Employers reveal biggest mobility challenges in 2023
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International travel is back, and new research reveals the top priorities and challenges for HR professionals in global mobility
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AS INTERNATIONAL travel well and truly rebounds, a rising number of employees are expecting to travel for work – whether for a long-term assignment, a permanent move or a short-term business trip.
Employers clearly have similar expectations. Cartus’ pulse survey report What does your global mobility program look like for 2023? found that 37% of respondents expected move volumes to increase this year, with 36% expecting to move between 100 and 500 relocating employees. The report notes that mobility “remains critical to business”, though employers are also encountering new challenges when it comes to remote work, self-initiated moves and compliance for business travellers.
When asked about top global mobility priorities for 2023, employers identified three key areas. Employee experience was the top focus, likely due to the difficulties experienced by
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“Globally, while companies strive to deliver an inclusive and positive relocation experience for their employees, we are also grappling with multiple challenges, including supply chain slowdowns, escalating costs and complex immigration requirements”
Karen Wilks,
Cartus
Program optimisation was the second priority, with mobility managers looking to adopt more tech-based solutions to optimise the way they deliver mobility. Finally, with rapid digitisation and a rising number of remote workers, compliance came in third place. This isn’t surprising, as employers will increasingly need to balance adhering to local and global laws while also providing their employees and future talent with the mobility and flexibility they want.
According to Karen Wilks, vice president, strategic growth at Cartus, the top three priorities for employers are “all intrinsically linked”, but overcoming the new challenges won’t be easy.
“I'm not surprised that employee experience is the top priority,” Wilks says.
“Globally, while companies strive to deliver an inclusive and positive relocation experience for their employees, we are also grappling with multiple challenges, including supply chain slowdown, escalating costs and complex immigration requirements.
“Faced with all these challenges, we acknowledged that improving employee experience while overcoming these hurdles will be an uphill task.”
David Pascoe, executive senior vice president, global talent mobility, EMEA and APAC, Cartus, notes that relocation plays a significant role within many organisations, and that has increased pressure on HR and mobility professionals. Many are struggling with a lack of resources as well as the increasing complexity of mobility support required by assignees and the wider needs of the business.
“If we consider the increase in distributed workforces, for example, HR and mobility professionals can often feel overwhelmed by the volume of remote work requests they receive, not to mention the need to meet often-changing and complex immigration laws,” Pascoe says.
In fact, according to Cartus’ Remote Work Landscape pulse survey report, 25% of respondents estimate that managing remote work requests may take up to 40 hours per month. Whether it's about remote work, cost containment or competition for talent, without a robust solution in place – such as integrated technology or partnering with a relocation services provider – key mobility priorities like these can become a significant challenge, impacting the productivity and overall success of HR and mobility teams.
inclusionary language are “great first steps” to helping employees feel like they belong.
“Mobility professionals have been gaining an important role at the management table in strategising mobility policies and ensuring equitable access to global mobility opportunities to expand their access to a diverse talent pool,” Wilks says.
“This includes addressing unconscious bias, as it has a significant impact on hiring and talent development; creating inclusive policies and language to promote inclusion; and providing support for underrepresented groups such as women and LGBTQ+.”
As we move into 2023, Wilks says HR professionals will be expected to design mobility policies that align with their companies’ DEI priorities and deliver a positive relocation experience to employees.
To address some of these issues, Wilks is hosting the second season of Mobility Matters, the official Cartus podcast, which will focus on optimising the employee experience. Within this theme, episodes will cover a wide range of topics, from cultivating a sense of belonging to defining true inclusion in the workplace.
Wilks notes that mobility ties directly into DEI and the podcast will discuss the role of mobility policies in supporting a diverse range of employees and their families.
“DEI principles can be applied to assignee selection and the initial move to ongoing intercultural and language support,” she explains.
“By providing more inclusive language or flexible benefits in mobility programs, we offer employees a more inclusive and equitable relocation experience, providing a solid foundation for their long-term career growth within the company.”
Cartus’ Mobility Matters podcast has already concluded its first season, and Wilks says the upcoming second season will “capture and explore” that same momentum.
Click here for Mobility Matters episodes.
“Our ultimate goal is to ensure our listeners leave each episode with key takeaways they can implement in their day-to-day roles,” Wilks says.
“We've already begun planning many of the upcoming episodes. I can't wait to have some truly valuable conversations with folks across the global mobility industry and beyond, hearing about their personal experiences and expertise. We are sure to learn a lot from each other.”
Subscribe to our blog for the latest podcast or update on global mobility news.
Bonus Episode: Take a Deep Dive into our 2023 Internship and Co-op Program Pulse Survey Report (cartus.com)
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Employee experience an “uphill task”
Published 10 Jul 2023
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“By providing more inclusive language and flexible benefits in mobility programs, we offer employees a more inclusive and equitable relocation experience, providing a solid foundation for their long-term career growth within the company”
Karen Wilks,
Cartus
Employee
experience
Program optimisation
Compliance
TOP THREE MOBILITY PRIORITIES
FOR EMPLOYERS
employees in 2022 due to supply chain slowdowns, complex immigration requirements and a lack of affordable temporary accommodation worldwide.
When asked about the biggest mobility challenges in 2023, employers identified three key areas: rising costs; talent availability and deployment; and the evolution of mobility to include remote work and self-initiated moves.
It’s no secret that travel has become expensive. Employers are increasingly looking for ways to reduce costs and offset market increases. However, the good news is that mobility costs are largely expected to decrease with rising availability of accommodation and a return to timely shipment of goods.
Attracting key talent also continues to be a concern, but offering some level of choice and flexibility will almost always help employers retain their best people. To support diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), the report notes that proactively reviewing mobility policies and adding
Battling costs, retention and constant change
Source: Cartus pulse survey report:
What does your mobility program look like for 2023?
Top three mobility challenges
for employers
Rising
global costs
Talent availability and deployment
Evolution
of mobility
Source: Cartus pulse survey report:
What does your mobility program look like for 2023?
“Our ultimate goal is to ensure our listeners leave each episode with key takeaways they can implement in their day-to-day roles,” Wilks says.
“We've already begun planning many of the upcoming episodes. I can't wait to have some truly valuable conversations with folks across the global mobility industry and beyond, hearing about their personal experiences and expertise. We are sure to learn a lot from each other.”
Subscribe to our blog for the latest podcast or update on global mobility news.
Bonus Episode:
“Our ultimate goal is to ensure our listeners leave each episode with key takeaways they can implement in their day-to-day roles,” Wilks says.
“We've already begun planning many of the upcoming episodes. I can't wait to have some truly valuable conversations with folks across the global mobility industry and beyond, hearing about their personal experiences and expertise. We are sure to learn a lot from each other.”
Subscribe to our blog for the latest podcast or update on global mobility news.
Bonus Episode: