, Vol. 17 No. 2, pp. 61-67.

ORC Worldwide (2007), 2006 Worldwide Survey of International Assignment Policies and Practices, ORC Worldwide, New York, NY.

Orser, B. and Leck, J. (2010), “Gender influences on career success outcomes”, Gender in Management: An International Journal, Vol. 25 No. 5, pp. 386-407.

Paik, Y. and Vance, C.M. (2002), “Evidence of back-home selection bias against US female expatriates”, Women in Management Review, Vol. 17 No. 2, pp. 68-79.

Permits Foundation (2012), International Mobility and Dual Career Survey of International Employers, Permits Foundation, The Hague.

Punnett, B.J., Crocker, O. and Stevens, M.A. (1992), “The challenge for women expatriates and spouses: some empirical evidence”, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 3 No. 3, pp. 585-592.

Richardson, J., McKenna, S. and Dickie, C. (2014), ““They always look at you a bit oddly”: women developing career capital through international mobility in the mining industry”, in Hutchings K. and Michailova, S. (Eds.), Research Handbook on Women in International Management, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham, pp. 367-394.

Rosen, S. (1986), “The theory of equalizing differences”, in Ashenfelter O. and Layard, R. (Eds.), Handbook of Labor Economics, Volume 1, Elsevier Science Publishers B.V., Amsterdam, pp. 641-692.

Selmer J. and Leung, A.S.M. (2003a), “Provision and adequacy of corporate support to male expatriate spouses: an exploratory study”, Personnel Review, Vol. 32 No. 1, pp. 9-21.

Selmer, J. and Leung, A.S.M. (2003b), “Personal characteristics of female vs male business expatriates”, International Journal of Cross Cultural Management, Vol. 3 No. 2, pp. 195-212.

Shortland, S. (2009), “Gender diversity in expatriation: evaluating theoretical perspectives”, Gender in Management, Vol. 24 No. 5, pp. 365-386.

Shortland, S. and Altman, Y. (2011), “What do we really know about corporate career women expatriates?”, European Journal of International Management, Vol. 5 No. 3, pp. 209-234.

Shortland, S. and Cummins, S. (2007), “Work-life balance: expatriates reflect the international dimension”, Global Business and Organizational Excellence, Vol. 26 No. 6, pp. 28-42.

Silbiger, A. and Pines, A.M. (2014), “Expatriate stress and burnout”, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 25 No. 8, pp. 1170-1183.

Suutari, V., Tornikoski, C. and Mäkelä, L. (2012), “Career decision making of global careerists”, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 23 No. 16, pp. 3455-3478.

Tharenou, P. (2008), “Disruptive decisions to leave home: gender and family differences in expatriation choices”, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Vol. 105 No. 2, pp. 183-200.

Tung, R.L. (2004), “Female expatriates: the model global manager?”, Organizational Dynamics, Vol. 33 No. 3, pp. 243-253.

Tzeng, R. (2006), “Gender issues and family concerns for women with international careers: female expatriates in Western multinational corporations in Taiwan”, Women in Management Review, Vol. 21 No. 5, pp. 376-392.

Varma, A. and Stroh, L.K. (2001), “Different perspectives on selection for international assignments: the impact of LMX and gender”, Cross Cultural Management, Vol. 8 No. 3/4, 85-97.

Verma, R. (2008), “At work and play in the ‘fishbowl’: gender relations and social reproduction among development expatriates in Madagascar”, in Coles, A. and Fechter, A.-M. (Eds.), Gender and Family among Transnational Professionals, Routledge, London, pp. 171-191.

Welch, D.E., Welch, L.S. and Worm, V. (2007), “The international business traveller: a neglected but strategic human resource”, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 18 No. 2, pp. 173-183.

Tools

CORE (COnnecting REpositories)

The University of West London

Female expatriates' motivations and challenges: the case of oil and gas

Abstract

Downloads

Actions (login required)

Menu