This article series offering short overviews of numerous key topics and trends in the field of global mobility is available in one PDF for your convenience.
By Olivier Meier, Mercer
It’s Time to Accelerate
- While some companies are making progress, the percentage of women in the expatriate workforce globally is still a paltry 14%, with best performing industries and countries lingering in the 20–30% range. Parity is a long way off.
- Having international experience is a pre-condition to reaching top managerial levels within many multinational companies. Furthermore, international assignments allow employees to develop essential skills and build a network that can boost their career.
- It’s not just a mobility question: the low participation of women in the assignee talent pool can put a brake on gender equality at leadership levels. It’s a strategic talent issue.
- Global Mobility should be part of the solution and help women break the glass ceiling rather than be part of the problem.
What Are the Challenges?
- There are unconscious biases in management and HR thinking that can influence the assignee selection process.
- Female mobility candidates could be discriminated, but also disqualify themselves, due to lack of perceived support for themselves and their families.
- The real degree of hardship for women in each location should be assessed objectively.
- Issues should be discussed when the talent pool is being created, not later in the selection process.
How to Make Progress?
Create Awareness and Review Policies from a Different Perspective
Bring the discussion about gender parity to the front and discuss how to move away from the traditional long-term male expatriate model.
Review Benefits and Allowances with Diversity in Mind
Without completely changing your policies, make sure that they include specific measures such as day care or spousal support to facilitate global mobility of women. Alternatively, provide the flexibility to re-purpose existing allowances or lump-sums that can used to address the needs of female assignees or minorities.
Ensure Practical Implementation: Communication, Coaching, and Mentoring
All too often employees and their spouses are not aware of the support offered by the company. Talk openly about diversity in your policies and encourage internal discussion on this topic. Communicate about role models and success stories.
Work Closer with Diversity Teams
Make sure that the mobility team is in contact with the diversity team and can provide input on mobility issues. Gender parity and diversity are important topics for companies. It’s an opportunity for mobility teams to play a strategic role and help solve a major talent management issue.
Measure Success
Use workforce progression analyses to measure the career progression of female assignees, employee attitude surveys to capture female assignee feedback, as well as other indicators such as pay progression analyses that could indicate that there are gender gap issues in general.
Contact the author: Olivier Meier
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