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Global Mobility
16 December 2011:
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Changing mobility patterns
The number of people working outside their own countries rose by 25 per cent in the first decade of this millennium and will increase by a further 50 per cent by 2020, according to research by PwC. The professional services firm also predict that growing numbers of skilled employees from emerging markets such as China, India and Brazil will be embarking on international assignments over the next few years.
The good news for global companies is that younger employees see overseas working as an important part of their personal development, with a PwC survey of 4,200 graduates finding that 80 per cent want to work abroad. Yet the experience of some of the senior HR professionals at CorporateLeaders’ recent Executive Briefing suggests that by the time these young graduates have gained the expertise needed to carry out international assignments, they may no longer be so mobile.
The Head of Talent at one multinational remarked how the high-fliers on her company’s leadership potential programme prioritise flexibility and work-life balance, and are often reluctant to move away from their home countries. Another participant made a similar point, saying that people are now increasingly unwilling to move country and abandon the many interests they tend to have outside work. These comments mirror findings from studies by the Pew Research Centre, among others, that members of Generation Y – born between 1981 and 1999 – expect their jobs to accommodate their personal lives, rather than the other way around. Such attitudes, a contrast to those of previous generations, can be a barrier to international mobility - and they are not confined to Generation Y-ers in the west. There were nods of recognition from several of the people around the table when one participant in the discussion spoke of his company’s struggle to persuade Chinese nationals to work outside China. Yet once they do leave, it can be difficult to persuade them to go back home.
Managing mobility
One way to avoid these problems is to recruit people who are pre•disposed to be globally minded - which is the approach taken by ABB. “For the vast majority of jobs it’s very difficult to progress your career beyond a certain level unless you are prepared to up sticks and move,” said Peter Bedford, ABB’s Group SVP and Head of Talent. He described how the engineering group sends talented employees on two-year international development assignments early in their careers, so that by the time they are asked to go on longer assignments they understand what is involved.
But, asked CorporateLeaders’ Partner Jesper Lillelund, who was moderating the discussion, how can global employers keep track of their expatriates and continue to develop them while they are on these longer assignments? Bedford acknowledged that expatriates are sometimes forgotten because they are seen as neither part of the home business nor the host business. For this reason, ABB recently moved responsibility for global mobility away from compensation and benefits - which had concentrated on salary calculations and the mechanics of overseas removals - to the talent function, where the focus is firmly on the expatriates themselves.
“One of the advantages of having an integrated talent function is that we can use processes that build links between expatriates and their home countries,” said Bedford. “Within that talent function we have learning and development, and we can cut and paste our usual coaching and mentoring process into the expatriation. So when an expat goes to the host country, they have a mentor back in their home business unit, in their home country, and that mentoring process helps to retain the link with the expat.”
Operating globally and locally
While global organisations need to be able to move people around the world, they cannot rely on expatriates to run their operations in the way that they did in the past. As one of the HR professionals attending the Executive Briefing put it: “You can’t run a global company from one part of the world.” Pointing to the paradox at the heart of the debate on global mobility, he added: “The world is going global but it’s also local, so to win nationally or regionally you have to have indigenous talent.”
Paul Swinscoe, Director of Business Development at Raytehon Professional Services pointed out that relying on a large expatriate workforce also has serious cost implications. “So we now think very carefully about whether we need expatriates,” he said. “We shrink down the length of their assignments and we encourage local talent. In fact, the expatriate’s key job now is to find a successor locally, and that’s really brought our expatriation costs tumbling down.”
About Raytheon Professional Services
Raytheon Professional Services is a global leader in learning services and outsourcing. Its mission is to help organisations meet their critical objectives by designing, implementing and managing efficient training solutions that align their employees, customers and partners to key goals and business objectives.
Delivered by over 1,000 professionals in 100 countries – and 26 different languages – these training solutions typically start with needs analysis. They can also include:
Training strategy & consulting
Assess the performance of an organization’s training function. Develop organizational training strategies and plans, supported by robust business models. Implement governance models.
Curriculum Architecture, design and development
Design training approaches that blend classroom and hands-on training with Web-, Virtual Classroom or mobile learning. Source, develop, translate and localize training curricula in multiple delivery formats.
Training operations
Optimize and manage training administration and delivery processes. Run client support centers that respond to client inquiries, as well as generate awareness and demand for client training. Deliver training in multiple languages and countries across the globe; working with clients’ extended enterprises in diverse cultures, currencies and regulatory environments. Administer learning management systems on a day-to-day basis.
Training technology
Source and implement learning management systems and support tools.
Training outsourcing
Manage selective or all of a client’s training function in multi-year engagements, with transition and governance activities to ensure alignment, service levels and business results.
Performance consulting
Leverage an organization’s informal structure, highlighted through organizational network analysis. Improve decision-making processes. Enhance cash flow.
For more information, visit our website www.rps.com
About CorporateLeaders
CorporateLeaders is an exclusive independent network that inspires business and leadership by providing a trusted forum for executives to network, exchange ideas, share lessons learned and drive business forward in an ever changing environment.
We focus on providing exclusive membership services, intimate and content rich networking events, research, thought leadership and advice on business transformation with the executive needs and experiences at its core.
For more information, visit our website: www.corporate-leaders.com
