Pressure and Complexity in Global Mobility on the rise
Today we announce the results of its ‘Taking Care of Global Mobility’ research – produced in collaboration with industry experts and thought leaders Santa Fe Relocation and Expatise Academy.
The research examines the challenges of Global Mobility (GM) for human resource professionals in 2024 and proposes practical frameworks to enhance their own wellbeing and effectiveness.
Pressure and complexity rise
The research finds that a significant majority of GM and International HR professionals report an increase in pressure and an 88% increase in the complexity over the past two years.
Respondents cited greater regulatory, legal, and duty-of-care responsibilities as a driver for this increased complexity and pressure. This should serve as a reminder for businesses to take the opportunity to refocus on the wellbeing of GM professionals.
The research also finds continued growth in cross-border remote working, but more than three quarters (77%) say businesses lack understanding of the requirements that come with it. Businesses will need to close this knowledge gap as a crucial part of their international growth planning.
Leadership awareness
GM professionals also identified negative cycles in dealing with senior leadership and felt that they spent too much time working with external suppliers, and not enough with senior leadership. Two thirds (65%) of respondents felt they would benefit from more engagement and access to C-suite colleagues.
Professionals reported the complexity of being situated in-between employees and management, with 40% feeling they spent too much time seeking approvals while simultaneously having to manage their mobility programmes with non-specialised digital tools.
Dino Jangra, Partner, Workforce Advisory and Global Mobility Services at Crowe said:
“As the prevalence, complexity and pressures of cross-border work continue to rise, it is imperative that preparedness and understanding keep pace. Mobility trends afford businesses a tremendous opportunity in terms of growth, expansion, talent attraction and workforce satisfaction.
“This year’s research spotlights this opportunity, and strongly suggests that a mindset shift is key as we move forward. The organisations that will seize this opportunity and thrive will be those that consult GM professionals in business planning processes. A complex landscape dictates a dedicated response. Leadership teams must harness the expertise of those who understand changes in government legislation impacting work and compliance.”
John Rason, Group Head of Consulting at Sante Fe Relocation, added:
“Traditional GM programmes have evolved in recent years, probably forever, with new international work arrangements and increasing personal expectations from sought after talent. These newer hybrid arrangements require more resources – time, tools and business awareness of the potential people and compliance risks. Effectively, GM professionals potentially now have the whole organisation as their customers, not only the defined programme that they manage.
“GM programme size and maturity are also consideration factors in addressing these complexities and pressures, together with a leadership and HR group who involve and leverage the GM expertise at the right time and not when decisions have been made without their input.
“Educate, demonstrate value and decide which activities are the priorities for the GM team, who are often trying to cope with doing more with the same, or in some cases, less.”
Ernst Steltenpöhl, co-founder and board member of Expatise Academy, said:
“Many employees of multinationals have an international background or the ambition to work internationally. This was one of the reasons that forced remote working during COVID-19 led to a significant increase in cross-border (remote) working.
“The survey painfully highlights that most multinationals have not yet been able to keep pace with these developments or fully integrate international thinking and action into their HR policies.
“Companies that rise to these new challenges and unlock the potential of international HR can gain a competitive advantage by embedding GM into the core of HR. International business is too important to leave the mobility aspect solely in the hands of a small group of GM specialists. It’s time for HR departments to fully embrace a global mindset and act accordingly.”