Using panel data from Chinese A-share listed companies from 2015 to 2019, this paper empirically examines the impact of executives’ overseas background on corporate internationalization performance in multinational companies and explores the moderating role of incentive mechanisms in this process. Stepwise regression analysis based on a random effects model indicates that executives with overseas education backgrounds have a significant positive impact on the internationalization performance of multinational companies, while executives with overseas work backgrounds have a significant negative impact. This phenomenon supports the “social categorization theory”. Salary incentives positively moderate the relationship between executives’ overseas education backgrounds and corporate internationalization performance, promoting the positive impact of executives’ overseas education backgrounds on corporate internationalization performance. Equity incentives negatively moderate the relationship between executives’ overseas work backgrounds and corporate internationalization performance, mitigating the negative impact of executives’ overseas work backgrounds on corporate internationalization performance. The research findings provide valuable insights for multinational companies in developing strategies for attracting talents with overseas backgrounds.