Foreign assignments pose a variety of challenges.

Moving to another country, or any change of location, presents significant challenges. How a person handles the stress of change and brings balance and meaning to their life is the principal predictor of how they will adjust to a different country, culture, and business environment.

Why the FAE?

Corporations requested SRI to develop a self-scored, self-assessment instrument for employees and spouses (or partners) as well as unaccompanied employees. Companies wanted a valid and reliable instrument that could stand-alone and be administered by the company. The purpose of the instrument is to direct the individual and couple towards a well-informed decision about their readiness for an international assignment given the factors and conditions operating in their lives.

The FAE is a structured, self-reporting guide that directs people to think through the critical areas affecting their ability to live and work in another country. The FAE enables the reader to investigate their expectations in relation to what they want and need to create a new, meaningful life-style in another country.

The FAE has a number of objectives.

The FAE focuses on personal and family expectations and concerns: children and parents, life-styles and activities, friendships and associations, careers, health, finances, entertainment, goals, cross-cultural adjustment and foreign business environment. The FAE directs the employee and spouse, (or partner) and unaccompanied employee to weigh the pros and cons, their reasons for going and reasons for staying, where they are now and where they wish to be later in their life.

Expatriate Research has yielded a number of important findings.

The foundation of the FAE is the formal research studies SRI has conducted over the past eighteen years to identify the key international competencies, which have been shown to lead to successful cross-cultural adjustment and job performance.

How corporations use the FAE.

• To identify and develop global talent.

• To build a pool of pre-screened international candidates.

• To assist employees and spouses (partners) and unaccompanied status employees to arrive at a well-informed self-selection decision.

• To identify hi-potential managers for future international assignment.

Using the FAE decreases the risks and costs of sending unqualified personnel.

Southwestern Bell Corporation International (SBCI)

SBCI gave the FAE to two hundred and fifty (250) managers and their spouses who had indicated to SBCI a desire to take a foreign assignment. After working through the FAE, one hundred and ninety managers (190) reversed their decision, while sixty managers (60) made the decision to participate in the SBCI International Candidate Pool. SBCI has since made the FAE available to its 16,000 managers.

Barry D. Kozloff
SRI Selection Research International, Inc.
535 Donne Ave
St. Louis, Missouri
63130-3918 USA
Tel: (314) 314-721-4994
Fax: On Request