More than a Feeling: Intuitive Decision Making in Global Careers

The aim of this interpretivist research study was to explore how senior managers in a multinational organisation make decisions about mobility opportunities in their global careers. Such decisions differ from strategic decisions in that they impact on both the working and personal lives of the decision maker and their families. This study is novel in that it explores the experiences of 38 senior managers who describe regularly using intuition, as well as facts to guide their global career decisions. Through the analysis of data from semi-structured interviews, the findings reveal some hitherto unidentified internal and external factors that influence how and when intuition and facts are used. The decision maker’s identity was found to be of key significance. Previous experience of global mobility was also found to be influential, not only the lived experience of the decision maker but also the vicarious experiences of external stakeholders (such as family, colleagues). Trust of external stakeholders’ and their intuition also emerged as important. Thus, such global career decisions are a complex amalgamation of internal and external factors that are both individual and collective in nature. This article offers a theoretical contribution to the fields of decision making and global careers. We also outline the practical relevance of the findings in terms of supporting global careers.