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International Assignments in a Changing World

Until a few years ago relocations were a relatively simple business. Companies selected their most career-oriented employees, got them to pack a few belongings and move with their family to the other side of the globe. The relocations and international assignment business has come a long way since then. As globalization steadily continues, companies are now more cost conscious than ever and it has become imperative for companies to evolve.

How committed is the potential assignee? In today's complex world of relocations, no matter how simple a move may seem, the demands of working overseas cannot be underestimated. It requires a great deal of commitment from the employee. The company must determine as best as possible how committed the employee will be on an overseas assignment.

Family concerns, especially spousal discontent, is one of the major reasons for failed assignments. According to a study conducted by GMAC in 2006, 67% of failed relocations were due to family discontent. Involvement of the spouse from the start of the process tends to work best and also having destination service providers provide timely reporting to HR on the status of each move. In the case of dual career couples, it is extremely helpful in establishing the career prospects of the spouse in the host country. Some companies are also now even looking for ways to hire spouses who may be able to slip into available roles.

Clearly defined, explicit and standardised working procedures and quality control mechanisms should be implemented. In order to encourage employees to take up an international assignment, companies often factor into compensation packages generous allowances for housing, schooling, cost of living adjustments plus hardship allowances when relocating to developing countries where the challenges of settling in are deemed to be greater.

The expatriate on assignment The expatriate on assignment is required to deal with the culture shock in the host country, ensure that his/ her family is settling in as best as possible, arrange home-viewing appointments and is also expected to hit the ground running at the new place of work.

This is extremely demanding. Companies are often not able to provide the level of support required to expatriates during this time, due to lack of adequate resources in the HR department, coupled with the fact that most of the HR staff may have little or no experience of having lived overseas.

Repatriation
Many are of the misconception that repatriation is simpler than expatriation. However, it must be understood that repatriation is as complex as the relocation itself, if not more. In order to maintain a competitive edge, retention of employees is imperative. This also helps capture the knowledge the employee has gained while on assignment. Companies are now adopting various strategies to build the employee's trust and increase job security. Providing training and mentoring to the employee as part of the repatriation process will ease the stress during this time.

LEX has placed only an shortened version of the article.
Source: http://www.expatexchange.com
Date of publication: 27 October 2009

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