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Blog

The Future of Mobility

  • By Expat
  • June 10, 2016

There has been a shift in dynamics within the relocation industry in the last 15 years.  Where before relocation was seen as a means to an ends, it has now become an integrated part of how businesses consider relocating an employee. Relocation is no longer about filling a gap in the work place it has now moved to forward to address the ongoing mobility needs of a client and the needs of an industry.
Mobility has changed to an endeavour to optimise the deployment of human capital. The main mobility priority is to have the right skills in the right place at the right time. While internal growth of a company is something that is highly prized within in any industry, the talent that can provide such expansion can be hard to find. As companies begin to realise that what’s best for the company may not be as easy as looking in their back yard to find the right talent, they also need to understand where mobility fits into the equation and what their best approach to relocating might be.
This is where relocation companies become more than just a logistics component of a project.  Programs provided by relocation companies have moved beyond the tradition concerns of logistics, compensation and tax issues. In this current day and age mobility means integrating a diverse selection of approaches to meet a diverse selection of talent demographics, in an environment where organizations need more to move talent seamlessly, while monitoring risk and compliance, coasts and return on investment.
There hasn’t just been a change in the way that the relocation industry has adapted to suit the needs of its clients. As technology becomes more advanced so too does the relocation sector. One of the largest challenges faced within relocation is the ability to maintain clear communications with the assignee and their company as well as to ensure that the assignee has a good understanding of their surroundings.  This is where relocation comes into its own as new external services like skype provide an ideal solution to communicating over long distances, added to that there is software specifically developed to provide an easy to access portal to relevant information specific to that location. For example, through the implementation of the My Expat Guide (provided by Expat International), assignees have local information at their fingertips.  From governmental changes to visa’s, to where to enjoy an evening meal, technology has bolstered the way the relocation industry interacts with its clients. This new style of mobility has the ability to accommodate assignees no matter the demographics. This is important due to industry knowledge concerning shifting age demographics that have predominance in the workforce. Relocating is no longer a services that requires a cookie cut employee to tick every box as the affordances provided by relocation technology is now inclusive to all that are given the opportunity to move for their work.
Mobility is without a doubt a different industry from what it once was.  Where before it concentrated on the pure logistical side of the business it has now flourished into an integral part of any company looking to expand its reach or find new talent. With a more comprehensive range of services that relocation companies (like Expat International) can provide there is a definitive demand for quality relocation firms within the industry as organisation are beginning to understand that there is a lot more that goes into relocating an assignee then moving them from one location to another.   Because of this, the relocation industry will continue to become more and more relied upon as demand for overseas workers, and company expansion offshore becomes more mainstreamed.
Organisations that combine relocation through their mobility services and offer in house visa assistance and consultation are becoming more invaluable to companies looking to move employees offshore or internationally. It is this collaboration between immigration and relocation that is paving the way for future development within the industry and providing a set of services that has now become integral to other organisations mobility needs.