CULTURAL ADAPTATION POLICIES AND PRACTICES IN INTERNATIONAL MOBILITY CYCLES

A DIALOGUE WITH ACTORS INVOLVED IN THE PROCESS

Abstract

In contemporary times, cultural adaptation has taken on a strategic role in the development of people and organizations. However, there is not always an adequate view of how this adaptation can be implemented in an international context. Knowing this, this study aimed to understand how organizational policies and practices focused on cultural adaptation have been behaving, adopted in the three stages of international professional mobility – preparation, permanence and return –, based on the perceptions and experiences of a group formed by independent experts in the area of ​​Mobility and executives. In a qualitative approach, 13 professionals identified through the Snowball technique were interviewed. Data analysis demonstrated that there is an understanding that cultural adaptation policies and practices are limited to just one stage of mobility, failing to enhance the performance of the organizational actors involved in the international assignment. The article creates different analytical potentials and paves the way for new investigations in the field of studies in International Human Resource Management.