Tomorrow’s Hospitality Leaders of America: Their Willingness to Accept a Future Expatriate Assignment

Abstract

Previous research has shown that sending managers on international assignments is accompanied by both a high chance of failure and substantial investment in training and preparation. One strategy to reduce failures is to identify and recruit potential managers who are more willing in the future to accept an expatriate assignment in the first place. This study focused on students currently enrolled in hospitality management programs in the United States, as they represent the future leaders of the hospitality industry. The study investigated potential demographic variables, personality aspects, and background experiences to determine whether any were significantly associated with an increased willingness among students to accept an expatriate position when they join the industry in the future. A survey of students enrolled in 15 hospitality management programs in the United States yielded 819 responses that showed strong support for variables measuring self-ratings for openness, perceptions for learning opportunities associated with the expatriate assignment, and foreign travel. Implications for international hospitality companies as well as future research in this area are provided.

Keywords:

• willingness to expatriate
• international assignments
• expatriate positions
• hospitality students
• future hospitality leaders