Getting to know the TEMi Taskforce: Astrid Vaughan Hofstee
The TEMI Taskforce is made up of experienced global mobility professionals who volunteer their time to support TEMi initiatives and events, and offer mentorship to junior practitioners. Go behind the scenes and get to to know more about our Taskforce volunteers in this new interview series with Taskforce members – and be sure to reach out to LinkedIn if you want to know more!
Q&A with Astrid Vaughan Hofstee
Astrid is the Remuneration and Global Mobility Manager at Swinburne University of Technology and has over 18 years’ experience in the industry, including roles with EY, Cartus, KPMG and the Royal Dutch Navy.
Q: Tell us a bit about yourself?
Astrid: I’ve been in the industry over 18 years now. I was first assigned the role of Financial Administrator in the Mobility team of the Royal Dutch Navy at age 18, with no knowledge of mobility, I feel lucky I was assigned a role that became my passion and career. Since the steep learning curve in the Navy, I have moved to different roles within the industry as well as moved countries from the Netherlands, to Hong Kong, to Australia and I have been learning each step along the way. Currently I am the Remuneration and Global Mobility Manager at Swinburne University of Technology, and I am challenged and learn from again a different part of our industry. Where my previous employers such as KPMG, EY (& their clients) & Cartus (in-house at Goldman Sachs) had mature Mobility functions with large teams, Swinburne is in an earlier phase, writing and implementing central policies and a focus on global mobility compliancy.
Q: What is the most rewarding/exciting aspect about working in the Talent Mobility Industry today?
Astrid: Honestly, what I find most rewarding about the industry has not changed since I started – working closely together and/or supporting people from all over the world, no relocation/assignment is the same, no day is the same.
Where in my past roles, I managed relocations and had the pleasure working closely together with relocating families and be part of the relocation excitement. In my current role, I am working on the policy development / compliancy side of the profession and the impact of my role is University wide which is so exciting.
Q: Why is having a community focused industry group like TEMI important?
Astrid: For me, TEMI has been super important for several reasons; as I am new to Australia in 2019, I learned so much from my fellow TEMI members on the nuances, rules and regulations in Australia. Secondly, as a standalone role within the University, I lean on the network for advice and staying up to date with the mobility industry, learn what the industry is doing and what would be beneficiary for the University. And finally, I made some great friends through the network, friends who I can text for work related things or better; a fun coffee, lunch or dinner date.
Q: What motivated you to join TEMI’s team of volunteers?
Astrid: Very much due to the above reasons. I felt very welcome to the network since I joined and got a lot of energy from hearing / speaking to all the members doing such exciting (and sometimes not exciting) things within their companies hence it’s been very rewarding being part of the Award program and getting to connect regarding a potential nomination and in a later stage be part of the interview stage.
Q What excites you most about where the profession is headed and the impact it’s making? Astrid: The world is “smaller” than ever and the idea of living abroad for a temporary time seems to be normalized. Over 30 countries offer Digital Nomad visas, unfortunately tax, social security and legal rules and regulations are complex and stop the Digital Nomad to become reality for most. Companies don’t (all) have the know-how, time and/or funds to explore requests and are likely to be cautious and reject or restrict work remote request.
I am excited to see how the Digital Nomad Visa (including tax etc), working from anywhere policies and hybrid working will evolve from a mobility professional (as well as a personal) perspective.
