MOVE Guides’ CEO and talent mobility expert, Brynne Herbert highlights key themes driving successful talent mobility and why deploying talent on a global scale is a key competitive differentiator for the 21st century organisation. This piece was originally featured on Changeboard.
HR at the forefront
Today, technology has made the world a smaller place. And with Millennials entering the job market and seeking the opportunity to work abroad, organisations of all sizes need to be more global than ever. This means being able to attract the right talent where they need it most, beyond the geographical limits. With the talent pool becoming global, companies – and HR teams at the forefront – face an unprecedented opportunity.
To make the most of this opportunity, it is essential to have a talent mobility strategy in place that is aligned to the business objectives as much as HR’s. As companies move employees around the world for work — whether new hires, short and long term assignments or projects — they must implement a mobility programme that empowers top talent while being efficient from an operational and financial perspective.
The World Economic Forum recently reinforced this in their Human Capital Report for 2015, stating: “Talent not capital will be the key factor linking innovation, competitiveness and growth in the 21st century.” But unfortunately, many organisations are falling short on this claim.
Increase your mobile talent offering
Recent research shows that 89% of companies plan to increase their mobile talent (PwC), 60% of companies feel global mobility is important or critically important to meeting their talent agenda (Deloitte), but only 8% believe their mobility programme is world class (PwC).
Laden with inefficient processes, overwhelmed mobility teams, compliance risks and disengaged employees, organisations cannot delay a thorough review of their current mobility programmes and must look at ways to implement best in class practices.
Having lived and worked abroad in the USA, EMEA and APAC, I have gained unique insight into what it means to move talent across the world – as both an employee and employer – and I believe that organisations should leverage talent mobility as a key competitive differentiator for success. Below, I have highlighted the top talent mobility themes that are currently driving international growth for the 21st century global organisation.
Be technology-enabled
Josh Bersin from Bersin by Deloitte recently stated that: “the HR technology landscape, which is now more than a $15 billion market in software, is exploding with growth and innovation,” but this has yet to happen for talent mobility. As the last mile of HR automation, talent mobility must adopt best in class technology – specifically cloud systems – into its culture to enable higher HR efficiency and improved employee satisfaction.
Cloud technology is also a strategic tool for cost containment in talent mobility. Leveraging the cloud, HR and mobility teams save valuable time and resources that can be reinvested into strategic initiatives rather than manual processes that take hours. Also, greater transparency around data enables HR, mobility and finance to make more informed decisions around flight risks and spend.
Have a global mindset
A recent study from Everline found that the UK economy could lose £18 billion because of over half a million in job vacancies that businesses cannot fill due to the lack of qualified skills. Companies are increasingly looking outside of local markets to recruit talent and fill these urgent skills gaps.
The ability to access talent and skills from abroad is creating a much larger talent pool for companies and facilitates diversity within teams. Having a global workforce promotes more innovation and creativity throughout the business. With diversity from all around the world, you have a wide-range of experiences, perspectives and backgrounds that are critical to driving business growth and creating new ideas.
Promote career development abroad
Working and living abroad can be a life changing experience that opens up incredible opportunities to immerse oneself in a new environment and quickly learn how to adapt.
A great talent mobility programme also helps companies to create a stronger leadership pipeline. A recent study by Deloitte stated: “Global leadership and pipeline was selected by a third of companies as the global mobility issue most critical to their organisations’ successes.” As employees travel and work in new cities they can grow a broader professional circle and develop new skills sets that may not have been available in their home markets.
Keep employees engaged
As most companies would agree, it is just as important to attract top talent, as it is to retain and keep them engaged. This is a hot topic in the HR world, especially as companies find it extremely difficult to meet this standard. For example, a recent study by Engage for Success found that only a third of UK employees are highly engaged at work.
As the demand for global opportunities increases, talent mobility can be an excellent solution to keep employees engaged. Employees feel valued and trusted by the opportunity to work abroad and their organisation benefits from greater employee productivity and satisfaction – a win, win situation.
A recent Harvard Business Review article stated that: “Businesses don’t create value; people do.” This is especially true for talent mobility. As businesses increasingly expand beyond borders and look into emerging markets for growth opportunities, talent is a number one priority driving success in the 21st century organisation.
Contact info@moveguides.com to learn how MOVE Guides makes it easy to deploy talent across the world, helping companies like Societe Generale, Adobe and many more to improve the efficiency of their mobility programs – without compromising on employee satisfaction.