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More Awareness is Needed to Prove What Global Mobility Programs Can Do for Companies and Talents

Global mobility managers may not be aware of it, but they do have an advantage over some recruiters. It’s their secret weapon in winning the war for high-quality talent: their global mobility programs. Given the correct strategy and effective implementation, they can motivate those candidates looking for overseas work, and likewise encourage high-powered ones not looking to relocate to consider working abroad.

As discussed previously in our blogs, global mobility and the chance to work overseas or in other countries and regions are recently being seen as the stepping stone to leadership roles. Robert Half has documented that chief financial officers in companies believe that having international experience is becoming the prerequisite to top management roles.

The numbers prove this: Hiring of staff with international experience has risen from 59 percent to 81 percent in the past few years.

Employees who aspire to become business leaders do have to acquire a global perspective — and they can achieve that only if they acquire global experience.

It’s not always the case with some traditional companies in some parts of the United States for obvious reasons. Their businesses are concentrated at home, whereas Silicon Valley’s companies are global businesses and empires. Hiring talents with international experience becomes almost imperative.

Many Silicon Valley companies still don’t understand this hiring strategy. Hiring someone from China, India or the Philippines can help them extend and expand their business to those countries — and globally. It’s not about meeting a certain diversity quota. It’s about winning the global market.

Knowing this is half of the battle won for companies as well as global mobility managers who know what will make expats consider a job offer. Plus Relocation gives a few tips on how to maximize this advantage:

First, even if international experience remains a constant source of attraction, global mobility managers must ensure that their package to potential hires must remain competitive.

Assignees who will be relocating to a new country or region of employment might be enthralled by the idea of working in more developed societies, but they still have to see in their contracts that their pay rate keeps them on top of the industry ladder.

Unlikely as it may seem, there are still cases where a local or homegrown company, who is seeking to hire the same candidate, may give the global mobility manager a run for their money by offering international-level salaries. Lesson to the global mobility manager: do not take anything for granted, but do your homework.

Second, the global mobility program can be made to look more attractive to the assignee by highlighting the opportunities it offers. A long-term career is always preferred, but one aspect that can be highlighted is the rotational structure of global mobility. For example, in the early days of global mobility, an assignee may stay in one U.S. company for a few years and advance up the chains of command, and then return to their home country after the end of the contract; if they enjoyed their assignment, then they will knock on doors to get a second one.

But the rotational structure is more flexible and allows the assignees more freedom and space in moving from one overseas assignment to another.

Assignees would perhaps be more motivated to stay and excel if their global mobility managers were to tell them from the beginning:  “This contract which bases you in New York City will only last two years. But do a good job and you will have the option to relocate and work in our office in Northern California after your contract ends. We also have projects with the Silicon Valley tech giants if that interests you.”

Given the trend of globalization in the business sector, global mobility managers just might end up with more assignees than they can handle. It just might need a bit of  a spin and strategic selling to manage the talent pipeline and keep it running.