Global Mobility Managers are increasingly involved in recruiting international talent. This makes a lot of sense when you consider that we have the knowledge and skills to deal with most of the challenges that hiring people from other countries brings. However, since we are not officially responsible in most organizations, we don’t get the necessary resources to handle recruiting professionally. Hence, we can consult but not support. So, dear recruiters, I hope this is helpful. The Search for the Right International Talent “Lifestyle Expats” are an essential factor in today’s global force, and the actual circumstances suggest that the phenomenon is on the rise (Habti & Elo, 2019). Thanks to technological changes, such as online recruiting, the labor market has […]

Since 2008, Patti McCarthy has been helping individuals and businesses navigate the challenges of cultural differences, enabling them to see the bigger picture. As the founder of Cultural Chemistry, Patti draws inspiration from her curiosity about human interactions—why some connections form effortlessly while others clash or even combust. Patti focuses on uncovering cultural blind spots that often lead to poor employee and customer engagement, missed sales opportunities, and strained professional relationships. These blind spots can hinder recognizing people’s potential, building rapport, establishing trust, and maintaining a positive working environment. Her expertise is particularly critical in management, global teams, sales, HR, and mergers & acquisitions. With her tailored programs, Patti empowers international businesspeople and expatriates to overcome cultural naivety, which can […]

Rhoda Bangerter specialises in split family assignments, frequent business travel, and their impact on family life. Rhoda helps parents manage the stress and disconnect from living this life so that they can enjoy the growth and intention this lifestyle can bring. International organisations (foreign service, military, humanitarian and private organisations) are increasingly aware of the specific requirements for staff and their families when on non-family duty stations. Through talks and workshops, Rhoda helps organisations, such as the World Food Program, support their employees when they are regularly sent on international assignments from a month to a couple of years without their partners and children. Having experienced frequent work travel and a split family assignment from the point of view of […]

Did you have another day where you cleaned up your desk, wondered what you had achieved today, and got home to a stack of dishes, a pile of clothes, and a crying son? Did you spend last night driving your daughter to SCUBA class, squeeze in a conference call, and forget that it was your mother’s birthday? Did you then, at 11 pm, sit down thinking, “Why am I not moving on with my life?” Often, we think we are too busy to do the right thing—the book we want to draft, the Ph.D. we want to start, the Master’s thesis we want to finish. We keep putting the start off until we “are ready.” “We do not do what […]

It had never occurred to me that a ballpoint pen is actually refillable. I did not even think that it was using ink. I was never a big fan of the biro, ball pen, or dot pen. How could you even have so many words to describe the same instrument? In high school, the taste and smell made me nauseous.  To motivate me to “get back to school,” I cleaned up all my desk drawers and found two hand-softening silver ink dispensers rolling over a ball. With these two, my handwriting looks as beautiful as that of Daisy, the kitten. Have you ever seen kittens handwrite? Me neither, but she came to mind, and it’s a lovely thought. She sports […]