A business economist since 2020, Adrien Saleta began his career in the Swiss watch industry with the Swatch Group in the production and quality department. He is currently employed by Samsung Electronics in Zurich, where he is in charge of quality issues for the Field Force in the Retail Marketing department.
In October 2025, he submitted his Executive Doctorate of Business Administration (EDBA), on the theme “Levers of attractiveness for diaspora biculturals to telework with companies in their country of origin: the case of Bosnia-Herzegovina”, under the supervision of Professor Frédéric Prévot, Professor at KEDGE Marseille (France).
Thesis Direction
Prof Prévot Frédéric
Thesis Title
Factors attracting bicultural individuals from the diaspora to telework with companies in their country of origin: the case of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Abstract
Companies operate in a highly competitive global market in the digital age.
Training staff comes at a cost, as does recruitment. What could be better than having staff who are already trained and meet the company’s expectations, and who are quickly available and operational?
In developing countries prone to political instability, and faced with emigration and a declining workforce, companies now aim to contain their activities, maintain their workforce, and find new human resources. Talent from the diaspora can be an important economic lever to boost their activities.
Talent is defined here as a workforce characterized by its scarcity, having emigrated and benefiting from additional skills, foreign languages, superior knowledge, and a good international professional network.
Talent is therefore potentially useful for companies that want to expand locally or internationally. And why not find it in the diaspora*?
The aim of our study is to observe, from the perspective of companies in Bosnia and Herzegovina, how well they are prepared to effectively attract professionals from the diaspora to cooperate with them. This raises two questions:
1) How can companies in the country of origin (COO) attract professional partners from the diaspora?
2) Can companies offer other ways of collaborating with the diaspora?
The existing literature mainly addresses the diaspora from an anthropological or entrepreneurial perspective, but there is relatively little literature on human resource management with professionals from the diaspora.
This thesis makes various contributions to academic knowledge, such as the motivation of the diaspora to cooperate professionally and voluntarily in promoting and raising the profile of their country of origin. In terms of human resource management, companies have few structures in place for identifying, selecting, and recruiting talent. The influence of cultural diversity in professional relationships, as well as administrative and fiscal barriers, are also important points to consider.
Practical contributions are also reported for the three stakeholders identified in this study: diaspora professionals, companies, and public policy. Through its interest in cooperation, the diaspora can communicate about the country and companies through promotional activities and non-economic transfers. Companies can conduct marketing campaigns to communicate about their activities through professional platforms and professional events. Public policy can improve local infrastructure, help set up coworking offices, and improve the quality of and access to information and communication technologies. Conduct campaigns to attract families, as French regions have done, to revitalize towns and villages, such as assistance with home ownership, settlement packages including school enrollment, moving, etc., or discounts on public transportation.
The methodology adopted here is abductive, with a mix of qualitative and quantitative research. As we have two main stakeholders, and for the purposes of this thesis, A questionnaire was administered to professionals in the diaspora, and a ten-question interview guide was used to interview twelve business decision-makers in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The results show that the diaspora is mainly interested in cooperating with companies in their country of origin and highlight the importance of flexible working. Companies show that they are keen to work with these professionals. The working environment in companies and with professionals in the diaspora is modern and flexible. The type of employment contract is mainly freelance, as it is limited by administrative and tax barriers.
*The diaspora is defined as a group of members of a community, people, or country that has dispersed throughout the world.