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 Culturally Humble Expat
International assignments are costly, which is why both researchers and practitioners are in constant search for the right formula of successful expatriation. Given that international assignments are meant to be ‘bridging the gaps’, be it in terms of knowledge sharing or the transfer of other resources, good relationships and cooperation between expats and locals seem […]
Latest Insights from Expat Industry Survey
Recently, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), sponsored by UnitedHealthcare Global, surveyed 360 executives from North America and Europe and conducted five in-depth interviews with experts to examine companies’ experiences with global mobility. In the following I will highlight some key report data that caught my eye. • Assignment geography is not about the traditional home […]
Introverts in an Extraverted Global World
How do you feel about big social gatherings? Do you consider yourself outgoing and at ease with blending into a group of strangers? Does your creativity spur in solitude or during team brainstorming? Do you prefer action or contemplation? As you have most probably sensed by now, all of these questions relate to the well-known […]
Spinning the Globe and Picking a Spot?
The latest Mercer quality of life survey shows an updated global city ranking and suggests the best places for relocation. Yet, for global business, the destinations with new opportunities rarely sound familiar.
Expat Health: When Illness is a Matter of Social Integration
It is fairly common knowledge that the more stress one experiences, the higher one’s susceptibility to illness. While the link is not that straightforward and many possible stress mechanisms continue to be under debate the relationship between stress and health is established by now. What I find even more interesting in light of this blog […]
Global Mobility in a Day
Today I would like to share with you one peculiar insight I recently became aware of when planning the forthcoming weeks in my calendar. Specifically, I was invited to attend an event hosted by the Barcelona city council, which is meant specifically for expats in the area. The event is part of a campaign for […]
The Big Escape: When the Grass at Home Has Lost Its Green
Looking through the literature on cross-cultural travellers, you may notice that the adjustment processes and coping mechanisms across different traveller groups, such as expats, immigrants and international students, are quite similar. Yet, one group of cross-cultural travellers does differ, which is the group of refugees. Like other groups, refugees are confronted with demands of adapting […]
What Keeps Expats Awake at Night? Nagging Challenges despite Increased Support
Throughout my blog posts, I aim to raise concerns, challenges, ideas, and possible solutions that relate to expat populations. Speaking about company-initiated assignments, so far the most pronounced expat challenges at the individual level have been family concerns, such as family adjustment and dual-career issues; assignee adjustment in the host country, such as lack of […]
Sending Expats to Emerging Markets: Can You Really Afford That?
If I would be asked to name the most expensive cities in the world, it wouldn’t take me long to come up with an answer. My common sense and travelling experience would suggest Oslo, London, New York, Moscow, Tokyo, Paris and Geneva, for a start. There would probably be some debate about the relative ranking […]
Latest Research: How Does Terrorism Influence Expats?
Going abroad, leaving your own country and comfort zone, has always been viewed as taking some sort of risk. The same is also valid when speaking about companies pursuing international business opportunities, because foreign markets always involve potential country risks, whether of economic, political or cultural sort. In recent years, the list of relevant country […]
Expats in Emerging Markets: Revising Previous Trends?
Exactly two years ago I wrote about emerging markets and the scarcity of talent these markets were experiencing. As the main message read, multinational corporations started actively expanding into emerging markets where they faced a lack of talent because local managers often did not have the necessary set of skills and preparation. As such, emerging […]
The Deep Waters of Global Business Travel
Today global travel in general and global business travel in particular is not really a problem. It still comes at a cost, yet it is a great asset for multinational companies, because they can get the people they need to the locations they want for the duration that is required. There are multiple travel modes, […]
Latest Research: Expatriates as Newcomers Abroad
I believe that at the heart of every entry process, be it a new employee’s entry into an organization, a student’s entry into a new class, or an immigrant’s entry abroad, is a need for adjustment of the newcomer. In other words, whenever there is a change in environment, a need for fitting in arises. […]
The Expat Dilemma: Building New or Keeping Old Relationships
In one of my recent posts, I discussed the cases of expats visiting home, missing the familiarity of it and trying to balance between the ‘new’ (even if temporary) and ‘old’ homes. Continuing on this topic of this double expat life, today I would like to focus on expats’ relationships, and more specifically, their friendships. […]
Expat Homesickness: Is It really that Bad?
Are you an expat, who was assigned to a year-long project abroad, and who feels homesick? I believe, many will understand you. Or are you a spouse, who decided to leave your life back home to accompany your partner, and you feel homesick? Well, that is also quite normal. What if you are an expat, […]
