|
Relocation News
House Building Project
| On the 26th of November 2009 the Corporate Relocations team went to Orange farm to help in building a home for a disadvantaged family. This was done in partnership with Habitat for Humanity. |
|
| |
|
Few Firms Measure ROI for Staff Sent Overseas
After surveying more than 200 multinational companies, consultancy firm Mercer discovered that:
• 44% of those polled do not measure the advantage of international assignments
• only 3% have procedures to monitor the returns of their international assignments
Factors taken into account when measuring returns on investment (ROI) usually include: increase in business profitability and revenue; establishment of a group of skilled and experienced managers; global culture and competencies and whether expatriates achieved the assignment’s objectives. According to Mercer, the majority of firms are now working to enhance the ROI of foreign assignments.
• 70% are working to better convey assignment goals to expatriates
• 50% have overhauled their selection procedure for international assignments
• 43% improved the follow up process with expatriates during the assignment and have enhanced post-assignment management
Other data from Mercer’s survey:
• 50% + noted a rise in single status assignments
• 25% predict a further rise in single status assignments
• 42% promise workers a job upon repatriation
• 75% said workers who work overseas profit from accelerated promotion
• 41% are unaware of the numbers of workers who leave the corporation within 2 years of repatriation
Information Source – Business Times Singapore (10/09/08)
What are we doing for our ‘Young’ Transferees?
Transferees on their first assignment abroad – especially young, single expatriates – often assume that they have a trouble-free paradise in front of them. They not only have their youth, but they are on the first step of the career ladder – often without some of the emotional and physical baggage of their older counterparts – and appear to be able to function without the network of home, family and other social associations.
Being single usually means these young people often lack the emotional and logistical support of a partner. It will be their sole responsibility to handle all the details of the relocation, learn the job and build a social network on their own. It is a somewhat special category in terms of relocation support, where the challenges are to juggle work life and relocation. With intense new cultural exposure – and possibly solitude and loneliness – it is no wonder that these employees are so devoted to their work in the early months after arrival. Their work place is the most comfortable aspect of the relocation process.
On the surface, it appears to be relatively easy for young people to recognize country cultures – they seem to be able to capitalise on similarities without being too bothered by differences. The reality is that they need to be truly adaptable, have the ability to operate in a totally new environment and culture and most importantly, deal with the unfamiliar on a daily basis without the support of family, friends and their social network. This is the real pressure.
- How HR and Relocation Service Providers can support these Young Transferees
- Pre-selection and making the right decision (HR and employee)
- As eager as they are to move with just their laptop and their backpack – they and HR should negotiate and understand the terms of their contract, any hidden or unforeseen costs to ensure there are no misunderstandings
- Provide a Look and See Tour – focussing on a transferee’s budget breakdown (usually tighter than other categories of transferees) together with an understanding of what life in the new location is going to cost: health clubs; eating out, internet and satellite TV; commuting and furniture purchases (young people typically have not accumulated much) – in addition to looking at housing which is put forward as the one aim of a preliminary visit.
- Provide Cross Cultural Training to equip them the tools and coping mechanisms of living and working in a new culture.
- Provide Language Training - if English is not their mother tongue
- Being understanding and supportive – they are expected to operate independently and live in a place where they many not know anyone. Their relationships suffer. Often even long-term partners do not want to join them. Probably being more or less the same age, they too might be at the start of their career and may not perceive any career or education prospects in the new location – and with immigration and labour laws being restrictive for partners, their decision may be not to accompany their partner on his or her assignment. Being apart causes great strain on the relationship and may also make it exceedingly difficult to establish roots in the new environment. More often than not long distance relationships do not work out.
- Once abroad, there is nobody following their career – HR, both locally and at home country head quarters can and
- should play a vital facilitating role in career path management of expatriate assignees.
Corporate Relocations ties up with Cultural Intelligence to offer cross-cultural and diversity training
International research suggests that a death in the family and divorce are the two most stressful experiences that people ever have to experience. Third on that list comes moving – especially to a foreign country.
The emotional roller-coaster that the family of an expatriate employee goes through has been well-researched. They invariably experience a series of emotional highs and lows, the management of which is vital to the ultimate well-being of the family and the success of the assignment. It’s common cause that the most common reason for the failure of an assignment is rooted in some way or another with the assignee’s family.
The process of cultural adjustment to a new country is known as the “W curve”. The stages are typically a seeming honeymoon period, during which the holiday type feeling of a new place push people to an emotional high. That is closely followed by an initial culture shock, often caused by physical difficulties with such things as lack of telecommunications or geographical confusion, and the general strangeness of the environment. The family usually gets over that stage quite quickly, especially if they have been provided with good destination services by their employer.
The second and potentially more damaging shock usually follows a couple of months later. That is when an emotional culture shock kicks in. It is felt more deeply than the initial shock, and typically involves a feeling that one’s own culture just doesn’t match that of the new country. It can lead to isolation and withdrawal, especially if one ignores the local cultures. Typical symptoms could involve fatigue, stereotyping locals, homesickness and tension in the family. It can even lead to clinical depression, and clearly has a significant impact on the assignee and his or her family, even if they are not feeling it as badly.
Outside assistance with the stress of moving involves helping the family recognise the stages that everybody goes through, and giving them strategies for dealing with each phase. If the lows are minimised in terms of depth, and moved through quickly the family will correspondingly pass through to the ultimate stage of thriving in their new environment more quickly.
Cultural differences in the workplace present a somewhat different problem for a newly arrived expatriate assignee. Most experienced expatriates can tell horror stories about strange working practices in places they have been. They may sound amusing in retrospect, but are usually highly frustrating and damaging at the time. The second half of the briefing day is spent examining various behavioural dimensions and understanding the cultural reasons underlying them. The aim is to provide the assignee with psychological tools to make sense of their own view of behaviours they are likely to come across, and advice as to how to cope and succeed with their new colleagues.
The Cultural Intelligence programme was developed by Andrew Price, and has been delivered all over the world in partnerships with local service providers. It can be of immense value to organisations wrestling with cultural diversity issues. Andrew tells a story of how his interventions using this programme literally saved a major highway project in the Balkans that was completely bogged down by inter-ethnic squabbles, with the main contractor on the brink of dismissal by the Croatian Government. The road was subsequently built in good time, and has played no small part in the development of the Dalmatian Coast into one of the Europe’s top tourist destinations.
We at Corporate Relocations strongly believe that this addition to our product range will be of great interest to our clients. Some participants have already suggested “this programme should be given to all our employees in South Africa”.
Johannesburg – Renting a Property
Frequently asked questions
Q: What is the average rent for a 2 bedroom furnished apartment?
- Depends on location
- Upmarket Sandton CBD – similar to Central London/Kensington at €1040 per week! R22 – R55 000 pm
- Melrose Arch – R25 – R30 000 pm
- Larger Sandton area – R16 – R22 000 pm
Q:What is the average rent for a 4 bedroom family home – unfurnished?
- Depends on location, quality and security
- Dainfern – R26 – R40 000 pm
- Morningside Cluster – R30 – R45 000 pm Q:
Q: What is the average time between finding a rental property, signing a lease and taking occupation?
- For apartments, allow 2 weeks - but can be less
- For homes, allow 6 weeks – but can be less if unoccupied
Q: What is meant by:
Unfurnished?
- Only the cooker/stove included
Furnished?
- Usually white goods and at least the basic furniture (beds, tables, chairs etc.)
Fully Furnished and equipped?
- As above, plus linen, cutlery, crockery, equipment – can move in with only suitcase Conditions for renting
Q: Is there a minimum period for: Furnished?
- Typically 3 months for privately owned apartment, down to as little as 2 weeks for managed apartments (Michelangelo; The Hydro; W-Apartments etc.) Unfurnished?
- 1 year plus
Q: What is the usual break clause?
- Homes – 60 or 90 days after 6 or 9 months. Less for apartments
Q: What the typical deposit required?
- One month rent for unfurnished/2 months rent for furnished
Q: What costs are payable by the tenant, over and above the rental?
- Monthly Charges for: Home Owners Association Levy; Security Monitoring Fees; water, electricity, telephone, pool and garden services (if applicable).
- For apartments, levies and water are typically included, electricity, satellite TV and servicing are extras – or can be negotiated into the rent
Corporate Relocations Africa – where we are and where do we plan to be:
- Services are already up and running in: Angola; Kenya; Mozambique; Tanzania, Botswana, Mauritius and Namibia
- By the end 3rd quarter of 2009 services will be established in Ghana; Madagascar; Zambia
- By end of 2009 services will be established in DRC and Nigeria
- Our Africa Consultants will be trained
- All locations will be researched and visited by CRSA
- A ‘Doing Business in Africa’ Guide has been produced for all the above locations, including essential information on: Immigration; Housing; Schooling; Health Care; Security
Comprehensive Guides to each location will also be developed – as for South Africa
Rental Guidelines
We regularly update our rental guidelines for South Africa's major cities, as well as some other African capital cities. The guidelines are approximate, and reflect our experience of the type and quality of accommodation that our customers find acceptable. The ranges are wide, varying within area due to such factors as size of accommodation, newness, quality of finishes and the installed security.
Please contact either anne@corprelo.co.za or jenny@corprelo.co.za if you would like our assistance with budgeting for expatriate accommodation costs.
If you require information on other locations or our services, please do not hesitate to contact:
Anne Bentley at 011 267 2100
anne@corprelo.co.za
|