This is our third post on Onboarding, after looking a call for a targeted approach, and looking the specifics of onboarding leaders, we now talk about onboarding of international assignees.
International assignees are a very special case for onboarding. The other side of the coin is though that they in fact in many cases receive little attention. Well, of course companies have their welcome and first steps procedures in place, but beyond that structured onboarding is rare.
When addressing this shortcoming global mobility experts point to the specific issues that make onboarding for international assignees a challenge. For example understanding the local culture, dual career questions or losing touch with friends and family. These are all important issues to be taken into account.
We focus today on aspects that do not very frequently appear in these discussions. These are the COMPANY INTERNAL DYNAMICS of international relocations.
An international assignee does not onboard a new company. But being suddenly located at a totally new point of this system does change the perspective on the company considerably from the point of view of internal functioning. Also, as Fons Trompenaars, well-known expert in international management, puts it: subsidiaries might not have much more in common with headquarters as the same name.
The assignee comes with a whole background of relations, connections, a network and a respective position and standing. International relocation means a complete re-positioning. It necessitates an inner and outer re-positioning. Just an example: I think everybody having relocated to a new country knows the surprise when realizing how soon one is “out of sight out of mind” for former colleagues and local networks. This can entail a feeling of loss of standing.
Assignments within each international company do have their “cultural” significance (as part of the corporate culture). So every international assignee enters into a whole system of meanings, stories, prejudices, stereotypes as well as positive and negative experiences surrounding the issue of international moves. To ignore this dimension means to ignore vital factors which might influence the successful or not flawed onboarding.
assignments come with a specific focus and objective: either defined or vague (or sometimes even with a “hidden-agenda”). How this is communicated from “home to host”, how this addressed in the new location – especially if the objectives imply a “change of tack” and how it is handled – promoted, supported or managed if it is contentious – this must be an essential part of onboarding.
Onboarding international assignees at the host location is a corporate issue as well as a personal issue. Investing time and energy in thoughtful onboarding of international asignees pays back by avoiding misunderstandings, frustrations and mistakes later on.
What’s your experience❓
This is the last part of a series of three – you may want to review the others …
