Okay, let’s start with your top-of-the-range global talent mobility solution. What is the most advanced product you have on the market for global talent mobility professionals right now? Our assignment management software including ‘assignee portal’ technology is our most popular software solution for global talent mobility professionals from large organisations that have the scale required to realise the significant cost-savings and efficiencies it offers.
The assignee portal offers the right information to the right assignee, at the right time, so they get the best possible assignee experience, instead of being lumped with ‘the manual’ at the beginning of the onboarding process, before they are ready for it. From an administrative perspective, the technology allows organisations to streamline and customise each step in the assignee journey and prompt only the most relevant information at that time, so assignees are prompted to review and action manageable chunks of information, when they are open to receiving it and ready to action it.
For example, step one might look like ‘welcome, here’s your assignment letter, this is what you do with it,’ and when that action is completed, it might trigger a briefing or health check – or whatever the next step might be – specific steps and sequences tend to vary from organisation to organisation. In planning the journey well in advance and automating as many of these steps as possible, the global talent mobility professional is able to map the journey strategically, in the most efficient way for their organisation, instead of managing multiple assignees with varying needs day-to-day.
A portal can deliver information, prompt action and also act as a repository of important information, such as the documentation for the assignment, important contacts on the ground, policies and so on.
The information, prompts and repository can all be customised for each assignee – so only those employees who are registered as having a spouse or children will receive information, prompts and policies relating to spouses or children, for example. The software is capable of offering a very personalised experience, which translates into more efficiencies and time saved for the global talent mobility professional.
That sounds incredible. But what if you don’t have the budget for an assignee portal with all of the bells and whistles yet? What technology can you offer to streamline processes for smaller organisations?
Where the assignee population is smaller, an assignee portal might not be the most effective use of budget, but there are still a number of technologies that organisations can use to streamline processes.
Automated cost estimates
For example, our automated cost estimate solutions help predict, assess and communicate to all stakeholders the cost of international assignments, which can help optimise a global mobility program, identify areas for improvement and demonstrate the value of a global mobility program to a business. More and more companies require a cost estimate to be prepared as part of the approval process for potential assignments, to ensure they are correctly budgeted for. The estimates can also be factored into the overall cost of a project to help ensure margins are maintained.
Country profiles
Another simple way of increasing efficiency might be to outsource the country information provided to assignees.. We deliver standard country profiles as well as customised, organisation-specific country profiles, often through intranets. The profiles offer assignees the most up-to-date, relevant information about becoming an expatriate in a country without having to sift through Google or asking the internal talent mobility professional to do this on their behalf. Organisation-specific information sitting within a country profile might include where the office is located and the most accessible and appropriate suburbs to consider living in – however the detail here can be tailored to the degree that suits.
Calculators
We offer lots of other calculators to help reduce reliance on time-consuming spreadsheets, such as build-up salary calculators which take into account allowances and benefits and net-to-net calculators which analyse the differences in tax and living costs to generate like-for-like salaries.
Great, so there are options for all budgets! We love hearing about new technologies and which technologies are working well for global talent mobility professionals right now – thanks for taking the time to chat with us Anna.
TEMI readers – were you aware of all of the above? Was this information useful to you? What would you like to hear more about? We’re here to help! Email us at temiconnect@employeemobility.com.au with your content requests. Or, if you’re ready to talk technology improvement in your organisation, contact Anna Michielsen at ECA International on anna.michielsen@eca-international.com.
About Anna Michielsen
Anna Michielsen is ECA’s General Manager for Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific. At ECA Anna’s focus is on optimising client mobility programs and ensuring clients utilise ECA data and software to their best advantage. Prior to joining ECA Anna gained extensive industry experience in the Technology, Finance and FMCG sectors as well as Australian Government agencies in roles encompassing generalist HR and Reward. Her background includes major organisational projects in the areas of reward and recognition, employee engagement and organisational values transformation.
