On a recent family trip to a shopping mall, our younger daughter pointed to a drastically reduced product and enthusiastically lobbied for us to purchase it. After all, it seemed so cheap. The original price was prominently displayed, crossed out, and replaced by a much lower number. The discount appeared irresistible. So I found myself […]
Human Diversity: Benefits for CEOs and Their Companies?
Embracing human diversityis not the strongest side of human nature. Plenty of social psychology concepts and research indicate how we tend to prefer people who are like us, form relationships with people who are alike rather than different, and categorize people similar to us into an ‘in-group’ and dissimilar people into an ‘out-group’. Evolutionary psychologists […]
Dear CEOs, Whose Side Are You on?!
Plato argued that everyone has an obligation to participate in politics… and although the share of the population that actively engages in elections is a challenging issue for many governments, the current reality is possibly closest to Plato’s vision than ever before. If before people would discuss political and social issues around the dining table […]
Global Mobility Functions: So Much to Do, so Little Time
A couple of years ago I wrote a blog post about the changing focus of the global mobility function, which was encouraged to move from a rather administrative to a more strategic role. It seems that today the trend is still relevant and the call for change is even more urgent than before. The recent […]
Gender Gap: From Concepts to Numbers
Gender imbalance is a topic that doesn’t seem to lose its relevance any time soon. Just recently I wrote about gender imbalance and related prospects of the AI economy, yet, today there is another reason to take on the discussion. Following the British government’s regulation of reporting information on the gender-pay gap, employers are gradually […]
‘Saving Globalization’ in Davos
Just about a year ago, I wrote about the feeling of uncertainty in light of globalization struggles and a global populist movement, which seemed to be taking off. The uncertainty and concerns seemed to be a shared mood also during the World Economic Forum in Davos back then. Now, as a year passed and the […]
Gender Imbalance and Prospects of the AI Economy
Gender imbalance has been on the agenda of businesses for quite some time now: women are underrepresented in higher-paying jobs, there are too few women on management and C-suite teams, and the majority of international assignees are also male. Be it our gender bias based on stereotypical gender traits, or congruent upbringing and environmental factors, […]
Into 2018 with Optimism
2018 – here we are! I believe that for many it is exciting to welcome the New Year, as it symbolises the beginning of something new, fills us with new energy and hope. Many times this momentum of a new beginning drives people to conclude ‘the past’ and create all sorts of resolutions and multiple […]
Latest Research: Effective Personality Traits of Expats
One of the traditional and still common purposes of expatriation is managing a foreign subsidiary, hence, traditional expatriate roles are to be found in senior executive levels and senior management teams. Given the responsibilities attached to these positions, and the costs of expatriation for the organization, the importance of success for such international assignments can […]
Cyber Security: A ‘Must Have’ for Global Businesses
In today’s volatile conditions business leaders need to account for many risks. For example, data from a recent survey by the World Economic Forum (WEF) shows that global leaders identify several economic, geopolitical, social and technological risks, with the first five priorities being: Unemployment or Underemployment (1st), Fiscal Crises (2nd), Failure of National Governance (3rd), […]
Gig Economy and Psychological Well-Being
It is quite difficult to have a clear and coherent picture of how the future of work will look like with all the driverless cars, automated jobs and new human-only careers. At the same time, it is equally difficult to imagine the future with traditional 9-to-5 jobs, isn’t it? Although there is quite some uncertainty […]
On Brexit, No-Deal Brexit and Their Consequences
On June 23rd, 2016, the UK voted to leave the European Union, and the departure is scheduled for 29th of March, 2019. Last month, UK Prime Minister Theresa May went to Florence to deliver her vision on a post-Brexit UK and its relationship with the EU. The speech was aimed to deliver the message that […]
Gender Gap: A Debate That Simply Doesn’t Age
Tolerance, diversity and equality are persistent topics in global business, which I occasionally write about. Specifically, I have repeatedly touched upon the topic of gender inequality, writing about the underrepresentation of women in management, the gender gap within the expat community, and lack of equality for women in the workplace overall. Recently I came across […]
‘Going from Hands to Heads to Hearts’
Thinking about our future can be tough at times. In this blog I write about trends, important developments and influential events at a global scale, which lately often translates into the keywords of volatility, protectionism, populism, globalization threats, and automation. So, what is the future of work on the global basis? Certainly unclear and, clearly, […]
Corporate Philanthropy in the Aftermath of Natural Disaster: The Latest Research
The past few months have been like an endless series of natural disasters. First, there were the devastating floods in South Asia during the summer. Then, starting at the end of August, the U.S. got hit by hurricanes: Hurricane Harvey in Houston and Hurricane Irma in Florida. Simultaneously, Hurricane Katia battered Mexico, which in early […]
Life of Expats: Latest Industry Survey
According to the Internations expat community there are an estimated 56 to 57 million expatriates worldwide. These are the people who decided to move abroad either permanently or temporarily, live outside of their home locations, adjust to a foreign environment, and balance between at least two cultures. Where do people relocate, why, and what are […]
The Global Gig Economy
The days of ‘life-long’ careers within the same organisation, long-term stability of a signed job contract, guaranteed relevance of the skills acquired in university, and predictable work routines are long gone. Today, a CV with no updates within a 5-7 year period signifies career stagnation, rather than progression; the majority of skills need to be […]
