MOBILITY Magazine - October 2010

Magazine of Worldwide ERC October 2010

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Inside This Month:

Mobility in ChinaIndia's Burgeoning

Workforce5 Ways to the Top

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MOBILITY (ISSN 0195-8194) is published monthly by Worldwide ERC, 4401 WilsonBoulevard, Suite 510, Arlington, VA 22203, +1 703 842 3400. MOBILITY examines keyissues affecting the global mobility workforce for the benefit of employers and firms or individuals providing specific services to relocated employees and their families. The opinions expressed in MOBILITY are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Worldwide ERC. MOBILITY is printed in the United States of America.Periodical postage paid at Arlington, VA, and additional mailing offices. Worldwide ERCmembers receive one annual subscription with their membership dues. Subscriptions are available to both members and non-members at $48 each per year. Copyright byWorldwide ERC. All rights reserved. Neither all nor part of the contents published hereinmay be reproduced in any form without written permission of Worldwide ERC.

POSTMASTER: send address changes to MOBILITY, Worldwide ERC , 4401 WilsonBoulevard, Suite 510, Arlington, VA 22203

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

President

MICHAEL (MIKE) C. WASHBOURN, SCRP, GMS, Pfizer Inc., Peapack, NJ

Vice President

SUSAN SCHNEIDER, SCRP, GMS, Plus Relocation Services, Inc., Minneapolis, MN

Secretary/Treasurer

PAMELA (PAM) J. OCONNOR, SCRP, Leading Real Estate Companies of the World, Chicago, IL

Chairman, Board of Directors

AL BLUMENBERG, SCRP, NEI Global Relocation, Omaha, NE

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

CORI L. BEAUDET, SCRP, SGMS, SC JohnsonA Family Company, Racine, WI

LISA CARAVELLA, CRP, Bank of America, Plano, TX

JAY K. DELICH, SCRP, SRA, IFA, Arizona Appraisal Team, LLC, Scottsdale, AZ

MARIO FERRARO, International SOS Pte Ltd., SINGAPORE

MARK GIORGINI, GMS, China Vanke Co. Ltd., Shenzhen, CHINA

WILLIAM (BILL) GRAEBEL, SGMS, Graebel Relocation Services Worldwide, Aurora, CO

JOHNNY H. HAINES, SCRP, SGMS, Deloitte, Hermitage, TN

LARS LYKKE IVERSEN, Santa Fe Relocation Services, Hong Kong, CHINA

CHRISTOPHER (CHRIS) JAMES, Bechtel Corporation, Phoenix, AZ

JO LAY, SCRP, SGMS, Coldwell Banker Central Region Relocation, Chicago, IL

EARL LEE, Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services, Scottsdale, AZ

STEPHEN C. MCGARRY, SCRP, WPP, New York, NY

SANTRUPT MISRA, PH.D., Aditya Birla Management Corporation Ltd., Mumbai, INDIA

JOY MORRISON, SCRP, SGMS, PepsiCo, Inc., Purchase, NY

STEVEN A. NORD, Alpharetta, GA

JOHN PFEIFFER, GMS, Mustang Engineering, L.P., Houston, TX

PANDRA RICHIE, SCRP, GMS, Long & Foster Corporate Real Estate Services Division, Chantilly, VA

C. MATTHEW (MATT) SPINOLO, SCRP, SGMS, CARTUS, Memphis, TN

EX-OFFICIO

Chairman, U.S. Advisory Council

AL BLUMENBERG, SCRP, NEI Global Relocation, Omaha, NE

Chairman, Foundation for Workforce Mobility

KEVIN E. RUSSELL, SCRP, PHH Mortgage, Mt. Laurel, NJ

Chairman, Global Advisory Council

SANTRUPT MISRA, PH.D., Aditya Birla Management Corporation Ltd., Mumbai, INDIA

Chairman, Government Relations Council

C. MATTHEW (MATT) SPINOLO, SCRP, SGMS, CARTUS, Memphis, TN

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

PEGGY SMITH, SCRP, SGMS, Worldwide ERC, Arlington, VA

Calendar MOBILITY Vol. 31 No. 10 October 2010

STATEMENT REQUIRED BY THE ACT OF AUGUST 12, 1970; SECTION 3685, TITLE 39, UNITED STATES CODE SHOWINGOWNERSHIP, MANAGEMENT, AND CIRCULATION OF:MOBILITY magazine, publication number 0195-8194, published monthlyby Worldwide ERC (The Employee Relocation Council, ERC), 4401Wilson Boulevard, Suite 510, Arlington, VA 22203, filed on September 2,2010. Number of issues published annually: 12. Annual subscription price:$48. The offices of Worldwide ERC are located at 4401 WilsonBoulevard, Suite 510, Arlington, VA 22203.The name and address of the Vice President & Publisher and ManagingEditor, respectively, are Jerry Holloman and Frank Mauck, 4401 WilsonBoulevard, Suite 510, Arlington, VA 22203.The sole owner is Worldwide ERC, 4401 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 510,Arlington, VA 22203. The tax status of Worldwide ERC has not changedduring the preceding 12 months.Issue date for the circulation data below: August 2010.Average number of copies of each issue during preceding 12 months:A) Total number of copies: 10,994B) Paid and/or requested circulation:1) Paid/requested outside-county mail subscriptions state on Form 3541:9,5142) Paid in-county subscriptions stated on Form 3541: 03) Sales through dealers and carriers, street vendors, counter sales, andother non-USPS paid distribution: 04) Other classes mailed through USPS: 735C) Total paid and/or requested circulation: 10,249D) Free distribution by mail: 1) Outside-county as stated on Form 3541: 02) In-county as stated on Form 3541: 03) Other classes mailed through the USPS: 2004) Distributed outside the mail: 50E) Total free distribution: 250F) Total distribution: 10,499G) Copies not distributed: 495H) Total: 10,994I) Percent paid and/or requested circulation: 97.6 percentNumber copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: A) Total number of copies: 10,557B) Paid and/or requested circulation: 1) Paid/requested outside-county mail subscriptions state on Form 3541:8,9872) Paid in-county subscriptions stated on Form 3541: 03) Sales through dealers and carriers, street vendors, counter sales, andother non-USPS paid distribution: 04) Other classes mailed through USPS: 846C) Total paid and/or requested circulation: 9,833D) Free distribution by mail: 1) Outside-county as stated on Form 3541: 02) In-county as stated on Form 3541: 03) Other classes mailed through the USPS: 2004) Distribution outside the mail: 50E) Total free distribution: 250F) Total distribution: 10,083G) Copies not distributed: 474H) Total: 10,557I) Percent paid and/or requested circulation: 97.5 percentThis statement of ownership will be printed in the October 2010 issue ofthis publication.I certify that the statements made by me above are correct and complete.Jerry HollomanVice President & Publisher

Please refer page 16 for a list of upcoming Worldwide ERC events.

oct_calendar1_khan.qxd 9/17/10 3:39 PM Page 2

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What are the big mobility issuesfor the next few years?

Because of the recent experiencesweve had worldwide with an unfor-giving global economy, theres a ten-dency to think short-term and reac-tionary rather than to develop long-term strategies. One of the ways wellsee this is that more countries arepracticing labor force protection-ism. Countries facing high unem-ployment attempt to preserve jobsfor their own citizens, even at theexpense of the ultimate vitality oftheir economy, so we are seeingincreasing resistance to issuing workpermits and visas for non-residents.Regulators and political optics willslow the growth that mobile talentbrings to a region. Trade is notexpanding as fast as it could, andworkers, firms, and governments arebecoming more insular just when itsmost important to branch out.

The old adage, once burned,twice shy, is apparent in the chang-ing behavior of employees. Thoughinternational assignments and jobtransfers have often been linked tocareer growth, more and more,employees dont want to give upsteadiness and familiarity for theunknown. With concerns abouthousing, pension plans, health care,and other issues attracting moreattention, many do not see thepotential rewards of a job transition,particularly if that movement mighttake them out of the loop in the cor-porate environment.

What should businesses be watching?

There still are a relatively finitenumber of skilled workers, and busi-nesses shouldnt let their guardsdown when it comes to retaining

their talent. Its crit-ical to continue tobuild up and retainones talent baseand to be mindfulthat other compa-nies who are notwilling to makeinvestments in theirworkforce, have, intough times, astrong incentive to take a shortcut bypoaching well-developed employees.

Firms also must keep their eyes onwhat Ill call the environmentalmatrixclimate change, sustainabil-ity, local consumption, and organicproductionand how employees andcommunities are changing their per-ception of this matrix. The next gen-eration of employees and the com-munities that they work in have a dif-ferent level of response to theseexternal issues, and firms will need tovet their position from a values andhiring standpointand then deter-mine how these value-based consid-erations affect their ability to attractand retain employees.

It also is important to watchincreased nationalistic involvement ineconomic activity, particularly in thearea of commoditiesfood, energy,metals, and the like are more subjectto outcomes based on politicalgrounds rather than business issues.Businesses need to be more informedand aware of the political contexts inwhich they operate, in the homecountry and outside of it.

Alsoand this is a huge behavioralsleeperworkers concerns withfuture pension and health care fund-ing are ramping themselves up onthe political and personal agenda.Employees are growing more con-

cerned about the long-term benefitsthat wrap around their careers thanthe careers themselves, somethingthat will deeply and dramaticallyaffect the mobility decisions that theymake today.

Everyone has a take on the housing market in the U.S.whats yours?

Mine is that were at least twoquarters off before the beginning ofrecovery: by the summer of 2011,rather than getting the ambivalentnews of last year, we will start to hearmore consistent positives. This willcome partly from economic recovery,partly from rightsizing of pricing andinventory, and a more realistic per-ception of lenders and borrowers re:ownership.

And the good news?This whole mess of the past three

years is just about over! The financialindustry and housing markets proba-bly have another six months to getthrough the last stages of the majorclean-up; were not digging the holeany deeper and are starting to fill it ina bit. Its a good time to be lookingforward, making investments, andarticulating strategies. Think of it thisway: today we are putting out brushfires after a big forest firenow isthe time to get ready to plant newtrees.

Perceptions

Short-term Thinking vs. Long-term Strategy: An Interview with David Baxter

David Baxter is a leading international economist and executive director of The Urban Futures Instituteandalso holds the title of Worldwide ERC Global Mobility Expert. We recently checked in with him for some coolresponses to some of our burning questions.

perceptions_khan.qxd 9/17/10 3:37 PM Page 2

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Magazine of Worldwide ERC

MOBILITY

MOBILITY/OCTOBER 2010 7

Features

20 Architecture of Strategic TalentManagementBy Dean Foster and Lauren Herring, CRP, SGMS

30 The Global Mobility and TalentManagement Partnership OpportunityBy Scott Sullivan

42 Talent Management Strategy Discussions inAsiaBy Christine Wilson

48 It Never Rains in SeattleBy Ronald Huiskamp, GMS, and Kari Hamilton58 Lending Regulatory Changes and the Effecton Transferees and Your Mobility Policy

By Karen Gerba

64 It All Adds upExpatriate CompensationCollection and Considerations forConsistent Program CompliancyBy Chris Pardo, GMS

70 IsraelMilk, Honey, and Natural GasBy Tsvi Kan-Tor, Amit Acco, and Adam Greenstein

80 Rethinking ROIBy Ellie Sullivan, SCRP, SGMS, and Tim McCarney, GMS

88 The Mobile Workforce: the New Rules of EngagementBy Kathy Sharo

94An Overview of Expatriate Housing in ChinaBy Alex Chua, GMS

104 China Mobility: Understanding thePlaces, Policies, Practices, andPeople for Successful RelocationBy Avrom Goldberg

and Lorraine Jennings

110 Effective Virtual Communicationand Team Meetings with YourChinese Customers and Co-workersBy Sheida Hodge

114 Awakening GiantIndiasBurgeoning WorkforceBy Charlene Solomon

and Sean Dubberke

120 Africa: Land of ExhilaratingContrastsBy Gene Edgerton

and Nancy Ruth

130 Uncovering the Universal Qualities of an Effective ManagerBy Robert F. Burch, SCRP

140 Three Steps to Managing Culture ShockBy Margarita Gokun Silver

147 Strategic PlanningBack to BasicsBy Michelle Sandlin, CRP

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Magazine of Worldwide ERC

MOBILITY

D E P A R T M E N T S

2 CALENDAR

4 PERCEPTIONS Short-term Thinking vs. Long-term Strategy:

An interview with David Baxter

10 AROUND THE WORLDWIDE ERC

12 EXECUTIVE SPOTLIGHT

15 INDUSTRY SPOTLIGHT

15 WORLDWIDE ERC TRENDSPOTTING

18 QUICK TAKES

154 RAC REPORT

156 YP40

157 GLOBILITY

159 MARKETPLACE

159 ADVERTISERS RESOURCE

160 LAST PAGE

MOBILITYS T A F FVice President & PublisherJerry [email protected]

Managing EditorFrank [email protected]

E D I T O R I A L A D V I S O R Y C O M M I T T E E

ChairmanJo Lay, SCRP, SGMS, Coldwell Banker Central Region Relocation, Northbrook, IL

Alex Alpert, Wheaton World Wide Moving, Tucson, AZ

Tamara Bianchi, CRP, Capital Relocation Services, Denver, CO

Robert F. Burch, SCRP, Alexanders Mobility Services, Baltimore, MD

Christopher R. Chalk, CRP, GMS, Graebel Relocation Services Worldwide, Alpharetta, GA

Alex Chua, Newport Real Estate Limited, Shanghai, CHINA

Brenda Darrow-Fuhs, Bank of America, Longmont, CO

Terry Baxter Davis, SCRP, SGMS, Ernst & Young LLP, Cleveland, OH

Tim Denney, Stirling Henry Global Migration, Sydney, AUSTRALIA

Marge A. Dillon, CRP, GMS, Nationstar Mortgage, Lewisville, TX

Sean Dubberke, RW3 LLC, New York, NY

Deborah A. Dull, CRP, GMS, Crown Relocations, Houston, TX

Kari Hamilton, ABODA, Inc., Redmond, WA

Nancy F. Harmann, CRP, GMS, Latter & Blum, Inc., Realtors, New Orleans, LA

Gustavo Higuera, CRP, GMS, Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services, Scottsdale, AZ

Christine E. Holland, GMS, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA

Ronald Huiskamp, GMS, Dwellworks, LLC, Kirkland, WA

Rob Johnson, SCRP, SGMS, Altair Global Relocation, Plano, TX

Tim McCarney, GMS, Weichert Relocation Resources Inc., Norwell, MA

Elizabeth Perelstein, School Choice International, White Plains, NY

Patricia Pollard, CRP, GMS, Coldwell Banker United Realtors, Houston, TX

Michelle Sandlin, CRP, John Daugherty Realtors, Inc., Houston, TX

Stefanie R. Schreck, CRP, GMS, American International Group, New York, NY

Scott T. Sullivan, Brookfield Global Relocation Services, Woodridge, IL

Mara Terrace, Siemens Corporation, Global Shared Services NA, Orlando, FL

Sherrie Tessier, CVS, Woonsocket, RI

Allie Williamson, CRP, OneWorld Relocation Services, Naples, FL

G L O B A L E D I T O R I A L A D V I S O R Y C O M M I T T E E

ChairmanJoy Morrison, CRP, SGMS, PepsiCo, Inc., Purchase, NY

Michele Bar-Pereg, Bar-Pereg Group, Amsterdam, THE NETHERLANDS

Lorraine Bello, GMS, Ricklin-Echikson Associates, Inc. (REA), Millburn, NJ

Lorelei Carobolante, SCRP, SGMS, GPHR, G2nd Systems, LLC, San Ramon, CA

Scott Craighead, SCRP, GMS, Blue Sky Executive Search, New York, NY

Anne Dean, GMS, Living Abroad, LLC, Norwalk, CT

Jeff Knapton, SIRVA Relocation, Westmont, IL

Derrick Kon, Mercer (Singapore), Pte. Ltd, SINGAPORE

Anne-Claude Lambelet, SGMS, ACL Consulting, Geneva, SWITZERLAND

Tacita Lewars, GMS, Globaforce Incorporated, Calgery, Alberta, CANADA

Cindy Madden, CRP, Cartus, Danbury, CT

Andrea Massoud, GMS, Living in Brazil, International Relocation Services, Barueri-Sao Paulo,BRAZIL

Nino Nelissen, SGMS, Executive Mobility Group, Schlipol Airport, THE NETHERLANDS

Constance Pegushin, Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP, San Francisco, CA

Maureen Bridget Rabotin, GMS, Effective Global Leadership, Paris, FRANCE

Ren Rosemary Stegmann, GMS, Relocation Africa, Cape Town, SOUTH AFRICA

Rita Wagner, GMS, Interdean International Relocation, London, UNITED KINGDOM

Nick Woodhams, SGMS, Woodhams Relocation Centre, Sydney, AUSTRALIA

Design/Production: Ideas, Communicated, LLC, Vienna, VA,www.ideascommunicated.com

Printing: CADMUS Specialty Publications, Richmond, VAReprints: Katina Moaney, CADMUS Reprint Services,

[email protected]; +1 866 487 5625 ext. 3736

Advertising Sales: Glen Cox, National Sales Manager, The Townsend Group, Bethesda, MD+1 301 215 6710; ext. 109;

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Around the Worldwide ERC

T here is no better way to get to the top of your field than to getinvolved. Members ofWorldwide ERC form apowerful community of work-force mobility professionalsand HR innovators who enjoycollaborating, sharing exper-tise, and receiving the mostrelevant resources to managetheir companies mobileworkforces.

If you are a new corporate(HR) member, or are lookingfor a place to connect withyour business peers, followingare five things to know aboutWorldwide ERC:

1.How the network-ing happens: Our meetings and con-

ferences create dynamic set-tings for you to form profes-sional and personal friend-ships, engage with experts inthe field, and learn more in two days than many profes-sionals learn in a year. Worldwide ERC convenes annualworld-class conferences and training programs in NorthAmerican, European, and the Asia-Pacific regions, as wellas interactive webinars delivered to your desktop. Ourconferences include special receptions for newcomers,young professionals, and international delegates.

Our interactive forums, developed explicitly for cor-porate (HR) members, help you dialogue and conductinstant benchmarking with experts and your peers frommore than 60 countries about workforce mobility chal-lenges, strategies, policies, and emerging trends.

The most rewarding way is through giving back toothersvolunteer for committees and participate in ourcharitable Foundation. With more than 20 committeeswith responsibilities ranging from government relationsto meeting program planning, youll have exceptionalopportunities to work with some of the best minds in theindustry. If youre interested in charitable causes, partici-pate in our Foundation for Workforce Mobility to raisefunds for our fellow world citizens in need during person-al, national, or global crises.

2.What youll want to read: Thirty thousand workforce mobility professionals

read MOBILITY magazine every month. In each issue,

industry leaders and practi-tioners share experiences,offer new solutions, setindustry trends, describe bestpractices, and comment onkey issues affecting theindustry.

Research and bench-marking reports sent to youonline or in print are must-reads for anyone developingor refining their workforcemobility programs. Watch forperiodic reports on transfervolume and cost and work-force mobility policy andpractices in the UnitedStates, Asia-Pacific, andEMEA.

3.Ways to worksmart: Dont reinvent the

wheelcorporate (HR)members have exclusiveaccess to our online policylibrary that houses more than

150 workforce mobility policies from national and multi-national corporations. In addition, if you are looking for anew service provider, use our procurement center, com-plete with sample RFPs.

4.Pump up your career: Look into Worldwide ERC professional designa-

tions: the Certified Relocation Professional (CRP) andGlobal Mobility Specialist (GMS). Achieving these cov-eted credentials expands your expertise and gives yourcareer a distinguished edge.

Check out the Career Center, an online resource formanaging your own career and recruiting for your orga-nization in the workforce mobility industry.

5. Where to go for tax and legal tips: Worth more than its virtual weight in gold, every

organization with a mobile workforce will benefit fromthe online Tax and Legal MasterSourcea $795 sub-scription service that is provided free with your member-ship. It is the most comprehensive collection of U.S.workforce mobility tax and legal reviews in existence, andis a priceless resource for your company.

And be sure to visit www.WorldwideERC.org for someof our newest services including the Global Tax &Immigration Library and Mobility LawBlog.

Attention Corporate (HR) Members: Five Ways to Get to the Top


around_oct10_globility.qxd 9/17/10 3:41 PM Page 2


Executive Spotlight

Craig Selders, SCRP, SGMS, hasbeen promoted to executive vicepresident of Paragon GlobalResources and president of ParagonRelocation, which includes ParagonRelocation Holdings, and will bebased in Irving, TX.

Living Abroad LLC, Norwalk, CT,has named Erin Fitzgerald interna-tional product manager.

Leading Real Estate Companies ofthe World, Chicago, IL, has namedJoe Horning, president of ShorewestRealtors, Milwaukee, WI, to its boardof directors.

ReloTrans, LLC, Danvers, MA,has named Megan Goff relocationcoordinator.

Century 21 Real Estate LLC,Parsippany, NJ, has named GregSexton senior vice president, broker-age services.

Crown Relocations, Hong Kong,China, has appointed SrinivasKrishnan country manager for India,Mumbai, India. Dennis Muldowneywas named general manager forCrown Korea, Seoul, Korea. FrancisCheung was promoted to generalmanager of household goods and finearts for Crown China, Beijing, China.Richard Marriott was named immi-gration quality and compliance man-ager, Asia-Pacific, Hong Kong. LolitaWong was named head of globalmobility services in Shanghai, China.Priya Kuttaiah has been named gen-eral manager for global mobility ser-vices in Bangalore, India.

Theresa Xie has been namedbranch manager of UniGroupWorldwide in Shanghai, China.

Hilldrup Companies, Stafford, VA,has named David A. Gonzalez seniorvice president for international busi-ness development.

Suddath International, Jacksonville,FL, a subsidiary of The SuddathCompanies, has named SonyaReneberg as a global account salesexecutive in Washington, DC. KellySayles has been named globalaccount sales executive in Houston,

TX. Jolyce Ledvina has been namedglobal account sales executive in SanDiego, CA.

NRT LLC, Parsippany, NJ, haspromoted Kate Rossi to regionalexecutive vice president for the com-panys Southeast region. CathleenSmith was appointed as president forNRTs Connecticut/WestchesterCounty, NY, company. Kris Vogthas been named president of itsSacramento/Tahoe company

Marriott ExecuStay, Bethesda,MD, has named Lesty Jaranilla asgeneral manager for the Minneapolis,MN, market.

PODS Enterprises, Inc., Clear -water, FL, has named JohnCameron as senior vice president oflong distance moving and corporateoperations.

Coldwell Banker United, Realtors,Columbia, SC, has added several new

agents to its offices. Lawanda Tylerhas joined the Aiken office. TimHubbard and Ernest Bostic, II,have joined the Irmo office. KathyGoerss has joined the Lexingtonoffice. Paige Tyler, Sandy Espinoza,and Amanda Payne have joined theMidtown office

RealtySouth, Birmingham, AL, hasadded several new agents to itsoffices. Sherita Simpson andDesiree Burtis have joined theHoover Metro office. David Steen,Chanelle Fletcher, and PatsyHester have joined the I-459 office.Amanda Pearce, Cathy Bice, CRP,and Tiffany Roper have joined theInverness office. Sandy Brown hasjoined the Mountain Brook Cahabaoffice. West Martin has joined thethe Mountain Brook Euclid office.James Colvin has joined theNorthern office.

The Worldwide ERC

Board of Directors recentlyelected its 2011 executivecommittee. Susan Schneider,SCRP, GMS, Plus RelocationServices, Inc., Minneapolis,MN, was named president.Pamela J. (Pam) O'Connor,SCRP, Leading Real EstateCompanies of the World,Chicago, IL, was named vicepresident; C. Matthew (Matt)Spinolo, SCRP, SGMS,Cartus, Memphis, TN, wasnamed secretary-treasurer.Michael C. (Mike)Washbourn, SCRP, GMS,Pfizer Inc., Peapack, NJ, willserve as chairman for the 2011board of directors. ExecutiveCommittee members also serveon the Board of Directors, andstrongly support the associa-tion with responsibility for establishing all current objectives, supervisingthe overall management of the association, appointing individuals to serveon standing committees, and considering all proposals and recommenda-tions prior to review by the Board of Directors. The 2011 term for officersbegins January 1, 2011, and concludes December 31, 2011.

OConnorSchneider

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According to a new research study,the nature of global business willnecessitate a sizable increase in themovement of employees betweencountries leading to an uptick ofshort-term and commuter interna-tional assignments. Further, the num-ber of employees working outsidetheir home country grew 25 percentduring the last 10 years and willincrease by 50 percent during thenext decade.

The report, Talent mobility2020: The next generation of inter-national assignments, byPricewaterhouseCoopers LLP(PwC), London, United Kingdom, isbased on international assignmentdata from 900 companies, populationdata, and opinions of CEOs andworkers worldwide. It found thatglobal organizations placed employ-ees in an average of 13 locations in1998, 22 in 2009, and could reach33 by 2020.

Surveyed CEOs said having theright talent in the right place is a crit-ical factor for business growth, with55 percent of CEOs intending toreconsider their approach to globalmobility as a result of the downturn.

While were not consigning exist-ing international work models to thehistory books, governments and com-panies will have to work together tomanage some of the barriers to inter-national mobility that will otherwiseimpede global competition and oper-ations, said Billy Owens, internation-al mobility leader for PwC (U.S.).

As countries venture into underde-veloped locations, organizations andgovernments would benefit from sus-tainable co-investment in the infras-tructure needed for individuals to liveand do work comfortablythis mightextend to schooling and training,medical facilities, or entertainment.

Ideally, the movement of employ-ees and executives between countrieswill be fluid and characterized by col-

laboration, not by onerous and costlyadministration.

According to PwC, members ofthe millennials view working over-seas as an important part of personaldevelopment, with 80 percent of4,200 graduates surveyed wanting towork abroad, 70 percent expect touse a non-native language at work,and 94 percent expect to work acrossgeographic borders.

Younger employees appetite forworking overseas could eventuallyremove the need for financial entice-ment, but current immigration and taxsystems, combined with the need forcertain skills or experience levels, canmake deploying staff around the world

complex and costly, said Owens.Articulating shared values will beincreasingly important as loyalty iseven harder to foster across borders.

On the positive side, technology isevolving to ease compliance and track-ing burdens. The eventual harmoniza-tion of living standards and remunera-tion across some skill sets and indus-tries will also make things easier.

According to the release, emergingmarkets are growing in importanceand will alter mobility patterns as tal-ent from these regions operatedomestically and across borders. Newcapital cities will serve as businesshubs according to local populationsizes and new revenue streams.


Industry Spotlight

Research Reveals Future of International Work

SPONSORED BY Prudential Real Estate and Relocation ServicesRock Solid Relocation

industry_oct10_khan.qxd 9/17/10 3:00 PM Page 1


Bristol Global Mobility, Phoenix, AZ, announced the acquisition of Corporate Relocation Services (CRS), Green Bay, WI.Carolina Relocation Group, Inc., Rocky Mount,, NC, has changed its name to Continental Relocation Group, Inc. (CRG)

and moved its office to 58 Azimuth Court, Rocky Mount, NC 27804.Bekins Van Lines, Hillside, IL, announced its newest agent, ALL-PRO Moving & Storage, Sterling, VA. The Navy Exchange Service Command (NEXCOM), Army Air Force Exchange System (AAFES), and Marine Corps

Community Services (MCCS) have a multi-year contract with PODS Enterprises, Inc., Clearwater, FL, to bring the companysportable storage containers to continental United States (CONUS) military installations.

Michael Saunders & Company, Sarasota, FL, has announced the premier of its new website, www.michaelsaunders.com.Cartus Corporation, Danbury, CT, has announced the integration of an online cultural resource tool, Country Navigator, into

its training programs. Mobility Services International (MSI), Newburyport, MA, has announced the launch of two new technology resources, the

MSI CostEstimator and a second-generation ad hoc report-writing tool.TRC Global Solutions (TRC), Milwaukee, WI, has earned Accredited Business status from the Better Business Bureau of

Wisconsin.IOR Global Services, Northbrook, IL, has announced the sale of the company to Rob Burns, lead investor and entrepreneur.

Kendra Mirasol, IORs senior vice president, also holds a minority interest. Oakwood Worldwide, Los Angeles, CA, has announced it is the exclusive provider of temporary housing services at the Indigo

@ twelve | west in Portland, OR, the nations first LEED Platinum-certified apartment building.

FYI

Industry Spotlight

OCTOBER 2010Worldwide ERC Learning Zone Speedsession WebinarFive Key Steps to Ensure Your RFP ReallyWorksOctober 52:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. ESTSponsored by Capital Relocation ServicesCost: Free

Worldwide ERC Learning Zone WebinarHomesale Programs: Understanding theCostsOctober 122:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. EST

Global Mobility Specialist (GMS) TrainingOctober 26-27 Seattle, WA

Global Workforce SymposiumOctober 27-29 Seattle, WA

Worldwide ERC Foundation BESTIVAL!October 28 Seattle, WA

NOVEMBER 2010Worldwide ERC Learning Zone Speedsession WebinarManaging Today's Global Workforce -Optimizing Your InvestmentNovember 22:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. ESTSponsored by Cartus/PrimacyCost: Free

MARCH 2011Global Mobility Specialist (GMS) TrainingMarch 4, 5, and 7 Shanghai, China

Global Wokforce Summit: Focus on Asia-PacificMarch 8-9Shanghai, China

U p c o m i n g W o r l d w i d e E R C E v e n t s

industry_oct10_khan.qxd 9/17/10 3:03 PM Page 2

Bridging Continents & Cultures

Chicago Houston Los Angeles New York Philadelphia San Francisco

Calgary Montreal Toronto Vancouver London, UK Hong Kong



Quick Takes

Right now Worldwide ERC members are exchanging questions, answers, and ideas in our online forumsand blog, such as:U.S. Domestic Relocation Members Forum: Can a transferee have two homes eligible for the homesale

program for the same move? One home is primary residence and the other is a second home. Would only onebe eligible for tax protected homesale benefits, or would both? The client is willing to allow both homes toparticipate in the homesale program but wants to know the answer to this question before making the deci-sion.

Global Workforce Mobility Members Forum: Is anyone managing expatriate administration through acentral funding process rather than individual destination?

Mobility LawBlog In some of their recent blog posts, Worldwide ERC Tax Counsel Pete Scott andGeneral Counsel Dick Mansfield take a look at the details of the Dodd-Frank Act (formally known as the WallStreet Reform and Consumer Protection Act), which most immediately will affect the workforce mobilityindustry including the plethora of regulations coming our way over the next year.

Read the answers solicited by these questions and add your comments and questions today. To get there,visit www.WorldwideERC.org/pages/web2.0.aspx or click on the white Communities hyperlink at the top ofevery page of www.WorldwideERC.org. Note that access to the forums is an exclusive benefit of WorldwideERC membership.

Communities

Only 13 Weeks Left! Have You Completed Your CE Credits?

As of October 1, there are only 13weeks left in 2010 for you toearn any continuing education (CE)credits you need toward your CRP,GMS, CERP, PHR, SPHR, and/orGPHR designations. Here are a fewideas on how you can fulfill yourrequirements and receive valuableworkforce mobility information.

15-credit Opportunity:Attendees of the Worldwide ERC

Global Workforce Symposium inSeattle, WA, will learn about thenext generation of solutions in work-force mobility and receive up to 15CRP, GMS, CERP* and HumanResources Certification Institute*CE credit hours. This valuableoption takes place October 27through 29.

For more details and to register,visit: www.WorldwideERC.org/Symposium. Note, you can come forfree if you are a corporate HR pro-fessional who has not attended theSymposium in the past. Look fordetails about World wide ERC CEOPeggy Smiths unprecedented offeron our website.

Seven- to 10-credit OpportunityCertified Relocation Professionals

(CRP) can earn up to 10 CE creditsof global programming for taking theGlobal Mobility Specialist (GMS )training modules being held onOctober 25 through 27, in conjunc-tion with the Global WorkforceSymposium and earn another valu-able credential. Each of the threetraining modules discusses conceptsin global workforce mobility andintercultural management. Note,each module counts for seven CRP

CE credits, however, a maximum of10 CRP CE credits may be earnedfrom global courses per renewal peri-od. For more details and to register,visit www.WorldwideERC.org/Education/GMS

One- to Two-credit OpportunitiesCRP and GMS designees earn

one to two CE credits for eachonline course in the WorldwideERC Catalogue of Online GlobalMobility Courses. The catalogue ofhighly praised education opportuni-ties includes 14 courses; a total of 18possible CE credits, which discuss

topics such as International HybridAssignments, Mobility Issues forChina Today, and Cost-of-livingAllowances and Housing, to name afew. To begin, visit www.WorldwideERC.org/pages/globalcourses.aspx

One-credit opportunitiesCRP designees earn one continu-

ing education (CE) credit for each ofthe upcoming one-hour LearningZone web sessions that discuss thelatest challenges facing workforcemobility professionals. On October5, learn Five Key Steps to EnsureYour RFP Really Works during acomplimentary Learning ZoneSpeedSession sponsored by CapitalRelocation Services. On October 12,tune in for the Learning Zone webinar, Homesale Programs:Understanding the Costs. There aremore sessions being announced allthe time. For details and to register,visit www.WorldwideERC.org/Events

*For exact CE credit amounts andother specifics, read online at:www.WorldwideERC.org/Symposium/Pages/gws10-CE-Credit-Approvals.aspx

quicktakes_oct_khan.qxd 9/17/10 3:43 PM Page 1

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The management of a global organization requires a

delicate balance of risk and reward, with success a

by-product of incorporating a holistic, integrated talent

management strategy that maximizes return on investment

and underscores the importance of a mobile workforce.

Foster and Herring examine the transactional elements of

international assignment programs and frame them in the

context of strategic talent management.

Talent managementtodays latestbusiness buzzwordis more thanjust the strategy du jour. It is, infact, a new framework for thinkingabout global success. If working

today means working globally, then managing and devel-oping employees so they can deliver global success be -comes a critical strategic initiative. Drilling down to thetactical nuts and bolts of a global talent managementstrategy will reveal all its transactional parts, which in -clude mobility, assessment, training, performance man-agement, and a variety of other functions.

These remain transactional elements, however, and thetime has arrived to organize them into a cohesive strategythat develops global employeesthe single most valuableasset of a global organization. Success is achieved by bal-ancing risk and reward, and managing these transactionalcomponents without a talent management strategy raisesrisk and reduces reward; managing with a strategic vision,however, will aid in creating a prosperous future for glob-al organizations.

Mobility: Thats So 20th CenturyDuring the past century, the need for global success

was addressed traditionally through mobility, and usuallyproceeded through several stages. In stage one, assuminga Chicago, IL,-headquarters conducting business inSingapore, talent is needed in the destinationSingaporein this case. In stage two, because business is conducteddifferently in Singapore from the way it is conducted inChicago and presents unanticipated challenges, talentmust become engaged with the destination and achievean understanding of the local business environment.During stage three, the circumstances of stages one and

two also are occurring between headquarters and otherdestinations where the organization is doing business,which creates the need to develop synergies and a moreglobal way of working between all parties.

Addressing the first two stages of mobility is intu-itive, but it becomes increasingly difficult to create synergieseconomies of scale, if you willfor talent anda globally effective organization with just a set of trans-actional mobility processes, especially when the issuesraised by stage three need to be addressed. It is no mys-tery why the process operated in such a transactionalmanner last century; looking even farther back, thistransactional perspective was borne out of a time when,for example, HR was personnel and managing tal-ent was simply the transactional moving of parts fromhere to there. To view mobility as the solution forglobal success in the past was logical, albeit limited.

So What Is Strategic Talent Management?While exact definitions vary, generally the concept of

strategic talent management begins with corporatevision and strategy. Through the right combination ofrecruiting, selecting, managing, developing, and succes-sion planning, a globally inspired workforce can bedeveloped to provide the organization with higher pro-ductivity, retention, and ultimately, superior results.According to Jennifer Nguyen, Ph.D., an organizationalpsychologist with Colarelli, Meyer & Associates, St.Louis, MO, with expertise in international talent man-agement, a companys vision and strategy define thecompetencies needed to achieve the companysplans.The competencies required then define how andwhere we recruit, how we select, how we manage per-formance, on what basis we develop and promote, and



how we retain talent. Internationaltalent management is more chal-lenging than domestic talent man-agement because there is the cultureof the host country, in addition tothe expectations of the role and cul-ture of the company, which must beconsidered.All three of those factorsdefine what it takes to be successfulin the role.

In todays global marketplace, oneimportant traditional means ofdeveloping talent, spreading cultureglobally, and filling required gaps isthrough the transactional function ofinternational assignment programs(as well as international local hires).It is only recently, however, thatemployers are asking themselves thetough questions about how to bestuse international assignment andlocal hires to truly optimize themanagement of talent.

There are costs associated withsuch tactical interventions, andthere is always the question ofreturn on investment (ROI).According to Jose Segade, co-founder of the RES Forum, an inde-pendent community of thoughtleaders in global mobility, some ofthese questions include:

What is the true driver behindthe assignment? Is there really a dis-tinct business need that cannot beresourced from within the homecountry in a cost-effective manner?

If the assignment is developmen-tal, does it provide significant inter-national exposure/change of envi-ronment to an individual that wouldfurther develop existing skills andpotential? Are they exceptional can-didates and right for such an assign-ment?

Will the assignment providesubstantial/beneficial knowledgetransfer between locations and busi-nesses? Will it help us grow as aninternational organization in thedirection we want to go?

What is the actual cost associat-ed with the assignment and what isthe value that the assignee brings tothe host location and to the develop-ment of a truly global organization;do the sums add up?

How do we want assignments tobe perceived within the organization?On the one hand, are they a rewardfor our top talent who are eager toundertake them, or are they seen asdoing the business a favor? on theother hand?

Because most international assign-ments fall into the areas of develop-mental, market-building, technical/ -skills transfer, and executive leader-ship, the implications for managingtalent can become complex, especial-ly when we examine costs and ROI.In addition, an increasing number ofcompanies are offering different pol-icy types based on the type of move.Although different packages can beeffective, care must be taken toensure that a cheaper, expat-litepackage for a developmental assign-ment does not eliminate the ele-ments proven to support successfulassignments such as interculturaltraining, transition support, andrepatriation support on return. Toinvest in a developmental or execu-tive assignment without a broadertalent management strategy, includ-ing the proper support on assign-ment, could be financially or strate-gically disastrous should failure orretention issues come into play.

The costs associated with an inter-national move, viewed transactional-ly, often are enough to raise eye-brows at the highest levels, and mostof these costs are associated with thetransactional pieces of mobility (box

A COMPANYS VISION AND STRATEGY DEFINE THE COMPETENCIES NEEDED TO ACHIEVE

THE COMPANYS PLANS.THE COMPETENCIES REQUIRED THEN DEFINE HOW AND WHERE

WE RECRUIT, HOW WE SELECT, HOW WE MANAGE PERFORMANCE, ON WHAT BASIS WE

DEVELOP AND PROMOTE, AND HOW WE RETAIN TALENT.



moving, housing and taxes, salarydifferentials, cost-of-living adjust-ments, immigration and transporta-tion issues, school and educationexpenses, and the like).

It is because of the expense ofinternational assignments that, his-torically, one of the primary goals ofmobility groups has been to manageand cut costs. However, whenviewed strategically, these costsbecome investments in talent devel-opment and business objectives.Therefore, maximizing the invest-ment rather than simply keepingcosts down should truly be thefocus.

It still is important to spend wise-ly, but selecting the right people,setting them up for success, andbringing them home (or onto thenext opportunity) successfully isequally, if not more important, inthe long run. Most studies show thatmore than 50 percent of assigneesleave the company within three yearsof returning homea huge costtransactionally, and an even greatercost when viewed strategically.Retaining these individuals based onthe application of a talent manage-ment strategy suddenly reduces thereal cost associated with managingthat talent.

In addition, a successful talentmanagement strategy will ensure thatthe returning international assigneewill share his or her global knowl-edge and skills throughout the entireorganization. This is the real measureof the investment that the companymade when it moved its talentabroad, and represents a much morevaluable return on that investment.This is made possible by movingbeyond a transactional mobilityperspective to a strategic talent man-agement vision.

Even the Transactional Bits BenefitWhen Viewed Strategically

While most industry professionalsagree that improved tracking ofassignment failures (and creating bet-ter definitions of what constitutes afailure), retention on return, andthe cascading of global skills andknowledge throughout the organiza-tion all are desirable outcomes of astrategic perspective, a proper talentmanagement strategy also can benefitthe nuts and bolts servicesandthe soft services in particularthatare offered to support the assign-ment.

For example, much of what cur-rently is offered for support onassignment is done immediately sur-rounding the actual relocation,which is why the process becomesmore transactional than strategic.With a more holistic approach to the

services that support the actual talentdevelopment on assignment, howev-er, the mobility process truly canbecome part of the talent manage-ment process.

Ideally, for corporations intent ontaking a more holistic approach toglobal mobility, it begins before any-one even raises their hand for aninternational assignment opportuni-ty. Organizations need to establish aglobal mindset internally and supportthe development of global leadersthrough intercultural training andawareness programs specificallydesigned to develop the global com-petency skills that all employees inthe organizationnot just the inter-national assigneesneed to have.

Dr. Mansour Javidan, Ph.D., deanof research at Thunderbird School ofGlobal Management, Glendale, AZ,and creator of the Global Mindset

KEY TRUTHS IN STRATEGICTALENTMANAGEMENT

Every employer is unique, which means that, depending on thebusiness, the inputs will be diverse and different levers will needto be pulled in response to all manner of concerns, such as marketconditions, stakeholder expectations, and business requirements. Ahandful of key truths about strategic talent management do cutacross industries and geographies. According to Jennifer Nguyen,Ph.D., an organizational psychologist with Colarelli, Meyer &Associates, St. Louis, MO, these are:

The difference between success and failure gets finer and finer asone moves from middle management to senior executive positions.

The use of multiple assessment methodologies creates a strongerselection process.Each methodology brings different strengths tothe prediction process.

Filling international positions from in-country candidate pools ismore challenging and risky than filling domestic positions from localcandidates.Filling expatriate positions is most challenging and risky.

The primary determinants of expatriate success include familialfactors, support systems, stress tolerance, self insight, adaptability,and relational skills, and all are affected by cultural differences.

The transactional cost of a failed expatriate assignment can reach (and sometimes exceed) USD$1 million. The strategic cost is significantly greater.



Inventory, defines the global mindsetas, the set of individual characteris-tics and qualities that help you do abetter job of influencing people whoare different from you. Global lead-ership, therefore, is a process ofinfluencing individuals, groups, andorganizations that are different fromyou.

Success in global roles and interna-tional assignments in particulardemands proficiency in this area. Ifthe organization emphasizes expatri-ation as important for growth, thenbuilding a pool of potential candi-dates whose mindset and the poten-tial for challenges can be assessed inadvance becomes a long-termapproach to sending the best candi-dates on assignment.

This practice can be a part of astrong internal career developmentinitiative, where people plan and rec-ognize how mobilityparticularlyglobal mobilitycan play a part incareer development/career manage-

ment. Equally important in thecareer development process is theplanning of the employees career atthe end of an assignment. With sucha low retention rate post-assignment,implementing an ongoing careermanagement initiative will help boththe employee and company to thinkabout the future.

Leveraging the Investment in GlobalSkills to Create a Global Mindset

Assessment and decision-makingassistance can benefit the employee,as well as the employer, by develop-ing for both parties a better under-standing of the potential challengesthat can surface while on assignment.Companies might use a formalassessment for candidate selection,and individuals might use it to betterunderstand their strengths and weak-nesses or the potential challengespresented by living and working in aforeign culture, such as spouse/partner career concerns.

Understanding these issues can aidemployees addressing them proac-tively or deciding that the risk offrustration, or even failure, are toogreat, in which case they could endup declining the assignment. Eitherway, the employer benefits by havinga better prepared assignee or, evenmore important, averting a failedtransfer.

While classic international assign-ment failures are easily identifiable byearly returns, failed performance, col-lapsing families, and the like, moresubtle measures of failed assign-ments, commonly known asbrownouts (characterized byunderperformance, unhappy personalrelationships, and missed businessopportunities because of the inabilityto manage cultural differences), aremore difficult to identify and can bemore costly in the long run.

Once the decision to accept theassignment is finalized, there are sev-eral additional programs that canhelp ensure the success of the assign-ment. For instance, mobility transi-tion assistance for both the employeeand family is one intervention thatcan help create a smooth transitionand faster acclimation to the newlocation.

Mobility transition assistance helpscareer-oriented spouses and partnerscompeting for employment in aninternational marketplace and sup-ports the employee and family withsettling into the new location on along-term basis. This type of assis-tance addresses two of the top threeissues relating to assignment failure.According to the Brookfield GlobalRelocation Services, Wood ridge, IL,2010 Global Relocation TrendsSurvey, respondents citedspouse/partner dissatisfaction (65percent) and family concerns (40

ON THEWEB

For more information on talent management, visitwww.WorldwideERC.org: Balancing Talent Management and Costs in a New

EconomyNew Concepts in U.S. Domestic Relocationwww.WorldwideERC.org/Resources/MOBILITYarticles/Pages/0909-abbey.aspx

Selection and Global Talent Managementwww.WorldwideERC.org/Resources/MOBILITYarticles/

Pages/0509-kozloff.aspx

The Necessary Collaboration Between Global Mobility and Talent Management for Developing Global Leaderswww.WorldwideERC.org/Resources/MOBILITYarticles/

Pages/1109-caligiuri.aspx



percent), in addition to the inabilityto adapt (47 percent), as the maincauses of assignment failure. Thesereasons also are top challenges expe-rienced in any assignment, ac cordingto the same survey.

In addition to job search assis-tance, which can be a critical successfactor for dual-career families, thesetypes of services address the practicaland emotional needs of relocatingfamilies. This is accomplished by pro-viding customized research about re-establishing life in the new location,as well as providing emotional sup-port for spouses/partners trying tofigure out, how can I make thisexperience about me, too?

The Interchange Institutes,Brookline, MA, study, ManyWomen Many Voices, indicates thatthe number one issue confrontingaccompanying spouses/partners onassignment is a loss of identity.Mobility transition assistance direct-ly addresses this by providing proac-tive life and career coaching.

The study recommends supportfor the family not only for the bene-fit of the spouse/partner, but alsofor the benefit of the company. Byreducing the stress of the familyassociated with relocating interna-tionally, the employee is better ableto focus on the new job and achievehigher levels of productivity sooner.

Research indicates that an hour aday can be spent on family issues forthe six months following a move, soproductivity savings easily can reachUSD$10,000 by proactively sup-porting family issues through mobil-ity transition assistance.

Intercultural training is an impor-tant intervention that should be ini-tiated prior to departure and, ideal-ly, throughout the assignment,which can have a major effect on the

success of the expatriate. By offeringthis either immediately prior to orimmediately following arrival in thehost country, individuals and theirfamilies have a better framework tonot only understand the new culture,but also how their own, and theirown personal ways of adapting andworking, compares to it.

Participating in intercultural train-ing sessions can address the employ-ees inability to adapt to the destina-tion. Intercultural training is a pro-cess, not a one-time event, and ateach stage in the international assign-ment there needs to be an effectiveintercultural support interventionthat addresses both the family andassignee work needs at that moment.Typically, pre -departure trainingresets the barometer of expectations;

post-arrival training and throughoutthe assignment typically addressimmediate needs and issues as theyarise; and trainings prior to return oronward to a next move typicallyleverage the intercultural learningalready experienced to the challengesof either a third country or theunique issues associated with return-ing home. In all cases, interculturalinterventions can take a variety offorms like traditional training, sup-portive coaching, webinars for ongo-ing learning, and online culturaladaptability assessments.

Because assignment failure canbe difficult to classify, perhaps themore critical benefit to offering inter-cultural training is the faster returnon the investment that results. Byproviding insight into the inner



workings of the host country, anassignee can better identify andaddress issues as they come up. Thiscan save valuable time and resourcesand add to the effectiveness and pro-ductivity early on, particularly insales or leadership functions. Theopportunity cost to the bottom lineof not providing such services istruly unquantifiable.

The initial introduction to inter-cultural issues from an overall per-spective, as well as dealing within thehost country, is important to provid-

ing a conceptual framework for livingand working in a new culture. At thesame time, research indicates that thebest way to retain and apply learningis through on-the-job development.Therefore, cultural coaching is a suc-cessful intervention for key positionsand for developmental purposes,especially when initiated as a follow-on to successful intercultural training.

Coaching provides a frameworkfor setting and achieving specificgoals within the cultural context ofthe international assignment. It

addresses both dealing with specific,identifiable issues while taking intoconsideration the cultural implica-tions. Most important, this supportoccurs as issues arise and can beimplemented on a project basis or inresponse to immediate needs.

And, of Course, Returning HomeIt should be noted that this model

is based on the more traditionallong-term assignment versus theglobal citizen that takes ongoingback-to-back-to-back assignments.

MANAGING A GLOBAL ORGANIZATION TO SUCCESS IN THE 21ST CENTURYIS A JUGGLING ACT OF HUMBLING PROPORTIONS, WHERE GREAT

RESOURCES AND REWARDS ARE AT GREATER RISK THAN EVER BEFORE.


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However, we know that returninghome, even when viewed onlytransactionally, can be the most riskyand costly aspect of the internationalassignment. Viewed strategically, thecosts and benefits associated with asuccessful repatriation increase expo-nentially. The Global RelocationTrends Survey states that 38 per-cent of assignees leave the companywithin one year of return, and 23percent leave during the second yearpost-assignment.

While the above survey states that92 percent of companies have infor-mal repatriation discussions, clearlythe process generally is not havingthe desired effect given the tradition-ally high attrition rates following anassignment. Truly effective repatria-tion planning includes career man-agement discussions that take placeprior to departure; supports ongoingnetworking with key managers andleaders in the organization, as well asformal or informal mentoring; pro-vides formal support in not only justgetting home and finding an appro-priate job, but long-term career pos-sibilities with the company; and

invites the family to participate inpersonal and cultural preparations.

Repatriation support plays a signif-icant role in readying the employeeand family for their return home.Many who have gone through theprocess indicate that repatriation ismore challenging than expatriation.To ensure a smooth transition withminimal disruptions that can affectproductivity, offering preparation inthe form of a workshop or one-on-one sessions can help individuals planfor the challenges that lay ahead.

Ongoing support in the form ofrelocation transition assistance forthe employee, spouse, and family alsocan help make a smooth transitionhome and complete the cycle to get-ting resettled and feeling a part ofthe community once again. This canbe of particular interest to spouses/partners who are career-oriented, butwere not working (and in manycases, legally prevented from doingso) during the assignment. Dual-career support in this case can becritical to positioning a gap in arsum. Ultimately, by addressingthese personal issues proactively, the

company is retaining a more produc-tive employee returning home.

From Transaction to StrategyManaging a global organization to

success in the 21st century is a jug-gling act of humbling proportions,where great resources and rewards areat greater risk than ever before.Successfully managing the risks, bene-fits, and assets associated with creatinga globally effective organization canbe achieved only through an integrat-ed, holistic strategy that maximizesthe return on the investments beingmade, and that clearly and effectivelyaddresses the issues of managing thetalents of all those involved in theendeavor. To do anything less putsthis endeavor at risk; the rewards willgo to those who understand that theglobal future is not a transactionalevent, but the result of a strategicmanagement of critical talent.

Dean Foster is founder and president of DFAIntercultural Global Solutions, New York, NY.He can be reached at +1 718 287 9890 or e-mail [email protected].

Lauren Herring, CRP, SGMS, is presidentof IMPACT Group, St. Louis, MO. She canbe reached at +1 314 392 0658 or e-mail [email protected].

SUCCESS IS ACHIEVED BY BALANCING RISK AND REWARD, AND MANAGINGTHESE TRANSACTIONAL COMPONENTS WITHOUT A TALENT MANAGEMENT

STRATEGY RAISES RISK AND REDUCES REWARD; MANAGING WITH ASTRATEGIC VISION, HOWEVER, WILL AID IN CREATING A PROSPEROUS

FUTURE FOR GLOBAL ORGANIZATIONS.


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The Global Mobility and Talent Management Partnership OpportunityB Y S C O T T S U L L I V A N


As global employee mobility and talent management undergo considerable change in the current worldwide economy, thesetwo corporate functions appear to have a unique opportunity to develop a partnership that aids the organizations ability toachieve its business goals through the strategic management of its human capital. Sullivan writes that there are both small andlarge steps to take to make your global mobility program a more effective talent management partner.

To appreciate the heightened interest in current initiatives regarding the integration of global mobility and talent management within many organizations, it is helpfulto understand from where it originates. Talent management acknowledges that peoplenot just processes and productsare a critical component of an organiza-

tions business success. It is defined sometimes strategically: the return on investment ofhuman resources; and sometimes by the sum of its parts: the recruitment, selection, identi-fication, retention, management, and development of personnel considered to have thepotential for high performance.

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Global mobility also has two defini-tions. Like talent management, it ismost often defined by what it does:helping employees move around theworld. More recently, global mobilityleaders have sought to define globalmobility by what it seeks to achieve:to support the human capital needs ofthe business that requires employeesto move around the world. A fewextra words can mean a big differencein strategy and direction.

Clearly the two have a lot in com-mon from the start: to ensure that theinvestment the company makes in itsemployees is maximized. This is,however, not a new objective, so whyhas it become a top-tier focus for somany companies in recent times?

In the past 10 years or so, there hasbeen a major shift in how global com-panies staff their global operationsand positions. As we have seen for anumber of years now, companies rec-ognize that they need their leaders tohave international experience: to havelived and worked outside their owncountry to gain both practical skillsand a global perspective. This shifthas necessitated a repositioning of tal-ent management from a headquarters

to a global approach. Rather thanalmost exclusively looking to head-quarters or major established loca-tions to staff managerial and leader-ship positions, companies are nowfinding some of their key talent intheir emerging markets.

Global mobility has been under-going a similar transformation. Thedays of long-term assignment expa-triates and inpatriates is changing ordwindling for many global compa-nies. Global mobility leaders recog-nize that their mobility programmust align with the objectives of thebusinesses they serve.

In large and diverse organizations,this may dictate many differentapproaches to serving the globallymobile population, and the emer-gence of commuter assignments,project assignments, developmentalassignments, and many others is anembodiment of this transformingapproach. In many of these globalorganizations, even the baseline rea-son for assignments is changing.

As one global mobility leader at aFortune 200 consumer electronicsproducts company recently said,now, 70 percent of assignments are

job-based and 30 percent are career-based. The company is looking toflip those concentrations.

Given this breadth of change,both underway and anticipated, itbecomes clear that these two corpo-rate functionsglobal mobility andtalent managementhave a uniqueopportunity to develop a partnershipwith an integrated, globally effectiveapproach that helps the organizationrealize its global business objectivesthrough the management andadvancement of their major assets:their people.

The common components of talent management and globalmobility are well-aligned in manyways. For example, the talent man-agement function of recruitment hastwo global mobility counterpartscandidate pool development andexternal new hire support. The chartbelow illustrates how the compo-nents of both functions potentiallycan align.

Despite this rather straightforwardalignment, only 4 percent of corpo-rate mobility programs are integrateddirectly with talent managementfunctions, according to Brookfield

Talent ManagementRecruitment

Selection

Identification

Retention

Management

Development

INTEGRATION OF TALENT MANAGEMENT AND GLOBAL MOBILITY

Global MobilityCandidate pool development

External new hire

Assessment/selection

Pre-departure preparation

Arrival on-boarding/assimilation

Ongoing assignment performance management.

Preparation for repatriation

Repatriation

RetentionSource: Brookfield Global Relocation Services, Inc.



Global Relocation Services, Wood -ridge, IL, 2010 Global RelocationTrends Survey Report. Therefore, akey initiative for many global mobili-ty leaders is to identify where andhow global mobility services can beused to support their companys tal-ent management objectives.

Global mobility programs are pro-viding career management-relatedservices that align with their organi-zations talent management initia-tives by ensuring clarity in assign-ment objectives pre-departure, pro-viding repatriation support duringand post-assignment, supportingcareer planning for assignees, andcreating formal links between mobili-ty and talent management.

When assignees are surveyed bytheir organizations, it is not uncom-

mon to find that the reality of the jobexpectations now that they are onassignment is not consistent with theassignees pre-departure expectations.This disconnect can negatively affectthe assignees on-the-job satisfactionand the performance managementexperience while on assignment inthe destination location.

Repatriation Support During and Post-assignment

Repatriation often is one of theleast-developed aspects of a globalmobility program and, at the sametime, the inability to provide a formalrepatriation process that is linked tocareer planning can have a strongnegative effect on the employees

Corporate Example A: Clarity in Assignment Objectives Pre-departure

O ne cutting-edge organization has ensured role clarity for assignees andtheir managers: a global manufacturing company has implemented anassignment authorization form that includes a field for the assignees jobdescription and assignment objectives. With this change to the authorizationform, the assignee, the home and host manager, and the HR representative areall required to sign the form agreeing to the job description and objectives priorto the start of the assignment.



satisfaction and retention at the endof an assignment. This negative out-come to an assignment also can neg-atively affect an organizations poten-tial candidate pool for filling futureassignment needs because potentialcandidates see or hear about repatri-ated assignees who are unhappy withtheir post-assignment role. One ofthe central reasons for the gap inlinking repatriation to career devel-opment, and a global mobility teamsinability to support this highly strate-gic aspect of the assignment process,is that once the assignee returns fromthe assignment, the individual is nolonger officially part of the globalmobility program.

In the 2010 Global RelocationTrends Survey Report, corporatemobility professionals were asked torank their critical challenges forassignments. The results of this sur-vey indicated three of the top sixchallenges were related to repatria-tion and career planning: career man-agement (ranked 4th), retention ofexpatriates (ranked 5th), and inabilityto use experience after repatriation(ranked 6th).

Career Planning for AssigneesIn addition to having formal repa-

triation processes in place to supportthe post-assignment role, mobilityprograms can take the strategic leadon the gap that exists in many orga-nizations in terms of linking an inter-national assignment to an employeeslarger, more long-term career path.One approach some companies havetaken is to use any template that

already exists for the general employ-ee population regarding discussionson career planning and adjust thattemplate to include assignment- related fields or topics. If the organi-zation does not have a corporate-wide career-planning process inplace, creating a discussion guide forassignees and their receiving man-agers regarding career topics may bethe solution.

Creating Formal Links BetweenMobility and Talent Management

Today, global mobility as a talentmanagement partner can manifestitself in many different ways. Forsome organizations, it means creat-ing formal links, such as meeting reg-ularly with the talent managementarea of the organization. While a feworganizations have successfullymoved their global mobility programunder the talent managementumbrella, many more companies areworking to create formal links, andsome already have them.

Given that many corporate talentmanagement programs are in the

Corporate Example B: Repatriation Support for Receiving Managers

T here are examples of global mobility programs that have implemented a moreconcrete infrastructure to better support the repatriation and career-planningprocesses. The following is an example of one approach that a global mobilityteam can take to close the existing gap in this area.

Companies have found that the repatriation process requires action steps, notonly on the part of the assignee, but also the key stakeholders for repatriation: HR,the mobility team, and the receiving manager.

Many receiving managers have never been on an international assignment andneed guidance to understand their role and responsibilities in on-boarding therepatriated assignee onto the team, understanding typical repatriation challenges,and valuing the return on investment that the organization gains by retainingemployees with international experiencein terms of the cost of the assignmentand the experience that the employee has gained. Mobility program managershave implemented guidelines and/or training workshops for receiving managers ofrepatriating assignees in order to reinforce and support their role in the repatriationprocess.

Clear guidelines and/or training can be a quick win to enhance the mobility pro-gram and the companys assignment related return on investment.

Corporate Example C: Clarity in Assignment Objectives Pre-departure

A s a means to strategically provide a tool for assignees and their receivingmanagers to use for career path planning that would include assignment-related experiences and development, a technology industry organization hascreated a discussion guide that provides the assignee and his/her manager withquestions and topics to cover for significant milestones in the assignment cycle:pre-decision, pre-departure, annually during the assignment, pre-repatriation,and post-repatriation. The guide enables the assignees and managers acrossthe organization to have a consistent and meaningful discussion regarding thedirection of the assignees career as a result of the international assignmentexperience. This tool also ensures that the experiences on the assignment areconsidered by the assignee and receiving manager in terms of post-repatriationroles and long-term career decisions. Without the tool, the discussion may beless structured or simply ignored.


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early development stages and thatmost global mobility programs havea longer history and experience onwhich to rely, it seems prudent topoint out that there is a responsibili-ty for global mobility leaders to beproactive in the quest to partner thetwo functions. There are many per-spectives that global mobility canbring to the table to demonstrate

the value of integration, such as: Recognition that the cost/

benefit of an assignment may not bemeasurable solely during the courseof the assignment, making post-repatriation value a critical elementof the assignment experience.

As companies recognize thatthey have cut as much extraneouscost from their assignment packages

as possible, attention is turning towhy they send their people onassignments.

More companies have fewerassignments to/from headquartersbut more assignments into/out oflocations elsewhere. Employees whotake these assignments do not neces-sarily receive the natural visibility thatthe headquarters employees have.

The increasing availability ofregional talentagain, these employ-ees may not be part of the main-stream and their international experi-ence may not be maximized by thecompany.

The development of global lead-ers has become a priority and compa-nies need to plan and nurture theglobal education of their high poten-tial employees.

Corporate Example D: Formal Links BetweenGlobal Mobility and Talent Management

O ne company said, we have meetings with the vice president in charge of tal-ent management and are beginning to incorporate and integrate strategies.Going forward, global mobility will be included in ongoing organizational develop-ment and talent management team meetings.

A second company said, we made a significant proposal for a new frameworkfor global mobility and got the green light to implement a program that changeshow we do thingsit will be less about policy and more focus on eligibility, ROIrequirements, flexibility in spending, etc.; we sit with talent management already.


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As talent management establishes a stronger foothold in organizations,as international assignment objectivesbecome more strategic, and as international assignment manage-ment becomes more HR- and less compensation-focused, expect to seemore organizations making more ofthe connections between talent man-agement and global mobility toensure that the benefits of these sig-nificant investments is realized.

Consider this experience of themobility team at a global pharmaceu-tical company: two years ago wemoved from the compensation andbenefits (C&B) group to the talentmanagement group. As much as itwas natural to be part of the moneytrail in C&B, being part of the talent

groups helps us feel more connectedto why people are selected and webetter understand the talent agenda,not just the numbers.

Creating a more integrated globalmobility program can seem an over-whelming task. As it often is difficultto implement many organizationalchanges, for global mobility the shiftoften relies on influencing otherparts of the organization to buy intoa change that potentially increasesglobal mobilitys visibility and role.Being more strategic also requires aglobal mobility team to be made upof more strategically minded teammembers. Some companies are moreprepared for this shift than others.

In an ideal scenario, positioningglobal mobility as part of the talent

management team may be the bestway to shift the mindset and behav-iors around international assignmentsto a more strategic place. However,this is not the norm for most compa-nies and, therefore, should not beseen as the only way to partner.

Wherever an organizations globalmobility program sits, and whateverthe stage that a particular organiza-tion is at in terms of readiness forchange, there are small and large stepsthat can be taken to make the globalmobility program a more effective talent management partner.

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On the WebVisit www.WorldwideERC.org for further talent management information:

Global Talent Management and Global Mobility http://www.WorldwideERC.org/Resources/MOBILITYarticles/Pages/0209hogan.aspx

Industry Spotlight: Talent Management in the Age of International Assignmentshttp://www.WorldwideERC.org/Resources/MOBILITYarticles/Pages/0909-industry-spotlight.aspx

Scott Sullivan is executive vice president,global sales and marketing, for BrookfieldGlobal Relocation Services, Inc., Woodridge,IL, and a member of the MOBILITY EditorialAdvisory Committee. He can be reached at +1 630 427 2062 or [email protected].


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MOBILITY Magazine - October 2010