The Pros And Cons Of Repatriation

Phase 4 of Repatriation: Readjustment
During the readjustment phase, those who returned home from a long stint abroad often face a reverse culture shock. Similar to culture shock experienced upon arrival in the foreign country the expatriate resided in, repatriates often find themselves feeling frustrated, bored, and restless. The repatriates may feel isolated and depressed, and may realize changes to their goals and attitudes when compared to how they felt before they went abroad (USAC n.d.). Companies must prepare to accommodate repatriates upon arrival, or face the chance of losing their employees.
Company support of repatriates upon their return home is vital to the employees’ satisfaction. Repatriates greeted with a poor repatriation

The article, International worker’s satisfactions with the repatriation process, states that half of the repatriates returning home from abroad will consider leaving the company when greeted with a poor repatriation process. Of those who consider leaving, 10%-25% would leave within the first year and almost 30% would leave within two years (Sanchez & Vidal 2008). The study found that companies who provide training after repatriation and set clear expectations for the repatriation process are more likely to retain employees.
Conclusion
Repatriation is an important stage of the international assignment. Repatriated employees may encounter organizational, cultural, or physiological difficulties that exacerbate the complication of the re-entry. MNCs need to develop a holistic understanding of the four phases of repatriation and the challenges that accompany each phase. By recognizing the difficulty of repatriation, MNCs would be able to carefully manage and retain repatriates. Repatriation is a process that should not be neglected. Rather, MNCs must leverage the knowledge gained in these assignments to ensure a successful