“Migratory Bird” Local Managers: English Proficiency, Social Identification, and Early Turnover

ABSTRACT Local managers with high proficiency in English are valuable resources for foreign subsidiaries of multinational enterprises, as they help mitigate language barriers between expatriate and local managers. However, such linguistically competent local managers often leave foreign subsidiaries within the first few years of employment. This study investigates why early turnover occurs among these local managers. A questionnaire survey is conducted in Japan, where language barriers are salient due to the limited pool of English‐proficient local managers. Probit models are employed to test hypotheses derived from social identity theory and the embeddedness perspective. The results demonstrate that English proficiency facilitates early turnover, whereas communicative competence, defined as the ability to effectively conduct context‐specific communication, mitigates it. In addition, local managers who feel closer to expatriate managers than to local colleagues are more likely to leave the foreign subsidiary within a short period. Furthermore, this study reveals a significant three‐way interaction among these three factors, indicating that early turnover is more likely when local managers feel closer to expatriate managers and exhibit high levels of both English proficiency and communicative competence. This study provides a theoretical explanation for talent drain in the context of language barriers. It argues that weak and temporary social connections with expatriate managers, combined with the relatively low cost of leaving the subsidiary, increase the likelihood of early turnover among these managers.