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- Soft skills in expatriationPublication . Silva, Susana; Martins, Dora; Silva, CândidaContemporary competitiveness and globalisation drives organisations to explore new markets, and provide themselves with distinctive features and value added. Additionally, the literature underlines the importance of this global environment impact the processes of managing Human resources in organisations. Therefore, the adequacy of human resources is imperative in the strategy of organisations. This study aims to understand the importance of the international assignment, to understand the soft skills most valued by recruiters and how is their evaluation. To successfully address these aims we conducted a qualitative study. The data collection method used was semi-structured interview and were interviewed ten recruiters of expatriates. Data were analysed according to content analysis procedures The results suggest that soft skills are important features in the international assignment, since that act on factors that influence the success of the assignment. The most important skills are interpersonal relationships, teamwork, communication, adaptability and tolerance to ambiguity. We discuss the main practical and theoretical implications, and offer some suggestions for further studies.
- Linking career success motives and career boundaries to repatriates’ turnover intentions: a case studyPublication . Gaio Santos, Gina; Martins, DoraThis study's goal is to understand...
- Intercultural knowledge managementPublication . Martins, Dora; Silva, Susana; Silva, CândidaThe scope of intercultural knowledge is the study of the differences between the national and foreign cultures. This paper's main objectives are to understand how employees assigned internationally perceive the cultural differences they are faced with, the factors which influence intercultural adjustment during an international assignment and with what type of support they are provided in their home companies. Admittedly, cultural differences between home and host countries could negatively impact the success of international assignments inasmuch as the former may create a set of barriers which expatriates need to overcome. Thus, this study also examines how organisations could develop their employees' cross-cultural competencies by means of their intercultural knowledge management practices. A total of fortyfive semi-structured interviews with Portuguese international assignees (26 in Angola; 19 in United Arab Emirates), who were immersed in the host country culture for at least six months, allowed for a qualitative approach to data collection. Results from collected data suggest the process of intercultural adaptation of Portuguese assignees to the Angolan and United Arab Emirates context is not standard. On the one hand, the results emphasize the fact that there are (1) contextual factors; (2) idiosyncratic factors and; (3) factors of an organisational nature. These are the main types of factors which help explaining why international assignees find intercultural adjustment difficult. On the other hand, the study suggests that organisations should take heed of intercultural knowledge management practices which facilitate their future international assignees' intercultural adjustment. Most assignees consider the organisational support insufficient. We discuss theoretical and practical implications of the intercultural management process, and explore avenues for future research.