Vice President, Global Client Services
SIRVA Relocation
Julian has over 25 years global mobility and human resources experience having held assignments in the
Julian holds a business degree with a minor in human resources, and is also a Chartered Member of the U.K. Institute of Personnel and Development (CMIPD).
Some companies have very sophisticated well-thought-through global mobility programs that have been tried and tested for many years. Others are stepping into the global arena for the first time. Either way it doesn’t hurt to check the health of your global mobility program and consider what I would believe to be the 10 best practices to ensure your global relocation program is a successful one.
10 Best Practices to Ensure a Successful Global Relocation
For more information on the above global mobility program components and services, please contact SIRVA Relocation for a consultation.
In case you haven’t noticed there have been some significant exchange rate movements in the past few months due to the global financial crisis that is churning. International HR professionals are well aware of this and so are expatriates whose compensation packages appear to be impacted by such movements.
For example, the U.S. dollar has declined significantly since late 2006; it then rebounded abruptly in the Fall of 2008. Five currencies have experienced noticeable changes in the last two months, the Australian Dollar (AUD), the Brazilian Real (BRL), the Canadian Dollar (CAD), the British Pound (GBP) and the South-Korean Won (KRW).
So what should companies do about this? First, they should use specialist third party organizations such as ORC and Air Inc. to provide advice on cost-of-living data and other related information to help provide accurate solutions. These companies use complex formulas to track cost-of-living and related exchange rates to minimize the negative financial impact that currency fluctuations can have on expatriates living under one currency but being remunerated in another currency.
Such currency volatility is not unprecedented, and urgent action is not normally required as long as allowances and payments are reviewed frequently; for example moving to a quarterly review may be worth considering. Only where inflation is running out of control should exchange rates be considered more frequently (e.g. Zimbabwe), but in these extreme cases, a local currency should be avoided if possible.
Below are some solutions that should be considered:
For assistance in reviewing your company’s global mobility policies and process related to expatriate compensation, please contact SIRVA.
In the article Global Mobile Talent—Retention on the Move, published in the August issue of MOBILITY, Silvia Molnar addresses not only the importance of nurturing globally experienced talent in an increasingly global economy but the issue of retaining this talent. Molnar, a client partner at MSI Mobility, begins the article stating that “talent has been declared scarce and, once acquired, increasingly difficult to keep engaged and retained.”
Molnar explains the dilemma: expatriate experience is a critical step in the development of a leader; however sending an individual abroad requires a significant long term investment and increases the risk of loss.
She then introduces six fundamentals of retention that can be used as a guide for increasing your return on talent investment. Molnar stresses investing time for clarification and planning in the beginning of the expatriation process will enable you to build relationships with your future leaders and will return greater dividends in the end. Read more..
Improving Accent Through Training
A foreign national’s accent may impede their communication ability, even though they are fluent in English. Research indicates accents are caused mostly through differences in rhythm and stress, as well as difficulty in making certain sounds linguistically. A common example is putting an emphasis on the wrong syllable.
Accent is almost impossible to improve without training. Speakers seldom can hear what they are mispronouncing and even if a listener points it out to them, they are unlikely to know how to correct it.
For example, certain regions mix up L and R sounds because they cannot hear the difference, they may not notice a mispronunciation, but others may not be able to understand what they trying to communicate.
Accent reduction training is provided by universities and private training companies where individuals are trained how to identify incorrect pronunciations and how to exercise their mouth and tongue to correct the problem. Other teaching methods include mimicry, which helps students correct pronunciation, rhythm and stress by watching videos of native language speakers, then mimicking what they hear and see, including body language.
Typically, most training programs incorporate individualized programs developed as a result of a comprehensive speech analysis. These programs mostly last between ten and 20 sessions. For some, improvement can be seen immediately, but it can also take between three and six months for others.
Most programs can be provided one-on-one or in a classroom setting. Classroom programs generally take longer and are less expensive than one-on-one tutoring but one-on-one tutoring is more effective and quicker.
Linguistics Plays a Part
Accent and grammar are usually established by ages six and twelve respectively. In order to help someone change their accent, an instructor needs to be a linguistics specialist and have the knowledge of a speech therapist.
A language school may claim to provide this training, but beware, a language instructor will not have the skills and training of a linguistics professional.
Accents are influenced by the tongue, lip position, vocal cords and air movement through the mouth or nose; instructors must be able to show students how to manipulate these in order to limit mispronunciations as a result of their accent.
Many companies offer language training to international corporate relocation transferees, though few offer accent modification training which is often required more than traditional language training.
Companies often dismiss accent modification as being too expensive, or because they feel there is little that can be done to correct the problems caused by accents. In fact, there is much that can be done to correct accent-related problems, and as companies research the various options available they will find that it is surprisingly cost effective and beneficial.
Let me know if you require a referral to an accent modification specialist.
View the Webinar
fundamentals of relocation webinar
Thursday, May 22, 2008
1:00 p.m. EST (10:00 a.m. PT)
Speaker: David Barlow, SCRP, GMS, Senior Vice President, Client Support Services, SIRVA
Duration: One hour
This "relocation 101" webinar is designed for new relocation professionals, procurement managers and supply chain managers who would like an overview of relocation fundamentals, and for anyone who wants to stay current with the latest policy trends and best practices.
This session will provide a brief history of the industry, and a broad overview of the relocation process, including a review of the terms and concepts most common to relocation policy development and implementation. The discussion will include household goods and temporary living options, the home sale process based on IRS Revenue Rulings, and industry trends such as lump-sum benefits and high-cost area assistance.
Register at https://van.webex.com/van/j.php?ED=91994767&RG=1
Details for joining the session will be included in the registration confirmation e-mail
In recent years there has been a significant shift from companies sending their employees on long-term assignments to short-term assignments. A long-term assignment is typically a one to three year assignment, although some may last five years or longer. Short-term assignments are typically 3 to 12 months.
So why the shift?
The most obvious reason is an attempt to control cost. Most short-term assignment policies have less generous benefits attached to them and they are often single status, so the view is that the cost is less. This is not always the case though, as the cost is highly dependent on tax complexities caused by the home and host country tax rules, and the individual’s income and personal situations.
Other less obvious reasons are that employees are turning down the opportunity to take a long-term assignment. They are turning them down because of the following reasons:
Security and terrorism concerns are higher on individual’s agendas than they used to be. Employees do not want to expose their families to such risks, real or perceived.
A much larger percentage of families now have dual careers, so when one member is offered a career development opportunity overseas, it means the other member has to give up their own promising career. For both personal and financial reasons the option to take the assignment is less attractive.
The age old problem of re-entry to the home office after a lengthy assignment is still alive and well. An assignee comes back after three years and is faced with unfamiliar faces, values and yes, politics from when he left. Unless there has been some very good career planning the assignee will often be slotted into a position that lacks challenge compared to his overseas role.
Short-term assignments can be a good alternative solution to long-term assignments to avoid some of these issues. A short-term assignment means the employee can either go on single status or the spouse can take a sabbatical without damaging their own career. A shorter time out of the home office is less likely to impact the employee’s career opportunities.
Many companies have realized this and have come to terms with the concept of shorter assignments. Deciding if they are indeed less expensive is a future topic for discussion.
As a kick-off to my blog, A Closer Look at Global Relocation, I wanted to introduce myself and explain what I plan to discuss over the next couple months.
As a global relocation services leader, I am in contact with a variety of global mobility customers and providers on a day-to-day basis and I’ve found that there are some topics that seem to be of interest to most professionals whenever they relocate employees—be it the U.S., China or anywhere else in the world. Since I have been able to benchmark and study these highly relevant topics, I thought it would make the most sense to start this blog with some of this information. With that said, I will be initiating a discussion on barriers to assignment acceptance and how to overcome them, then I will be covering the latest trends in relocating to and within China and the true cost of an expatriate assignment, how to measure and track—all of which I feel will instigate a solid discussion on the challenges and barriers facing global mobility programs and introduce some best practices for overcoming these obstacles.
Are there any other topics that you feel would be relevant to cover? I am open to suggestions.
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