International HR Adviser Spring 2015

Spring 2015

ISSUE 61

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International HR Adviser The Leading Magazine For International HR Professionals Worldwide

Features Include: 2015 – The Year Of The Business Traveller?

Managing The Workforce Revolution • Expats & Currency Stability Expatriate Assignment Policies: The Downstream Impact On Payroll Global Mobility Trends That Create The Ebb And Flow Virtual Teams: Vital Success Factors Global Taxation Update Advisory Panel for this issue:

Expatriate Adviser Summer

Autumn International HR Adviser

CONTENTS

In This Issue Page 3

Technology: Managing The Workforce Revolution Stewart Allanson, Zurich Corporate Life & Pensions

Page 6

Business Travel: 2015 – The Year Of The Business Traveller?

Vicki Marsh, Equus Software

Page 8

Currency Stability: Expats & Currency Stability Juliet Carp, Dorsey & Whitney

Page 11

International HR Strategy: Expatriate Assignment Policies The Downstream Impact On Payroll Nathan Male & David Mantell, Deloitte’s Global Compensation Management Practice

Page 15

RES Forum 2105 Annual Report

Page 18

Taxing Issues: Taking Stock Of Share Awards Andrew Bailey, BDO LLP

Page 21

Global Taxation Update Andrew Bailey, BDO LLP

Page 24

Global Employment Companies: Just A Current Trend Or The Long-Term Solution?

Gordon Zovko, ITX

Page 26

Global Mobility Trends: Staying Mobile – Global Mobility Trends That Create The Ebb And Flow Andrew Hopgood, Santa Fe

Page 29

Gender Bias In Global Mobility: Developing Female Leaders Jonathan Dunlea, PwC Australia & Victor Sojo, Centre For Ethical Leadership

Page 34

Case Study – American Express’ Education Policy For Their Expatriate Employees: Challenges Of Education Across Mobility Pathways Adam Silver, AIRINC & Tricia Schneider, American Express

Page 38

Virtual Working: Virtual Teams: Vital Success Factors Cathy Wellings, Farnham Castle Intercultural Training

Page 40

The Changing Role Of Global Mobility Angela Weinberger, Global People Transitions

Page 42

Pay Differentiation: Analysing The Pay Gap Ben Frost, Hay Group

Page 43

Accommodation: How Is The Private ‘Home Stay’ Offering Relevant To The Corporate And Relocation Market?

Linden Dover, onefinestay

Page 44

Data Protection: Data With Destiny Sarah Henchoz, Allen & Overy LLP

Page 46

Diary Dates

Page 47

Directory

International HR Adviser, PO Box 921, Sutton, SM1 2WB, United Kingdom Publisher • Helen Elliott +44 (0) 20 8661 0186 • Email: helen@internationalhradviser.com Publishing Director • Damian Porter +44 (0) 1737 551506 • Email: damian@internationalhradviser.com www.internationalhradviser.com In Loving Memory of Assunta Mondello While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of information contained in this issue of “International HR Adviser”, the publishers and Directors of Inkspell Ltd cannot accept responsibility for errors or omissions.

Neither the publishers of “International HR Adviser” nor any third parties who provide information for “Expatriate Adviser” magazine, shall have any responsibility for or be liable in respect of the content or the accuracy of the information so provided, or for any errors or omissions therein. “International HR Adviser” does not endorse any products, services or company listings featured in this issue.

Cover Design by Chris Duggan

Spring International HR Adviser

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TECHNOLOGY

Managing The Workforce Revolution New technologies and increasing mobility are revolutionising the workplace, with huge implications for businesses. Not since the industrial revolution of the late 18th and early 19th century have we faced such farreaching change and, just as then, there is tremendous opportunity mixed with unprecedented risk. Companies that embrace new technologies and adopt new working practices will succeed in the battle for talent and skills, but only with careful management of the risks that these changes bring.

Our view is that the risks associated with mobility, keeping up with technology, cyber security and employee satisfaction are interconnected. As such, a holistic approach that manages workforce risks and business risks together, is the key to making the workforce revolution a success.

Work Practices On The Move New technologies are fundamentally changing the way we all work, throwing up new risks and challenges for businesses and employees. The changes are coming so fast that employers, employees and lawmakers, haven’t yet entirely figured out the best way to go forward. The multiple dimensions technology, business practices, attitudes and laws are interconnected and so are the risks, not just within the realm of mobility, but beyond.

The biggest change has come from mobile devices, such as smart phones and tablets, which allow individuals to connect, including to work, anywhere, anytime.

The Millennials, those now aged 18-29, have grown up with this technology. It is integral to their daily lives. It is ‘always on’ and in many ways it molds their ambitions and expectations of life and work. Older employees have also seen great change, as mobile devices connect them to the workplace at night, at weekends and while sitting by the pool on holiday.

At a recent Zurich event that focused on managing risk in the changing world, the audience was asked, “What is the most significant implication for your business, over the next five years, of the trend towards an ‘always on’ mobile workforce?”

Here are their responses, the line between business and pleasure is blurring and this brings advantages to employers, but the quid pro quo for employees must surely be

more flexible working, including working from home. This, of course, brings its own risks – successful businesses need cohesion and this may be increasingly difficult to achieve if homeworkers never see each other.

Many global organisations have long faced the challenge of inculcating values in employees spread over many locations; now they have to worry about the same task for workers who may be in the same city yet aren’t often physically present at the office. The remedy for mobile workers is the same as for those in foreign offices – regularly scheduled face-to-face gatherings, where people can get to know each other as more than a voice on a phone or a name on an email.

Companies also face the question of responsibility and benefits when employees are injured outside the workplace, whether while travelling or while working from home. Although it’s unlikely a company would deny a claim by an individual working from home who falls down the stairs and breaks a leg, the risk of abuse is certainly there.

Technology As Role-Changer Mobility is also upending corporate roles and chains of command. In a typical hierarchical office, a worker with a problem would tell their manager, who may pass it further up or refer it to the relevant person in another location. Now, the person who has the information is talking directly to the person most in need of the information, increasing effectiveness and efficiency.

This shows that while the risks are interconnected, so are the benefits. Technology shortens lines of communication and gives workers flexibility in time, location and kind of device, resulting in happy workers.

‘Bring Your Own’ Gathers Pace Technological change is now so rapid that companies are finding it too hard and too costly to provide their employees with the tools they expect. The Millennials, again, place huge importance on the technology that they have available in the workplace – so much so that it has a bearing on their choice of employer. This is leading to rapid growth in companies adopting a ‘bring your own device’ (BYOD) policy. This is faster, more costeffective and satisfies the demands of employees, but it raises major security risks for the business network, not to mention potential legal wrangles over the data, both business and personal, that sits on the employee’s device.

BYOD is a double-edged sword. If you opt for BYOD to respond to the risk of fastchanging technology, you expose yourself to the related risk of not having complete control over employee-owned devices which are connected to your network.

Three-quarters of mobile applications will fail security tests through next year, according to a report by Gartner. The report adds that the applications are developed with a focus on usefulness, but that related security testing is often casual.

It shows how difficult it is for companies Spring International HR Adviser

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TECHNOLOGY to ascertain their BYOD risk, amid the multitude of applications.

Data At Risk A survey last year by TEKsystems of 2,000 IT professionals, found that 38% thought more than half their companies’ sensitive data is at risk and 20% thought all corporate data could be compromised because of BYOD. BYOD puts corporate computers in the middle of a web of interconnected risks: intruders seeking entry to the corporation, hackers and thieves seeking the employee’s personal information, employee error or carelessness, inappropriate employee behaviour and more.

What if an employee’s device is compromised by a virus that shuts down the corporate IT system, or an application for personal use gives a third party access to corporate networks? What if an employee’s device is lost or stolen?

Most IT departments wipe clean a compromised BYOD, but that deletes the employee’s personal data, and employers need to get the employee to sign a waiver to allow the deletion, according to Route 1, a digital security and identitymanagement solutions company.

At the same time, once an employee leaves a company, the employer may no longer have a way to get back data stored on the BYOD. What an organisation can do in the name of cyber security, and what is a violation of privacy, pose two more interconnected risks. BYOD is still so new, there’s not yet legal precedent in major jurisdictions, leaving it in a grey area. As of February, there were no BYOD-specific cases at the European level, nor at the country level in France, Germany, Italy, Spain or the Netherlands. However, other privacy cases have illustrated that limits do exist on companies’ monitoring of their workers’ private email accounts. For example, a German company was fined more than 1 million Euros for screening employee data to combat corruption and for monitoring communication sent by external e-mail accounts by employees.

While companies may do their best to maintain security, the vast possibilities for attack make it hard to keep up, especially when so many flaws may seem benign. However, an attitude of ‘if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it’ doesn’t work with BYOD. A study by Dell of customers International HR Adviser Spring

with BYOD policies found half have suffered a security breach.

To protect themselves, companies are increasingly looking to cyber insurance.

In a survey of US companies late last year by Zurich and Advisen, almost 55% said they planned to buy cyber insurance in the next year, almost double the rate of the year earlier. New lines of insurance coverage are being created to keep up with the evolving risks. Cyber insurance options can include extortion, privacy liability, breach mitigation costs, consumer redress, electronic vandalism, errors and omissions liability and more.

Companies need to consider how they treat other risks in order to adjust their BYOD policies and risk management to their overall risk profile.

Downsides Of Always-On Work The risks from the overlap of personal and business on BYOD go beyond technology to interconnect with other areas, such as talent management.

Some recent studies have found that productivity is higher for employees who work from home. One Chinese travel agency reported a 13% increase in productivity during a nine-month experiment with home-based working. The gains inspired the company to let all employees choose whether to work from home – more than half switched and productivity rose by 22%.

Productivity aside, though, will people know where to the draw line between work and home life?

In a survey of 1,000 UK workers by file-sharing company Egnyte and TLF Research, 40% of respondents said they would feel obliged to work during personal time if their employer introduced a BYOD policy.

The knock-on effects of this change could be damage to family life and increasing stress levels, in turn leading to long-term illness and rising costs for health and protection insurances.

Consequently, some companies are already taking steps to address this issue.

For instance, Daimler AG lets workers set an out-of-office message telling the sender which colleague is handling their responsibilities and then deletes the email.

Companies are still working out the answers to the questions that increased mobility poses, and the task is getting harder as new devices with new capabilities go on the market, opening up more new territory in the brave new world of connectivity.

Succeeding In The Workforce Revolution Rapid technological change and increasing mobility present new opportunities, but they also present new, interconnected risks, such as keeping up with technology, cyber security, employee satisfaction, and corporate culture. While BYOD gives workers flexibility and lets employers get the latest technology without paying, it also takes away freedom and opens more doors than ever for breaking into corporate networks.

To be successful, companies therefore need to consider policies around mobility and BYOD in a holistic way that reflects how interconnected the implications are.

Source: Adapting To A Changing Workforce And Work Practices On The Move For further information visit www.knowledge.zurich.com

The Takeaways • The risks of mobile employees are interconnected: keeping up with technology, cyber security, employee satisfaction, corporate culture • Companies need to consider policies around mobility and byod in a holistic way that reflects how interconnected the implications are • Byod gives workers flexibility but takes away freedom, lets employers get the latest technology without paying, but opens more doors than ever for breaking into corporate networks.

Stewart Allanson Zurich Corporate Life & Pensions is a leading provider of international pension plans.

For more information, please email: stewart.allanson@zurich.com or telephone on +44 (0) 1242 664443.

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BUSINESS TRAVEL

2015 - The Year Of The Business Traveller?

Last year saw a clear trend towards increasingly complex mobility programmes, and ever increasing responsibilities of the global mobility leader. This trend looks set to continue – we are seeing more mobility organisations becoming involved in the management of business travellers.

The ability to track these employees for immigration and tax compliance is a recognised challenge and has again become the topic of many mobility articles and conference sessions over the past year. Yet in Equus’ experience, very few clients are confident that they are tracking correctly and are fully compliant. Why then does it appear that the move to action is as hesitant as ever?

Why The Hesitation?

Mobility leaders are fully aware of how a business traveller can trigger a payroll withholding obligation or tax liability, or lose the organisation’s visa sponsorship license – and generate hugely negative exposure for their employer. But the issue has become even more complex in recent months. UK PAYE Real Time reporting, social security obligations, ever changing security concerns, corporate tax, Permanent Establishment and the ultimate responsibility of the CFO, and now the whisper of dangers associated with remote and flexible working, are all thrown into the tax and immigration compliance mix. Daunting for even the most experienced mobility professional – it is not surprising the mobility industry hasn’t fully mobilised yet.

What Do Other People Do? Business Travellers fly under the mobility radar – their travel is usually approved by an immediate manager, who may not appreciate either the immediate impact of working in certain locations, or the cumulative effect of travel for business over time. This presents enormous data collection challenges – information is spread across the organisation and held in time and expense management systems, travel booking systems, or more often than not, no system at all. According to a recent RES Forum survey, less than one third of organisations use a bespoke International HR Adviser Spring

tracking tool.

From what we see, the majority of companies consolidate data manually, most commonly from the following sources: • Travel providers • Global Security providers • Expense claims • Building access records • Manual tracking sheets - often sent around departments requesting completion • Direct booking confirmations • Hotel corporate accounts • Hire car information.

None of these is the perfect source. Travel schedules change at the point of travel.

Intra-regional travel is often by car. And let’s face it, people make mistakes. Industry and business culture also often feed into data accuracy – it is second nature to consultants, lawyers and project managers to track their time and expense to the minute; whereas other industries battle process circumvention on a daily basis. As a result, data accuracy challenges force most organisations to use multiple sources of data.

Aside from the data collection challenges, surely business managers must be supported in understanding the risks around what they are authorising. No one person or spreadsheet can keep track of all personal and corporate tax, social security, corporate security, immigration, payroll and permanent establishment implications across hundreds of locationto-location combinations, and with residency, chargeability and purpose of travel feeding into the equation.

together to achieve a common goal – an additional business benefit.

Once your high-risk population is identified – from our experience around 10-15% of the travelling population; they may require ‘persuading’ to engage in the tracking process actively. Some companies are taking the hard line in this area.

Withholding expense claims from the employee has been a method of enforcing responsibility in these organisations for some time now. Some companies use the process to calculate per diems and track actual amount due against days the employee has tracked and submitted. This type of active tracking by the employee can be particularly effective as it can be carried out before during or after travel, but requires ownership and confirmation by the employee that what they have submitted is complete and accurate.

Other organisations use their tool as a mandatory pre-travel screening process.

The employee is required to answer a number of questions related to the location, purpose and duration of their trip, and only if they pass the screening are they authorised to book travel. The advantage of this method is the ability to tailor the questions to your organisation and tie multiple processes together. An example might be preventing travel requests to no-fly locations, as well as tracking and flagging requests to locations with no current company presence – preventing a possible PE risk.

Where To Start?

Although many companies still wish to minimise the burden for the employee, the best you can do for your travellers is to keep the process simple.

One of our clients, a project-based organisation, spotted an increasing risk of non-compliance in travel to from the US to Canada. Of engaging employees in the tracking process, their Mobility Senior Manager said: “We knew we had to start somewhere. We decided to start with a simple tool into which we import travel data, and the business traveller confirms their whereabouts and project name.”

The project name helps the organisation

Consolidating the data in one central database and carrying out a one-time data analysis exercise to identify highrisk individuals is a great way to start.

Generally, we find there are data duplicates, gaps, and unexplained anomalies, as well as challenging business decisions to make over which data takes precedence and why; however, almost certainly 85-90% of cases will be eliminated immediately as not in danger of triggering any compliance issues whatsoever. Plus the exercise itself will bring significant gaps or duplicate processes to light, and often bring different parts of the organisation

Should The Onus Be On The Traveller?

BUSINESS TRAVEL with chargeability and accuracy. Having the traveller use a simple tool that does the work for them – maintains a profile, locates them using geo-location services, completes most of the data for them – encourages active participation and minimises work. The tool then alerts the organisation to a potential liability trigger. And the feedback from users has been positive – according to one of their travellers, the process is significantly simpler than any they had to follow in the past.

How To Manage The Results?

Whether the right solution for your organisation is tracking before, during or after travel, or a combination of all three, many organisations struggle to understand what to do with the results. The simple answer is not always the popular one – call in the professionals. Automated triggers to your immigration, social security or tax provider will reduce the burden on the organisation – or the business manager – to puzzle over the next step.

Your providers will be focused on a relatively small, targeted population, which should support your business case by keeping your preventative costs down – certainly your costs will be

significantly lower than taking action once a problem has been identified by any of the relevant authorities.

Still Not Convinced?

Perhaps, ironically, the heart of the hesitation lies in the element of risk. The recent RES Forum survey found that 73% of respondents had never been audited by any regulatory body. Does this indicate an acceptable risk? Perhaps we are waiting for a high-profile brand to be raked over the Tax Authority coals, before we are moved to act?

Most companies we talk to intend to act on this issue in the next year or so. There is a definite greater degree of urgency, indicating that the mobility industry in general believes there is an increasing risk of coming unstuck and that risk is becoming more immediate – but how immediate? In a recent update Ernst & Young stated ‘HMRC is now taking a much stricter approach to the operation of PAYE, where an Appendix 4 Agreement is not held.’

We have been hearing this from our tax service partners for many years, but in the current climate – in 2015 – don’t we really believe that if not right now, someday very soon – it will be true?

Vicki Marsh is the Head of Operations for Equus Software in the UK. Vicki has more than 10 years’ experience in Global Mobility both in professional services and in-house. Her experience includes responsibility for all manner of mobility services including compensation management, vendor sourcing and performance management, service delivery management and large scale programme change management.

Equus Software provides web-based, on-demand, integrated software for business traveller compliance and all aspects of global mobility operations. Our mobility software product line includes international assignment management and expatriate tracking software, compensation and payroll technology, cost projection software, and US and Canadian relocation and tax gross-up software; as well as integrated business traveller/cross-border solutions. Equus products are used by over 200 corporations, including many of the Fortune 100.

Visit www.equusoft.com More details on the RES Forum Business Traveller Survey will be revealed in their annual report, launched on the afternoon of 22 April 2015. For information on the event, please visit www.theresforum.com.

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CURRENCY STABILITY

Expats & Currency Stability Currency movement can have a significant impact on the value of international assignees’ remuneration.

Juliet Carp highlights strategies that multinational employers may consider to give staff working overseas more financial security.

Employers must make decisions about how assignees will be paid, ideally before the assignment begins. If a US employer sends an Englishman, Bob, to work in France, should Bob’s salary be confirmed as GBP100k per annum or Euro140k per annum or USD150k per annum? Remuneration may also be delivered in one or more different places or currencies. Bob’s employment contract may confirm that his salary is USD 150k per annum but his salary may, in practice, be delivered in Euros into his French bank account. Different arrangements could potentially apply to salary, allowances, expense reimbursements etc. Bob’s employer will also need to decide which exchange rate to use to work out how many Euros to pay him. The decisions made should be confirmed clearly to the employee in writing.

In many (if not most) jurisdictions there will be a legal requirement to provide clear written information about pay.

Factors such as movement between home and host currencies, inflation, foreign exchange restrictions, banking practicalities, and the timing of delivery, may all have an impact on the value of payments delivered to employees working overseas. There is no “one size fits all” solution to managing these challenges as, generally, when currencies move, someone wins and someone loses. However, some or all of the following approaches may help reduce the impact of fluctuations on the business and individual employees.

• Trap Beware the temptation to simply increase salary when the value of host currency falls and an employee loses out: the employee may “win” when the host currency rises again and it may then be hard to reduce salary. In many countries, it is difficult to either retain discretion to vary pay unilaterally or make deductions, even when this is expressly agreed.

• Hedging Often the costs of employing people International HR Adviser Spring

are incurred in one currency but borne in another. For example, the home business may ultimately bear the salary costs of an employee whose pay is fixed and delivered in host country currency. It is possible to “hedge” these costs commercially, in the same way as it is for other international currency transactions. So, for example, if an employee is sent to the Eurozone with a salary of Euro 200k per annum, it is possible to “fix” the US dollar value of that salary cost commercially.

• Split Delivery Many expatriates continue to meet expenses in their home country currency while they are abroad (e.g., home country mortgage payments, school fees and home taxes). At the same time they will be obliged to pay host country living expenses pegged to host country currency (e.g., housing, utilities, food, transport, local taxes).

Often the employer will agree that a fixed portion of salary will be paid in the home country in home currency and the remainder in the host country in host currency. The currency and location split might be set at the outset or, more commonly, there will be a mechanism allowing change to those proportions and/or to the exchange rate at specified intervals or in certain events.

For example, significant currency fluctuations or divorce. Whatever arrangements are agreed, they should be confirmed in writing.

• COLA Costs may vary not only because of currency changes but because of inflation or simply because local pricing patterns are different overseas.

The employer may offer a cost of living allowance or adjustment (usually known as a “COLA”). Typically, this is an additional allowance paid on top of salary to take account of the difference between home and host country living costs. Usually COLA is set using objective data purchased from specialist global mobility consultancies. Data is available for different home/host combinations taking account of typical expatriate purchasing patterns.

In many countries it is difficult to

lawfully apply a negative COLA (i.e. reduction to pay) unilaterally, or to retain flexibility to reduce allowances via the contract. For most, a positive uplift will work. Review timing may vary between businesses and locations.

Some businesses offer COLA only for the first year or two in the host location. Others may apply a lower COLA after an initial period, to take account of adjustment to “local” spending patterns over time.

• Other Allowances Some payments may be usefully separated from general remuneration.

For example, providing a separate housing allowance or meeting accommodation costs directly may make it easier to respond to changes in local prices without impact on crossborder pay parity and benefits linked to salary (such as pension contributions or bonus). Offering separate allowances may also make negotiation of new terms prior to return home or a new assignment easier than if all costs are included in base salary.

• Tax Protection Tax and social security may have a significant impact on the net value of employees’ remuneration. Many employers offer tax protection or equalisation to reduce the impact of change on employees. They do so by pegging the real impact of withholdings to a home country tax regime or other reference point. Care should be taken with documentation of these highly complex arrangements, for example, to ensure that overpayments of tax can be recovered from the authorities and to anticipate change.

• Financial Advice Employees can be adversely affected not only by currency fluctuations but by the longer-term impact of instability on savings, pension etc., for example, in the event of bank collapse. Prudent (and unregulated) employers generally avoid taking responsibility for employees’ personal financial affairs, and most would encourage employees who may have concerns about pension, investments, etc., to seek their own independent advice.

CURRENCY STABILITY Expatriates can be particularly demanding for HR to manage and a consistent policy may help to reduce the pressure for “special deals”. Clearly communicated early policy decisions made and documented before financial impact is felt by individual employees will usually be easier to manage, particularly in overseas jurisdictions where binding contracts and extensive employee protection are the norm.

Generally, it is worth thinking through every aspect of the employee’s package from expenses through to reimbursement by the tax authorities, to try to understand where currency movement or other financial instability might have an impact, before making decisions on company policy and individual terms.

Finally, employers should keep an eye on discrimination laws, particularly where individuals are employed by the same employer. It is worth asking whether there is a good commercial – and lawful – reason for treating people with different home countries differently?

This article is intended to promote discussion only and should not be relied on as legal advice.

Checklist For Employers: • Regulatory constraints?

• Employee’s expenses to be met in home and/or host countries?

• Especially significant host or home costs e.g. housing?

• Cost of living differences between home and host?

• Home or host inflation a concern?

• Home and host currencies stable?

• Home and host banking systems stable?

• Tax equalisation or protection to be provided?

• Remuneration costs to be borne by home/host entity?

• Treatment of local hires and comparable expats?

• Sufficient flexibility for the future?

Juliet Carp is an employment law specialist with full service international law firm Dorsey & Whitney. She is author of the leading textbook for lawyers, international HR and global mobility professionals "Drafting Employment Documents for Expatriates”.

Email: Juliet: carp.juliet@dorsey.com

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International HR Strategy

Expatriate Assignment Policies - The Downstream Impact On Payroll In this article we explore the implications of expatriate policy design on payrolls and how consideration of the operational impact can assist with some of the challenges in delivering expatriate payroll.

The design and structure of an organisation’s expatriate policies can have multiple impacts for the assignee, the business and the operational teams attempting to fulfil the “agreed” policy.

The main drivers in determining a policy can be summarised as the business need, business cost and the resulting benefits to the business. The ability to attract the right individual to take up the assignment at the appropriate grade will certainly always be a key consideration in fulfilling the business requirements.

So, with a policy that can ensure the business objectives of an assignment are met through the attraction and deployment of employee’s with the right skillset for the task in hand, one might assume all is well?

The challenge, however, generally occurs once the assignment has commenced and the payroll function is required to deliver compensation to the assignee in line with the assignment policy.

flows of information that a decision has to be taken with regard to the delivery and taxation treatment of compensation.

A “maybe” doesn’t work within a payroll system and as such a decision has to be made which is either “yes” or “no”.

For example, do we pay the individual this amount or are we shadowing it only?

Do we subject it to tax and / or social security withholding? Do we deliver it net or gross? In all of these scenarios, someone ultimately needs to make a decision (which generally must be reached within a tight processing window).

To make this process as straight forward as possible, payrolls require detailed but straightforward policies to guide them.

However, as detailed in Figure 1 this is still likely to be a complex position and any form of ambiguity is a. unfortunately extremely unhelpful and b. likely to lead to errors as someone will be required to apply their interpretation to the policy.

Such an approach can quickly lead to payments being paid to assignees incorrectly with the strong potential that the issue could affect multiple assignees over a prolonged period of time.

Policy Design And The Link To Payroll As outlined above, when determining the structure of an expatriate policy the business must decide on three key items, all other aspects will then be a sub-division of these three pivotal decisions (as detailed in Figure 2).

Conclusion on these factors allows a more detailed decision making process on a number of additional factors which will then inform the number and complexity of the policies required. This includes items such as: • Expected length of assignments • The prevalence of high and low tax regimes across the host locations

Figure 1: Policy complexity for payroll teams

Understanding The Extent Of The Issue Administration of the expatriate assignment is often a complex process requiring buy-in from a large number of business stakeholders, many of whom will sit within different functions or departments and won’t always report to the same individual.

At the heart of the administration process is the payroll team (who may be operating on a decentralised basis or combined into one or a number of centralised shared service centres). They are ultimately responsible for ensuring the accurate and timely delivery of compensation to employees on a frequent basis (e.g. monthly, bi-monthly, etc) whilst managing the local jurisdiction compliance requirements with regard to tax and social security withholding and remittance and any accompanying regulatory and compliance returns.

Due to the nature of payroll delivery, it is at this point in the internal process

Figure 2: Consideration of the key policy points

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International HR Strategy • Whether assignees are likely to break tax residence in their home location • Whether there are tax treaties between the home and host locations • The ability for assignees to instigate assignments The overall output of all of these discussions will then start to shape the size and scale of the challenge that the payroll team face delivering payroll in line with the stated policy requirements.

Figure 3: Typical expatriate policies

What Can Global HR And Mobility Teams Do To Help?

Global HR and mobility teams have a unique and critical role to play in ensuring that the end to end expatriate administration process has been carefully considered. Supporting assignees to understand the policy is a core part of the role, but it doesn’t cease there. Working closely with payroll to support service delivery should be viewed with equal importance. Ultimately, clarity from inception through to execution simplifies all stages necessary in managing the process and reduces the risk of error.

If the policy makers struggle to define the policy there are likely to be significant downstream challenges when payroll teams must interpret and deliver it.

One of the likely areas of tension is with regard to the number of policies that are in existence. From a mobility perspective the general approach may be to introduce a new policy every time a new scenario occurs with regard to how an individual will be treated whilst on assignment.

Conversely, this may be the exact opposite of what the payroll function desire. This is an area where stakeholder integration and dialogue is critical.

Of course, once a policy has been set it is then key that there is no (or minimal in exceptional circumstances only) deviation from it on an operational basis. In the event deviation does occur, experience tells us that the employer is likely to experience challenges during the payroll process as they will have inadvertently again introduced interpretation to what started as a carefully defined and documented process.

Where deviation from policy is required there should be a documented process for managing and communicating this to ensure that payroll don’t become aware of any “special treatment” during live payroll when there is often limited time to react and manage what this means in practical terms.

Whilst every organisation is different, a core range of policies should help to International HR Adviser Spring

Figure 4: Centralised approach to compensation data management

Figure 5: Enhancing the operational effectiveness of expatriate payroll

International HR Strategy manage the majority of scenarios. The specifics will undoubtedly differ from employer to employer, but detailed in Figure 3 is an overview based on a Deloitte Peer Perspective survey.

Maintaining The Data The benefit of operating structured and rigid policies will be quickly lost if the pay component treatment is not reviewed regularly and there is no structured process for identifying and setting up new pay components. This should be a diarised and documented task and part of the standard operating procedures of the payroll team.

Further, appointing owners of the data significantly improves the overall accuracy of the entire process. As detailed in Figure 4, linking this to a centralised compensation system should further improve the monthly payroll and reduce the risk of error whilst greatly enhancing the combined functionality of the global mobility and payroll teams.

Practical Next Steps For many the ability to review and potentially overhaul expatriate policies is impacted by day to day workload and limited capacity to deliver standalone projects.

Whilst this might prevent an end to end review of the policy to payroll process, we have captured in Figure 5 those core areas that employer’s should consider reviewing on either a wholesale basis or individually as capacity allows.

Nathan Male Nathan is a Director in Deloitte’s Global Compensation Management practice.

Nathan supports employers with the management of global compensation for expatriates and serves as a Client Account Director across a number of our clients. He has extensive experience of working with Deloitte’s largest clients, implementing and managing complex global projects working with multiple client stakeholders.

T: +44 20 7007 8364 Email: nmale@deloitte.co.uk

David Mantell Dave is a Manager in Deloitte’s Global Compensation Management practice.

Dave joined Deloitte in 2013 from JP Morgan where he was an Expatriate & EMEA Regional Payroll Manager.

Utilising his extensive in-house global payroll expertise, Dave supports clients with all aspects of expatriate payroll management, including reviewing and recommending improvement to existing processes.

T: +44 20 7303 2948 Email: dmantell@deloitte.co.uk

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RES FORUM 2015 ANNUAL REPORT

RES Forum 2015 Annual Report The RES Forum 2015 Annual Report launches in April 2015, and brings some exciting analysis and fresh insight into the key trends in Global Mobility during 2014 and what these trends mean for the global mobility practitioner into 2015. The RES Forum, for those who don’t know, is an online community for in-house International HR and Mobility professionals. The Forum facilitates regular knowledge sharing and e-surveying amongst its 700 members on all areas ‘Global Mobility’, and is therefore uniquely placed to understand what is keeping in-house HR mobility practitioners awake at night.

The report itself has been written by Professor Michael Dickmann of Cranfield Business School, who condenses his analysis and thoughts into a seamless body of work covering five key themes, which build effortlessly on his research from the 2014 RES Forum key trends report.

These five key themes for 2015 are: • The Global Mobility function and how it can make a strong competitive impact • Global Mobility resourcing, development, talent management, career and repatriation issues • Global Mobility Programme compliance and duty of care • Reward package design for international assignees • Global Mobility programme management and technology.

So why have we titled the 2015 RES Forum Annual report ‘The Talent Management conundrum’? In a nutshell we, at the RES Forum, see international employee mobility, management of employee mobility programmes and the movement of talent itself as bit of a complex jigsaw puzzle, where the answers can seem simple, but the parts do not often seem to fit together.

On the face of it the answer is simple: 1. Master competency on the four key areas of expertise which Professor Dickmann recognised in our 2014 Report: • Strategic Advisor • Global Talent Manager • Expert on due diligence • Global people effectiveness expert.

2. Slot your function into a Ulrich HR model.

3. Invest in technology and some

assignment KPIS linked to performance measurement and ROI. 4. And before you are done, throw in some diagnostic/consulting skills just to round things off.

Et voila!, you have the perfect mobility model and function, partnering effortlessly with the business and supporting the business in moving global talent across borders. If only life were that simple.

If we consider point (1), the report clearly illustrates that while practitioners aspire to have mastery in all four competencies they are, in the same practitioners opinion, most valued and most comfortable in one area in particular, what Professor Dickmann calls ‘expert in due diligence’. We at the RES Forum would argue that this due diligence expertise extends beyond diligence expertise to specialist compliance knowledge in tax, immigration and payroll.

On the other hand, when practitioners were asked what their companies most value in the mobility function, ‘strategic advisor’ appears to be what is valued most by management. So what is more important? Alignment with what is most valued by the business and the mobility function or creating a different type of value to the organisation through doing things beyond providing diligence expertise?

The answer most definitely sits with the latter. Why? Let me digress slightly from Professor Dickmann’s analysis and take my cue from a presentation delivered by Michael S. Schell, CEO of the cultural training and

leadership development organisation RW3 in late 2014, at a RES Forum meeting in Zurich.

Schell boldly predicted that in the future absolutely everything which follows a process will be automated.

This is a brave prediction, however, if we look back at the kind of jobs which used to exist 25 years ago (and which have since been automated, think secretarial, admin, call centre), it is not inconceivable to think that technology will reach a point where more and more complex procedural work can be automated. If you are struggling to get your head around that, think about the level of technology which now exists for managing employee processes, and beyond that, the technology which now exists for general human interaction.

This would, in our opinion, lend itself to the eventual de-skilling and ‘valuereduction’ in compliance led knowledge, based on the assumption that compliance is based on a rule and alignment with a rule or procedure. The counterweight to this argument, and Schell’s key idea in the presentation, was that only jobs which have an intrinsic value to companies will be exempt from this automation. As I reflect on this message, I am drawn to the three other competences which a mobility practitioner needs in addition to due diligence expertise - Strategic Advisor, Global Talent Manager, and Global People Effectiveness Expert.

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RES FORUM 2015 ANNUAL REPORT advisory, or value add activity, which Schell references. Professor Dickmann also argues in the 2015 RES Forum Annual report that receiving strategic global mobility advice will be one of the most important contributions the mobility function can make to senior managers. Given where the mobility function is positioned organisationally, the mobility function is also well placed to firstly have information, and secondly insight on, identifying talent opportunities, supporting talent, conducting workforce planning, shaping global career management, and refining business information and planning – in other words a global talent management and people effectiveness expert.

So how do you go about this transformation of your role from compliance manager to value-add strategic partner? As a first step the mobility function needs to look a little less inwardly and cast its eyes towards how other HR functions typically support the business in engaging talent and creating the pipeline of future leaders. High performing Talent Management functions which sit within the broader HR function, identify the competences needed to create leaders, introduce frameworks to measure those competences, and apply these assessments to potential talent and identified top management. They measure success through their leadership pipeline and the ability of new home-grown leaders to deliver business results.

Still on the subject of looking within the HR function, high performing Reward functions can evidence how Reward programmes align with shareholder interests though rewarding exceptional employee performance whilst managing costs sensibly. In high performing Reward functions, Reward spend is optimised and targeted rather than spent in a broadbrushed way.

And finally, high performing HR technology or HR operations functions provide controlled work flow and process management through optimising technology and self service capability, removing menial tasks from mobility management, introducing controls around data, and also providing measured KPIS through system tracking. Also in the era of (big)data, an effective HR system offers arguably the most powerful tool to get the mobility function moving away from its’ dependency on compliance expertise and towards a place at the strategic table, International HR Adviser Spring

namely real time assignment cost data and therefore the eventual opportunity to manage costs more effectively and in a planned way.

The final piece in the jigsaw is implementing these changes and alignment of the mobility professional’s activities and behaviours to those key strategic areas. The ‘organisational actions’ tables at the end of each chapter of the RES Forum Annual Report give a clear direction on what areas the practitioner needs to consider and align to in order to up-skill and operate in the value-add space. Two examples of these tables are illustrated here.

Careful consideration of these areas as well as a well-structured development plan focusing on those technical and

behavioural gaps will allow the mobility practitioner to set themselves some clear goals, as well as set them on the path to more effective and value-added interaction with the business…so what are you waiting for?!

The RES Forum annual report is launched on the afternoon of 22 April 2015, with presentations from Michael Dickmann, a round table discussion on the Talent Management/mobility conundrum and presentations from other contributors to the report - to attend this exclusive event (or to receive a copy of the full report) event please email res.forum@yahoo.co.uk.

If you are an in-house HR practitioner and would like to join the RES Forum community please visit our website www. theresforum.com – it is completely free.

RES FORUM 2015 ANNUAL REPORT

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taxing issues

Taking Stock Of Share Awards Share awards have long formed a core part of an employee’s total remuneration.

This is especially true for executives and is seen not only as a way of incentivising them based on the performance of the company, but also tying them to their employer for the long-term. Many awards for this level of employee have a minimum three year vesting period with a further three year deferral following on from that. For the purpose of this article we will include all share based remuneration such as options, stock units, phantom awards and qualifying and non-qualifying plans.

There has been particular focus on share based income in recent years with governments viewing them as offering too great a reward on top of what is already significant base pay in the form of salary and cash bonuses where executives are concerned. Coupled with the escalating drive to ensure everyone pays their fair share of tax, and the need for countries to continue increasing their tax take to keep up with public spending, it was only a matter of time before the UK tax authorities (HM Revenue & Customs HMRC) revisited this topic. This will also have consequences for all other countries however where expatriates are concerned.

The rules surrounding the taxation of share awards are complex even when dealing with local employees. There are potentially multiple points of taxation (grant, vest, exercise and sale to name the most common) and income and/or capital gains tax (CGT) may apply depending on the type of award. Generally speaking, a non qualifying award will be subject to income tax and CGT will be payable on a qualifying award, which enables individuals to benefit from the CGT annual exemption and lower tax rates applicable. As discussed below, many countries have separate rules for social security and these add an additional layer of complexity.

For internationally mobile employees the waters are muddied even further.

Currently, whether an award is liable to UK income tax largely depends on whether it is considered a legal share option or not and the tax residence status of the individual at the date of grant. An individual may be left in a position where some, all or none of the award is subject to International HR Adviser Spring

a tax charge in the UK. As a company you need to be aware of the type of award, the correct tax treatment of the award and the residence status of the individual to ensure you correctly deduct any withholding tax that may be due - we will also come on to the social security position later on.

From 6 April 2015, HMRC has announced that the UK income tax position will move to a sourcing based approach; that is to say that where an employee has been resident and/or working in the UK at any point during the life cycle of an award, UK tax will now be due on a portion of the gain. Generally speaking, the amount of gain attributed to the UK period will be subject to UK income tax. For example, where an individual has been resident and working in the UK for twelve months during a total award period of thirty six months, the UK will seek to tax 1/3 of the gain.

This change in position will apply to all awards, even those held prior to 6 April 2015. It is already imperative that employers track awards made to cross border workers. From a UK point of view this requirement has now taken on even greater significance as every employee that works in the UK and has share awards will have some UK income tax to pay on these. The employer will continue to be tasked with ensuring that they withhold the correct amount of withholding tax which can only happen by maintaining accurate records.

Each country has its own rules on how share awards are taxed and these are varied and numerous. It is not uncommon for two or more countries to want to tax the same income. Companies and tax advisors alike need to be clear on the amount of the gain liable to tax in each location and the correct way to alleviate any double taxation on this. This will mostly be set out in the terms of double tax treaties that give clear guidance on which country has the right to tax the income, and how the other country must address this to ensure true double taxation does not occur. Greater uncertainty is more likely where there is no double tax treaty in place however; it will be down to local tax laws and agreement of the competent authorities in those locations to remedy any dual tax position.

This change in UK tax law on the

sourcing of share award income will impact how other countries go about giving relief for UK taxed income.

HMRC are likely to be of the opinion that the UK will no longer need to give relief (other than in very limited circumstances) for doubly taxed income as it is only the UK sourced element that is being subject to tax. As far as HMRC is concerned the onus will then be on the other countries to ensure any double taxation is avoided.

In making this change HMRC is acting in accordance with OECD guidelines and in line with most other major jurisdictions.

National Insurance/Social Security Historically, there has been no definitive guidance from HMRC on the national insurance/social security position on share awards and we have been left to apply the general social security laws when determining whether a charge arises.

For UK purposes the applicable social security legislation does not allow an apportionment of income and it is therefore an all or nothing levy. Whether social security is due is currently based on a number of factors including residence status when the award is made, liability to social security at grant and exercise, whether tax is due on the award and any countries the individual has worked in through the life of an award.

Again, HMRC has looked to address this from 6 April 2015 and UK social security legislation has been rewritten to specifically cover the amount payable on share based income. This broadly mirrors the income that will be subject to UK income tax and will therefore specifically allow an apportionment when calculating the chargeable amount.

This change in legislation should mean that, as for tax, HMRC will only look to collect social security on what they view as UK sourced income. As for everything related to expatriates however, it is not quite as straight forward as that, due to each country’s method for sourcing income and the way the world is split for social security purposes: • EU countries (including Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Lichtenstein) • Countries that have a social security treaty • Rest of the world.

taxing issues The majority of issues will arise with rest of the world countries, although countries that sit in the other two categories will not be immune.

As for tax, each country has its own laws and interpretation on how income should be sourced when establishing the social security charge. This can lead to the same income being liable to social security in two or more countries. You can appreciate this is a recurring theme for both tax and social security for all expatriates.

EU Social Security Regulations and any relevant treaties between two or more countries should ensure that ultimately there is no dual social security charge.

This is not quite as ‘simple’ as alleviating double taxation as there is no mechanism to give credit in one country for social security paid in another country. It will be down to the countries involved to come to an agreement as to which country will have the right to charge social security on the income. This process can take some time to work through.

Where one ventures outside the EU and into a rest of the world country, things are less clear cut. The UK tends to continue charging social security for 52 weeks after an individual has been assigned to one of these locations. Invariably the host location will also charge their social security from day one. HMRC has stated that they view the first 52 week period as being ‘UK source’ and will not cede the right to charge social security for this period. They have accepted that in limited circumstances a true dual social security liability arises with no possibility of remedying this.

UK Reporting Since 2004, there has been mandatory year end reporting in the UK, notifying HMRC of employees receiving, vesting and exercising share awards. To date the majority of companies have filed paper copies of these forms and HMRC has been fairly relaxed in the format provided it has been agreed up front and supplies all the necessary information.

From 6 April 2015, this reporting is moving to online submission only which must be done using the system put in place

by HMRC. Companies must pre-register for online filing so they are ready to go live from April. The filing deadline for the forms is 6th July following the end of the relevant UK tax year (which is 5 April) and automatic late filing penalties apply (£100 initially, moving to £300 quarterly penalties

and daily penalties after nine months).

Going forward we expect 2015/16 returns to include details and analysis of UK sourced income for expatriates.

All relevant transactions must be declared on these ‘end of year’ forms both for local employees and expatriates. As for the tax and social security liabilities, it is therefore imperative that companies have robust tracking mechanisms in place to keep a handle on where their employees are resident/working, dates of moving between locations and awards made.

From a UK stand point the change in the way in which share income is taxed is not unsurprising, and aligns it more closely with other sources of ‘regular’ employment income, such as salary and bonuses. It brings into practice the position that often results after double tax relief is applied anyway in that it is only the UK sourced gain that is subject to UK tax.

There is one group of employees the changes will potentially negatively impact, this group being those individuals who currently hold share options awarded whilst they were non UK tax resident (and not performing UK work duties) who are not presently liable to UK income tax on any gain. This is currently the case even if they return to the UK prior to the option vesting. The new rules from 6 April 2015 will bring at least a portion of these gains into the UK income tax net where the vest occurs post their return to the UK. The new legislation on social security also brings welcome clarity to an area that has needed addressing for some time.

Neither the old or new rules are perfect, both potentially leading to dual social security charges in certain circumstances; however HMRC’s position is now clearly set out in law.

Both HR professionals directly involved with the UK tax and social security position and those who are responsible for administering the overseas requirements need to be aware of these changes. They will impact UK tax and social security withholding for all awards from 6 April 2015 which may have a knock on effect on the amounts chargeable and relief available in the overseas locations. Online filing must also be set up to facilitate the mandatory end of year share reporting.

HMRC has had a clear focus on tax compliance for share awards over the past few years and the changes to make the system ‘fairer’ are being brought in to place in one go. They want to ensure that the right amount of tax and social

security is paid and the onus is very much on companies to track and report all awards via these mandatory procedures.

With the complexities surrounding share based income this will only add further compliance requirements to internal HR teams and we expect HMRC to be active in ensuring that the new rules are followed and reported.

Andrew Bailey is national head of human capital at BDO LLP. He has over 30 years’ experience in the field of expatriate taxation. He is indebted to Lee Coccaro and David Gardner for their contribution to this article.

BDO has offices in 151 countries and is able to provide global assistance for all your international assignments.

If you would like to discuss any of the issues raised in this article or any other expatriate matters, please do not hesitate to contact Andrew Bailey on +44 (0) 20 7893 2946, email Andrew.bailey@bdo.co.uk

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global taxation

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Global Taxation Update Australia Fringe benefits tax on travel expenses for ‘Fly-in-Fly-out’ arrangements Australian industry is heavily reliant on mining operations which are often located in remote areas. As a result Fly-in-Fly-out (‘FIFO’), also known as rotational arrangements, is widely adopted in Australia as a method of enticing people to work, by flying them periodically on a roster basis between the work site and their usual place of residence. It is also not uncommon for the travel to be international.

A common practice in a FIFO arrangement involves the employer arranging and paying for the employees transport from ‘home-to-work’ such as flights. The transport will be considered benefits provided to employees.

In Australia, tax is levied on the employer for provision of benefits to employees under the Fringe Benefits Tax (‘FBT’) legislation. Therefore, instead of the employees being liable to tax, employers who provide such benefits are generally subject to FBT. Where the employment is in a remote site or on an oil rig or other installation at sea however, a tax exemption is available to the employer for providing employees with ‘hometo-work’ travel. This is on the basis that transport is provided from the employee’s usual place of residence.

As Australia’s resource industry continues to grow, work sites continue to expand towards ‘non-remote’ areas, putting this exemption into question. As a result, employers are seeking alternatives for relieving themselves of the potential additional liability of tax.

As an alternative whereby an FBT exemption is unavailable, in some circumstances, the FBT obligation for an employer can be reduced to nil if the employee would have otherwise been entitled to a work-related tax deduction, had he/she incurred the costs themselves. This is known as the ‘otherwise deductible’ rule.

Applying this to the FIFO arrangements above, ‘home-to-work’ travel has historically always been viewed as a non-deductible expense for individual taxpayers. A recent case heard by the Federal Court has reaffirmed this clarifying that the ‘otherwise deductible’ rule cannot be applied to negate the FBT

obligation arising on the travel expenses incurred on ‘home-to-work’ travel for FIFO arrangements. It had stated that the character of the outgoing reflected journeys to and from work, despite the fact that the employees travelled during their designated work hours and, as such, were paid for this time. It reasoned that the travel expenses were merely ‘incidental and relevant’, to the derivation of income which remained at the work site. The primary purpose of the transport was to enable employees to live in one place and work in another.

It was, as a result, determined that the expenses were not necessarily incurred in the course of gaining or producing income and not ‘otherwise deductible’. As a consequence provision of the transport gave rise to an FBT obligation to the employer, which reinforces the normal position of ‘home-to-work’ travel.

This decision is increasingly relevant given an expanding mobile and flexible work force. It should however have no direct impact on employers providing home to work transport to FIFO employees who work in remote areas.

Nevertheless, employers should remain prudent and ensure that their position taken in respect to the ‘remote area’ is documented and retained.

BDO’s Comment Currently, the deductibility of travel expenses is under consideration at the Australian Tax Office. It is also important to note that the case referred to above has been appealed to the Full Federal Court, and therefore, there is a possibility that the court ruling may be overturned.

In light of the above, employers, both local and overseas, should remain vigilant of their obligations with respect to any work transportation arrangements they organise and provide to Australian employees. Whereby transportation is provided in the context of enabling the employee to travel to and from work, the employer may be liable to FBT.

Belgium & Luxembourg Bilateral agreement between Belgium and Luxembourg on taxation of crossborder workers Most double tax agreements (DTA) which are based on the OECD Model

Tax Convention (OECD MC) include an article on the allocation of taxing rights regarding income from employment (article 15 OECD MC). The same can be said for the DTA between Belgium and Luxembourg with its article 15.

The rule mentioned in article 15 specifies the following: • The resident state is authorised to tax all components of income from employment earned worldwide by its inhabitants, except for when the activity is physically performed in the other contracting state • The resident state however, continues to be allowed to tax income from employment earned by its inhabitants when all three of the following conditions are met • The individual has spent less than 183 days in the other contracting state during a 12 month period ; and • The salary earned by the individual is not paid by or on behalf of an employer in the other contracting state ; and • The salary earned by the individual is not borne by a permanent establishment which the employer has in the other contracting state.

If any of the three conditions mentioned in the second paragraph above is not met, the other contracting state is allowed to tax any and all income which corresponds to professional activity physically performed on its soil by the individual concerned.

In other words, when Belgian residents perform professional activities in Luxembourg for a Luxembourg employer, Luxembourg will be entitled to tax that income. Conversely, the income related to working days that are not spent in Luxembourg (but in Belgium or in third countries) will be taxable in Belgium, without a ‘de-minimis’ rule applying.

So even if a Belgian resident only works one or two days in Belgium, the Belgian tax authorities will have the right to tax the income received for those days, resulting in the employee potentially becoming liable to tax in both countries except for when the individual concerned can provide proof for every day that he physically worked in Luxembourg in order to be able to claim an exemption in his resident state Belgium. Failing to do so often results in the Belgian authorities taxing the income received for all days for which no such proof is available.

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GLOBAL taxation In the event that Belgium exercises its right to tax, the employee concerned will most likely be taxed twice because in most cases the Luxembourg employer will already have withheld income tax at source when paying the monthly income tranches. As a result, the employee would need to initiate a procedure in Luxembourg to claim a tax refund of all excess taxes unduly withheld in Luxembourg, an often burdensome and lengthy procedure.

The above rules cause a considerable administrative burden for cross-border workers who live in Belgium but close to the border with Luxembourg and work for an employer resident of Luxembourg (or the other way round, who live in Luxembourg but close to the border with Belgium and work for a Belgian employer).

Such cross-border workers have become audit-targets for the tax authorities when for example employees have been allowed to work from home on occasion.

To alleviate this administrative burden, Belgium and Luxembourg have agreed on a tolerance period of 24 days for crossborder workers.

For example, the introduction of this tolerance period means that someone who lives in Belgium, but is employed by an employer who is resident of Luxembourg, and who habitually works full-time in Luxembourg, is allowed to work up to a maximum of 24 days (‘less than 25 days’) in his or her home country Belgium, without becoming liable to income tax in Belgium (and vice versa for someone who lives in Luxembourg but is employed by a Belgian employer). Time spent in third countries is not covered by this tolerance period and the income received for those activities will remain taxable in the state of residency.

This administrative agreement will apply to income earned as of 1 January 2015.

The tax authorities of both countries also intend to publish a joint statement on how they will audit the files of crossborder workers in future in a further attempt to alleviate the administrative burden that the present existing allocation rules for the right to tax income from employment, result in.

BDO’s Comment This common sense approach adopted by the Belgian & Luxembourg authorities is welcomed. Ideally other tax authorities should take note and follow this act. This would help to alleviate the administrative International HR Adviser Spring

burden on taxpayers but still ensure payment of the correct tax.

Singapore 2015 Budget Tax rates in Singapore are increasing for higher earners with a marginal rate increase proposed in the 2015 Budget from 20% to 22% for YA 2017.

Additionally, to celebrate Singapore’s 50th jubilee year falling in 2015, there will be a personal tax rebate of 50% capped at S$1,000 per tax resident individual taxpayer.

BDO Comment Despite the rate increase Singapore remains a low tax jurisdiction in comparison with other international destinations. The rebate is a modest token of appreciation from the Singapore Government to all taxpayers – if only other tax authorities were as appreciative or efficient!

Switzerland Adjustment of the Expatriate Ordinance with effect from 1 January 2016 In January 2015, the Swiss Federal Department of Finance (FDF) published a revised wording of the Expatriate Ordinance. This new version will become effective on 1 January 2016 and aims to promote public acceptance of these deductions, after two parliamentary motions had previously demanded to abolish this ordinance. It has been stated by some that the special deductions are only granted to a limited group of people and it is therefore doubtful if the current Expatriate Ordinance is in conformity with the Swiss Constitution.

The FDF decided to enforce an adjusted wording of the ordinance, which intends to be more precise regarding the eligibility of the employees who qualify as expatriates and concerning possible deductions.

The adjustment mainly affects the group of expatriates with special professional qualifications. Contrary to the previous wording, it is now required that the employee is effectively seconded from the foreign employer to Switzerland. This applies to both categories of expatriates, executives as well as specialists. Only in certain rare cases employees with a limited local contract can qualify as an expatriate.

The authorities will only accept such cases if the employment is transferred within the group for a fixed period and the home country employer guarantees

re-employment after the stay in Switzerland.

It is therefore important to consider such a clause in the secondment agreement.

The terms executive and specialist are still not defined in a precise manner.

Therefore we expect, that in practice the same principles will continue to apply as under the current rule. Today a general acceptance exists that an executive is a director (or an employee with similar senior function), is temporarily seconded because of a specific professional reason. Specialists are typically defined as employees who are seconded to Switzerland because of their specific particular professional qualifications.

Their specific and unique skills are required for a defined project and typically not available everywhere.

In principle, the existing and so far practicable tax deductions remain the same. Nevertheless, the new wording has some important consequences regarding the deductibility of housing costs. The new ordinance clearly stipulates that a deduction is only possible if the expatriate keeps a dwelling for his personal use permanently available in the home country. If the apartment or house in the home country is (temporarily) rented out during the secondment to Switzerland, no housing deduction is possible in Switzerland. This is a significant change because, in the past, some cantons accepted housing deductions based on the difference between the cost of reasonable housing in Switzerland and the rental income from abroad.

In general, expatriates can additionally deduct all costs that are directly linked with their secondment to Switzerland provided that the avoidance of these costs is not feasible.

Expatriates who are seconded to Switzerland only for a very limited period and do not take up residency in Switzerland, in particular commuters, are generally allowed to deduct the following costs: • Appropriate travel expense for the journey between the foreign domicile and Switzerland • Reasonable housing costs in Switzerland, if the accommodation in the expatriate’s home country is kept permanently available for personal use.

Expatriates who are seconded to Switzerland for a longer period and therefore move their residency to Switzerland are allowed to deduct the following costs: • Relocation costs, if they are in direct

global taxation connection with the assignment • Reasonable housing costs in Switzerland, if the accommodation in the expatriate’s home country is kept permanently available for personal use • Private school tuition costs are deductible for children, with a foreign mother tongue attending a foreign language private school, if public schools cannot provide adequate tutoring in the child’s native language.

However, cost relating to food, transport and supervision before and after the classes are not deductible.

Individuals, who at the time of the entry into force of the revised Expatriate Ordinance qualified as expatriates, will benefit from a transitional period until the end of their assignment, which can last up to five years. However, for this group of employees the revised rules regarding the deductibility of costs will also apply.

BDO’s Comment We strongly advise employers to review existing contracts and policies as to whether they are in line with the new Expatriate Ordinance. Furthermore, it

is important to inform expatriates who might be affected by these changes. All new assignments to Switzerland should carefully be examined to determine whether and how the new Expatriate Ordinance will apply in each individual case from 1 January 2016 onwards.

Country Agreements Regarding Exchange Of Information And Avoidance Of Taxes The drive by tax authorities around the world to exchange information and help prevent avoidance and evasion of taxes continues. Examples of recent agreements signed and actions include the following: • Italy has signed agreements with both Liechtenstein and Switzerland • Seychelles has signed a multilateral tax cooperation treaty • US & Dominican Republic are in discussions to exchange tax information • Singapore & France have signed a double taxation agreement which includes anti-abuse provisions • Greece is to crackdown on tax evasion as part of the agreement with its international creditors

• Ireland has collected over €1billion in tax since 2001 from Irish residents holding offshore bank accounts.

BDO’s Comment Expect to see further steps to provide quicker, automatic, exchange of tax information between global tax authorities and a further crackdown on those who evade taxes. This is long overdue.

Prepared by BDO LLP. For further information please contact Andrew Bailey on 0207 893 2946 or at andrew.bailey@bdo.co.uk

If you would like to receive alerts for ‘hot topics’ or receive any BDO publications, please contact Gemma Salmon on gemma.x.salmon@bdo.co.uk.

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Global Employment Companies

Global Employment Companies: Just A Current Trend Or The LongTerm Solution?

The use of Global Employment Companies (GEC) and the role they are playing within organisations notably changed over the years passing from a basic operational HR tool to a corporate structure included in the strategic side of corporate HR. GECs have existed for decades under different names such as Hubs, Managing Platforms and many other denominations. As any other entity they evolved along the years and have gone through 3 different stages: 1. The 90's: Companies were looking for solutions for their "International employees", expatriates that would spend most of their career on assignment and who would for most of them never go back to working in their home country. These people needed to be paid in various major currencies, benefit from an international social package and be administrated by a separated entity that could offer international contracts of employment.

2.Early 2000: Boosted by the globalisation and new technologies the model opened up to a bigger range of profiles. With the constant increase of Third Country Nationals (TCN) the model started to be promoted as being capable to optimise and simplify the management of expatriates regardless of their home or host country.

3. Present: Since the last couple of years GECs have grown into a key corporate HR strategic partner ensuring fast and efficient employment and deployment of companies' best human resources.

Not only that, today's GECs are able to answer to high standards of compliance, they are more and more often established to guarantee compliance with taxes, employment benefits, finance and employment legal requirements.

These stages show several aspects of the model, its longevity and its ability to adapt and evolve along with the International HR Adviser  Spring

need of the organisations and changing environment.

Its success probably lays in the fact that it involves and provides its services to both HR and Finance corporate functions.

From an HR point of view it simplifies the hiring process, ensures equity among the expatriate population, reduces the number of exceptions, partners with talent management and personnel retention, waives payrolls complexity and releases Compensation & Benefits from dealing with numerous social security systems and insurers.

From a Finance point of view it enhances rebilling processes and permits for the right cost to be addressed to the right cost centre along with clear financial reports. It eases the collection of data for cost control, financial audits and cost containment.

Expatriation is costly, nothing new here. Benefits, incentives, allowances, and family support, are every so often reviewed and lessened. To what extent and until when? Compliance drives companies' ability to generate new savings and what is often left is to optimise. This suggests doing something differently and better.

The type of industry of course plays a role, companies sending expatriates for half a century have expatriation deeply engraved in their culture, while for more recent industries their companies apply slightly different models. In both cases there are many possibilities to enhance HR management through GECs. Big multinational corporations have, many years ago, been pioneers in this area, but it is now all type of companies regardless of their size or status (ie NGOs) that are facing similar challenges and either need or wish to implement new models.

The GEC model is present across the globe, the size of Asian companies and the fact that they are being confronted with the very same concerns as their Western competitors led them to dedicate more time in enhancing their HR management. Europeans have been effectively using this model for years, and US corporations start seeing GECs as a great tool to ensure compliance without

losing competitiveness.

We can notice the emergence of regional GECs and companies considering having multiple GECs around the world. A question pops up right away; isn't it a little bit contradictory with the centralisation argument often highlighted as one of the major benefits offered by GECs? Well if you look at it a bit closer you will actually see that the type of population integrated in this model has been widened. More and more companies implemented regional mobility policies for their expatriates moving within the same region. Companies are also trying to (re)integrate their contracting staff, rotational employees and freelancers.

The above gives us two additional indications. On one hand the rising need, and on the other hand the worldwide scope.

Launching a project such as a GEC requires companies to allocate the best resources within the organisations. It involves many functions such as HR, Finance, Legal, Purchasing, Insurance.

In most cases this will be a corporate driven development resulting in the incorporation of a new entity. For all those reasons the projects might take some time before being validated and put in place. This is why some companies decide to outsource the implementation and management of their GEC. A GEC can basically be implemented in any country, but some are more "GEC friendly" than others. When deciding on where a GEC will be located, companies should ensure they will have access to efficient international products for covering their expatriates and that insurers are authorised or licensed to offer their products to foreign based entities.

Initial investment is important both in terms of human and financial resources, but is well worth it on the long run. Such type of structure becomes mature and will deliver its best 18 to 36 months after the first employee is hired or transferred.

GECs can be the running engine of an international mobility programme and the centre of expertise that corporate HR, business partners and company's

Global Employment Companies stakeholder can rely on.

We can expect that the number of GECs will continue to increase reaching more and more companies, industries and countries. The type of services will also change, there are already companies planning on establishing a GEC to centralise the management of their Local + population with whom they lost contact (Resource management), and for whom they do not have precise financial reporting (Cost control).

The GEC model is definitely not a one size fits all solution but rather a solution that can be adapted to every need. Any company willing or needing to rethink the management of its expatriates population should be exploring the possibilities a GEC may offer for a long term solution.

Gordon Zovko Chief Development Officer, ITX and Executive Committee Member.

Gordon is based at ITX Headquarter in Geneva (Switzerland). He previously held the position of Head of International Mobility Administration & Finance where he successively set-up, promoted and managed Global Employment Companies for ITX clients.

His "Human Resources Specialist" background and strong experience of working with multinational companies from diverse industries makes him an expert measuring the strategic importance of Global Mobility and its key topics such as: Compensation & Benefits, policies, international working contracts, TCNs' management, rebilling, cost control vs package "attractiveness" and expatriation process efficiency.

Gordon also drove the implementation of ISO 9001:2008 Quality Management System standards and compliance.

Telephone : + 41 22 309 32 10 Email gzovko@itx-ge.com Visit www.itx-ge.com

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GLOBAL MOBILITY TRENDS

Staying Mobile - Global Mobility Trends That Create The Ebb And Flow As everyone involved in our sector knows, Global Mobility (GM) is one of the most varied, diverse and dynamic industries; constantly evolving to support changing business needs, and with new things to learn on an almost daily basis, this sector is truly unique.

The continual reinvention of Global Mobility – as a facilitator of company growth, an instrument of personal development, or as a key element of the “war for talent” – ensures the needs of companies, and therefore vendors services, are constantly changing. This article examines some of the recent changes and trends seen in the industry, and how vendors have responded to provide solutions to this transformation.

When Santa Fe Relocation Services (at the time, Interdean) launched our relocation services offering, just prior to the financial crisis in 2007/2008, companies were beginning to recognise the need for variation and flexibility in their assignment policies, and this process was arguably accelerated with the subsequent downturn. ROI (Return on Investment) truly entered the lexicon of relocation professionals, with mobility teams challenged to identify savings and efficiencies, while continuing to demonstrate the strategic value of GM as a function in assisting company growth.

EBTs, Commuters And Rotators This process brought new assignment types to the fore as companies strove to ensure their mobility programme became more cost-effective; short-term assignments became more prevalent, and new short-term policies were developed – commuter, rotational, extended business trip, project-based – to address specific business needs and in response to the increased scrutiny new assignments were subject to; Is this assignment necessary? If so, for how long?

In parallel, long-term assignments, for so often the “gold standard” of relocation policies, were reviewed and qualifying conditions tightened; assignments which had previously been almost open-ended were more tightly defined; 2-3 year terms became standard, localisations, International HR Adviser Spring

permanent/local hire, and flexible policies were introduced by Global Mobility teams to offer more tailored approaches to support employee mobility. In addition, the question “who benefits?” from the assignment was asked, based on balancing the cost and the benefit to the business through driving results and/or increased employee engagement.

More… For Less So, did these changes have the desired effect? The answers seems to be a qualified “yes”; since 2008 industry indices continue to report a focus on cost control/ reduction - one of the key findings of the 2014 Brookfield GRS Global Mobility Trends Survey was that “72% of respondents indicated international assignment costs are being reduced as a response to current economic conditions”, while at the same time the Cartus 2014 Global Mobility Policy & Practices survey found that “Half of companies expect mobility volume to increase”. That said, the 2014 Global Mobility Survey Report, commissioned by Santa Fe Group, simultaneously reported “Agreeing compensation packages with candidates” as one of the Top 3 challenges faced by mobility managers when recruiting candidates, with over 40% of the 1200+ respondents citing this as an issue.

But these are merely the latest confirmation of long-standing trends.

As far back as 2011, the Global Mobility Survey Report commissioned by Interdean was reporting that 53% of the 1,000+ participants viewed cost management as a high priority for their organisation, while simultaneously reporting that 39% of organisations saw an increase in relocations authorised over the previous 12 months.

While variations by industry and region have been seen during this period, these themes have been constant since 2008. I’m sure these trends aren’t news to many readers; but what changes did these developments lead to in practice? And how have service providers adapted?

Wi-Fi, Weekly Cleans And Welcome Packs The years after 2008 saw a great increase in unaccompanied short-term

assignments, Cartus reporting “By 2010, assignees had become younger and were more likely to be single and male.”

This change meant traditional types of relocation services and household goods moving services needed to adapt.

For the short-term assignee a home search was replaced by a serviced apartment booking; a 20ft container shipment replaced by an air shipment and storage in the home country. More emphasis was placed on settling-in services to ensure assignees could quickly feel at home in the new location and become productive; home was a 1 bedroom serviced apartment, and home leave trips became the norm to visit families. An added benefit to the business, with this ‘semi-permanent’ home with cooking facilities, could also be a reduction in perdiem payments, making this approach even more cost-effective.

Serviced apartment providers came to the fore to support this new demand, and supply quickly grew in key locations; the 2015/2016 Global Serviced Apartment Industry Report (GSAIR) found the global inventory of serviced apartments increased 14.1% year on year over the last 12 months, and a staggering 80.1% since 2008. Assignees came to expect high-speed wi-fi to enable flexible working, weekly cleaning and welcome packs as standard.

Emerging Markets And Second Tier Cities While the demographic shift has since returned to the long-term profile seen before 2008, the use of serviced apartments has continued to expand in line with the growth of short-term assignments. This can create availability challenges in mature markets, as leisure travellers are now equally aware of the benefits of serviced apartments; but what if the assignee is moving to a developing country?

As companies continue to seek new opportunities globally, they are naturally drawn to locations which offer competitive advantage, but may lack the infrastructure of more mature destinations; emerging markets and the “BRICS” are well used terms, but increasingly emerging markets include far more diverse locations in Asia, Africa and South America, as well as

GLOBAL MOBILITY TRENDS second tier cities in first-world countries.

While assignees to these destinations may be single and predominantly male, especially where security may be a concern, the availability of expatriate standard serviced apartments is not a given, nor is consistency between locations. For instance, a rotational assignee completing a 3 month stay in London, will have a different experience of staying in a serviced apartment if their next rotation is to Tunis, due to local practice and culture.

Only relatively recently have serviced apartment agencies begun to expand their network in emerging/second-tier locations – for instance, the 2015/2016 GSAIR reported that the supply of serviced apartments in Africa was limited primarily to South Africa and Nairobi with limited choice in other markets. In addition, of the estimated 390,000 hotel rooms in the region, only 10% are of international standard, with South Africa housing half this inventory. With this in mind, longer lead times may be required to source accommodation in emerging locations, and the expatriate may also need to be flexible on their requirements and expectations.

What If A Serviced Apartment Isn’t Available?

Recent moves to locations in countries as diverse as Albania, Colombia, Mongolia and Norway, have demonstrated this inconsistency in supply, and the need for a flexible approach. In two of these locations, traditional serviced apartments were not available, and alternative solutions required involving a cocktail of expectation management, creative problem solving and educating/training a local partner.

The successful outcomes in both instances took the form of a home search for a rental property and then a combination of local knowledge, good negotiation skills and settling-in support to provide a fully equipped expatriate standard apartment, without the assignee having to navigate the process of setting up of utilities in Tirana or Ulanbataar. Equally, leases needed to be reviewed (and a local signatory arranged), and payments arranged in local currency for security deposit payments, on-going rentals and realtor fees.

While many assignees, particularly those defined as Gen Y, are explorers by nature, the duty of the service provider is to deliver expert local advice and creative

solutions if difficulties occur; to minimise the time the assignee spends on pastoral matters, as the focus will be on the employee to deliver against assignment objectives. Any time spent worrying about sourcing an apartment or setting up a broadband connection is not going help the assignee deliver against these objectives.

Back To The Future…

As referenced earlier in this article, the longer-term demographic profile of assignees – older, an increasing % of females, and more often accompanied – seemed to reassert itself from 2012 onwards (source: Cartus 2012 Global Mobility Policy & Practices survey), and also referenced in the 2014 Global Mobility Survey Report where 46.5% of respondents cited “Family/accompanying partner complications” as another of the Top 3 challenges faced by mobility managers when recruiting assignees.

While this assignee demographic is more likely to be sent on assignment to a more mature destination for expatriates, the type of support they receive has changed, with traditional long-term assignments having increasingly given way to permanent transfers and local hires. So, what is the difference?

For an employee moving to a regular relocation destination – for example London – the needs of the mid-level employee and family have, in some cases, changed dramatically. The differences illustrated in the policy benefits available, i.e. a housing allowance versus their own rental budget, cost of living adjustment and frequently help with international school fees, as well as assistance with shipping household goods – where now they are just as likely to be on a Local Plus move, with a lease in their name (and probably in Zone 2 or 3, rather than Zone 1), and seeking school places which could be in the state sector, independent or international school system.

While policies for strategic and senior level moves are broadly unchanged, business-as-usual moves receive a significantly slimmed-down package.

Conversely, families moving to emerging markets, where security or general living conditions are recognised as difficult, have seen far less change in the support they receive. With the pressure on mobility teams to facilitate company growth and manage talent, policies for this type of move may be more generous or flexible

recognising the need for suitably skilled employees to complete a business critical project. This may take the form of allowing the family to live in an adjacent location which is more secure, (supporting Duty of Care requirements of the business), and that has greater amenities, easier commutes or in a secure compound.

This message is supported in the 2014 Global Mobility Survey Report, which confirms “Host country stability/ conditions” as one of the top 3 challenges faced when recruiting assignees.

Staying Mobile The mobility sector has been especially fluid over the last few years. Changes in business activity, drivers and corporate objectives, and expansion into new markets, have produced more focussed relocation policies to support the achievement of these goals and the attraction and retention of talent.

These policy developments have in turn challenged service providers such as Santa Fe Relocation Services, to recalibrate their service offering to reflect this ebb and flow, whilst also aligning with the changing demographic profile of assignee populations.

Businesses now expect to be able to deploy their assignees faster and smarter to reflect the demands of operating successfully globally, while maintaining employee engagement regardless of the destination. This fluidity will continue to drive innovation in our sector, and we are scanning the horizon for the next large wave...

Andrew Hopgood joined Santa Fe in London in April 2012 as UK Relocation Director, and has over 20 years’ experience within the relocation and real estate sectors.

Andrew is responsible for overseeing relocation service delivery to a variety of corporate clients with global programmes, and suggesting ways to optimise these programmes.

E: Andrew.Hopgood@SantaFeRelo.com Spring International HR Adviser

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Expatriate Adviser Summer

Autumn International HR Adviser

Gender Bias in Global Mobility

Developing Female Leaders: Addressing Gender Bias In Global Mobility In many global organisations, international experience is viewed as a pre-requisite for executive and leadership roles. With just one in four outbound expatriates from Australia being female(i), organisations may unintentionally be limiting the progression of their high potential female employees. By exploring and addressing the barriers to female mobility, there is an opportunity to enhance both individual careers and organisational performance.

A year-long joint research project between PwC Australia and Melbourne University’s Centre for Ethical Leadership (CEL) has explored this issue in depth.

Using data from interviews with HR leaders, online surveys, academic literature and PwC’s expatriate tax client base, a number of “hotspots” for gender bias in the assignment lifecycle have been identified. In this article, we explore those bias hotspots and consider strategies to increase female participation in global mobility programmes.

To identify bias hotspots it is useful to contrast the motivations and experiences of men and women in international assignments with the expectations, views and practices of those who make decisions about assignments, such as HR managers.

We start this analysis by exploring men and women’s motivations to go on international assignments.

Why Do Females Accept Or Decline International Assignments?

The PwC/CEL in-depth survey (which was completed by over 100 male and female expatriates) confirmed that the motivations behind accepting an assignment were strikingly similar for both men and women.

Common reasons included enhancing careers and networks, offering distinctive skills to the host country employer, and more personal reasons such as interest in international travel, other cultures and other ways of working.

However, when asked why they would decline an international assignment, the responses were much more revealing of the differing viewpoints of men and women.

In this article we will explore these themes and address how organisations can

respond to the particular needs of female assignees in order to create a more balanced and representative expatriate workforce.

Where Are The Bias “Hotspots” Driving This Low Participation Rate Of Females In Global Mobility?

A. Assumptions About Female Candidates Research shows that women are no less interested than men in international assignments(ii). However, assumptions amongst both home and host country management about the availability, suitability and willingness of female candidates is seen as a significant factor in the under-representation of females amongst international assignee populations.

These assumptions do not stand up to scrutiny. A recent PwC survey (iii) showed that 69% of female employees want to work outside their home country during their career, whilst 63% saw international experience as critical to furthering their career, and is applicable on a global scale.

Assumptions around the availability and willingness of female employees to move overseas can result in viable female candidates being overlooked before the selection process has even begun. The fact that one HR leader stated that they “just know” when they are looking at the right candidate for an assignment, along with some of the malecentric language which was frequently used when HR leaders were asked to describe an ideal candidate for an assignment, suggests these assumptions could be deeply embedded in many organisations.

This use of male-centric language

and the attitude of “just knowing” when a candidate is appropriate for an international opportunity is a concern, as it is indicative of bias whereby good management characteristics are equated with male managers. Whilst there has been a positive shift at a domestic level in addressing this type of bias, it may be that these assumptions remain embedded to a much greater extent when male and female employees are being considered for international opportunities.

A positive first step for employers is to focus on the fact that nearly 70% of females want to work overseas, and recognise it is a responsibility of the employer to help make this happen. In these situations, a female employee’s career coach and line manager have a critical role to play in exploring that willingness to move overseas and connecting the candidate to the opportunity.

B. Lack Of Formality And Process In Recruitment And Candidate Selection Despite the strategic importance of global mobility, a number of studies show that the use of formal or structured candidate selection is surprisingly low (iv). As a result, closed and informal systems for selecting candidates are often the norm. As more than one HR leader interviewed by PwC/ CEL explained, very simply “it comes down to who you know”.

This closed approach to candidate selection negatively impacts females, as research indicates females in management are often “denied policy information, opportunities, contacts and social Spring International HR Adviser

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Gender Bias in Global Mobility support"(v). Furthermore, research also suggests that informal corporate activities such as fast track programmes, individual career counselling and career workshops are less available to women, which further limits their ability to be “in the know” about international assignment opportunities.

Such informal approaches to candidate selection severely restrict the pool of potential female assignees. They have the potential to facilitate the impact of bias on the decision making process, allowing assumptions and stereotyping to influence the final outcome.

These insights are supported by the data from the PwC survey. When asked how they became aware of the opportunity which led to their current international assignment, 35.6% of respondents (both male and female) said they initiated the opportunity themselves. The second most common means of securing the international opportunity was through personal networks and informal communication (17.8%). This points to a lack of an open, objective and fair approach to identifying candidates.

Furthermore, as HR leaders interviewed by PwC identified, when

there is a pressing need to fill an overseas role, management will typically select someone on their immediate radar, and someone similar to them. Given the imbalance between males and females in both expatriate positions and leadership positions, this “knee-jerk” approach to candidate selection is much more likely to result in the selection of “mini-me’s” and perpetuate the gender imbalance.

Interestingly, some HR leaders we interviewed took the opposite view. Their view was that not having a formal selection process helped the right candidates present themselves - by the candidates pushing themselves forward for the role, those individuals showed behaviours which indicated they would be a successful assignee. However, the majority of HR leaders saw that these behaviours are more frequently demonstrated by men than women, and taking this approach to candidate selection will not lead to a higher proportion of female assignees.

A recurring view amongst HR leader interviewees, and also in academic research, is that women are more conservative in their approach to pursuing international opportunities. There can be

a reluctance for female candidates to put themselves forward unless they are certain they can deliver on every requirement of the role, and that they stand a very high chance of being the successful candidate.

A formalised recruitment and selection process may help, but would not eliminate this concern.

What Are The Strategies For Addressing This Bias?

A. Timing Is Everything Female assignees are typically single and young. An analysis of over 10,000 assignees(vi) shows that almost 50% of females on assignment are single, whereas 70% of male assignees are married.

Furthermore, 40% of female assignees are aged between 30 and 39 (compared to 33% of males).

The graph below (based on data for over 10,000 assignees inbound to, or outbound from, Australia and receiving tax services from PwC), shows that women are more likely than men to take up assignments earlier in the career, but the balance changes at around the age of 40.

Using the same dataset, the graph underneath shows that there are now more single female assignees than married assignees. However, both percentages remain low. The more striking trend relates to male assignee demographics, and the split between married and single male assignees.

Making international opportunities available to female employees at an earlier stage of their career is critical to increasing female participation in mobility. As one Global HR Head told us, her view on female mobility is “start early, and start small” – identify high performing females at junior levels who are considered top talent, create short-term secondments (as brief as one month) to give them a flavour of working overseas, and increase their likelihood of accepting a longer-term, more strategic role later in their career.

B. Engagement Is Critical Research (vii) shows that the more committed a female employee is to her employer, the more willing she will be to accept an international assignment. The opposite is true for men.

Any activities undertaken by an organisation to improve staff engagement and commitment should increase the number of female employees willing to take an overseas role.

A challenge for employers is that “high

International HR Adviser Spring

Gender Bias in Global Mobility potential” and “leadership” programmes, which can have a very positive impact on an employee’s commitment to an organisation, tend to be most relevant to employees in their mid-30s onwards.

Making accelerated development programmes available to female employees at an earlier stage in their career can increase commitment and engagement, and improve both the quantity and calibre of female assignees.

C. Location, Not Duration Many HR leaders hold the view that short-term secondments could be more attractive to female employees, and this bias no doubt impacts on candidate selection. An analysis of PwC client data shows that female assignees show no greater preference for short-term secondments than male assignees.

What is more important is the location.

The level of development in the host country, perceived cultural differences between home and host locations, and political risk are of greater concern to female assignees than males(viii).

On this basis, working with female candidates to identify suitable host locations will have a greater impact on female participation than simply focusing on short-term mobility.

D. Champion Your Role Models It is widely recognised that a lack of role models is considered a barrier to female leadership. This issue surfaced in almost all of the interviews. Similarly, in the PwC/CEL survey, when asked why they might decline an international assignment, 28.2% of females cited a lack of role models (compared to just 11.5% of male respondents). Furthermore, the same percentage of females cited their gender not being strongly represented in the host country expatriate community as a reason for declining an assignment.

Given many of the additional challenges females may face in securing international roles, there is a pressing need to celebrate and champion success stories. One approach to addressing this opportunity is for high profile, successful female leaders with international experience, to be available to play coaching and mentoring roles to potential or current female assignees within their organisation.

E. Tackle The Dual-Career Issue Both men and women rank a happy and supportive spouse as highly important to a successful assignment(ix). However, in a 2011

study (x), 90% of female assignees stated that their assignment satisfaction was largely influenced by their spouse’s adjustment.

Many organisations, consciously or unconsciously, still adhere to the traditional view that expatriates are male with homemaker wives, with the critical role of family integration into host country life typically left to the nonworking spouse(xi). The PwC/CEL survey shows a higher percentage of spouses of female assignees work full-time in the host location than do spouses of male assignees (78.3 vs 51.1%). If an employer can play a role in helping a trailing spouse of a female assignee find full-time work in the host country, this is likely to help host country integration and increase the chances of a successful assignment.

Non-working male spouses can find adjustment particularly difficult when they were previously part of a dual career couple. Unresolved dual-career issues can lead to resentment and loss of identity (both for males and females), but expectations of traditional gender roles can make this a greater problem for female assignees.

There is a need for organisational policies which specifically target the issue of dual career couples. During our interviews we found that some organisations provide additional support for trailing spouses to help them find jobs, learn the local language, and integrate in host country society, but these organisations were in the minority.

Including spousal support as a core, nonnegotiable benefit under an organisation’s assignment policy could be a positive first step towards tackling this complex issue which touches on professional, social and household dynamics.

F. Build Gender-Specific Support Networks There is a critical role for professional support networks for female assignees.

Best practice would suggest that an assignee should have both a home and host country mentor. Prior to departure, the home country mentor can help address unrealistic expectations around the upcoming assignment, as well as enhancing organisational knowledge, job performance on assignment, and promotion potential of the female assignee upon her return(xii).

Once on assignment, providing buddying and mentoring systems (particularly with other senior female employees or assignees), can increase the

chances of a successful assignment.

Furthermore, cultural adjustment is thought to be the biggest influence behind an assignee’s decision to disengage or withdraw from an assignment, male or female. Given the role of social support as a coping factor, this is an issue which can be challenging for couples where the woman is the assignee and the man is the trailing, non-working spouse. Typically, without a workplace of likeminded individuals, the man may struggle to find relevant social networks. This can place pressure on both partners.

Any steps an employer can take to help female assignees and their families build social networks, whether formal or informal, in the host location, can significantly contribute towards the success of the assignment. This is an area where employers may need to be creative – traditional, male centric social and support networks may not be the best fit for a female assignee and her family.

As Global Mobility functions take on an increasingly strategic role around global talent identification, mapping and tracking, there is an opportunity for Global Mobility teams to take the lead in ensuring their female assignees feel supported throughout the assignment cycle.

G. Focus On Repatriation Most HR leaders are familiar with the concept of the “career wobble” which can occur shortly after repatriation.

Dissatisfaction around perceived underutilisation of skills and experience acquired during the assignment, and potential frustrations with the seniority of the role they have returned to, can greatly increase the chance of losing that individual from the organisation. Equally, where the original home country assignment sponsors have moved on to other roles or organisations, and returning expatriates find themselves in “holding patterns” awaiting meaningful roles (or redundancy), individuals can very quickly disengage.

One Global HR Head we spoke to insisted that any proposed redundancies of repatriating assignees should receive her sign-off. However, there was also a recognition that by the time the paperwork reached her, the situation was most likely unrecoverable.

Research has shown that 44% of repatriates leave their companies within the first two years of returning to their home organisation(xiii). Given the current focus on the Return on Investment (ROI) of Spring International HR Adviser

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Gender Bias in Global Mobility global mobility, this is clearly a matter which needs to be addressed, irrespective of gender.

This is an issue which impacts upon both male and female expatriates.

However, where a female assignee may have experienced difficulties during the assignment (such as the failure of a nonworking spouse to adjust to life in the host country), the failure of her employer to adequately manage repatriation can be particularly damaging.

Through being mindful of the “reverse culture shock” which can occur upon repatriation, as well as taking steps to plan repatriation at least 6 to 12 months prior to the return, organisations can mitigate the career wobble and resultant flight risk.

Summary Historical PwC data for over 10,000 assignees for the period 2005 onwards captured in the table below shows that there is no discernible upward trend in the percentage of female expatriates. Despite the increasing focus on gender equality in the workplace over the last 10 years, progress in female participation in global mobility has been worryingly slow, and action is required by employers.

Our research suggests that many organisations need an overhaul of their approach to global mobility in order to address unconscious bias in the candidate selection process. Organisations should ensure they have a strategy and policy framework which ensures mobility is equally assessable and attractive to both men and women. If successful, such an approach will provide a greater proportion of female employees with leadership development opportunities, a great personal and professional experience for the employee, and a positive return on investment for the employer.

Jonathan Dunlea Jonathan Dunlea is a Melbournebased Partner in PwC Australia’s People business. Advising clients for over 17 years in PwC UK, Singapore and Australia, Jonathan specialises in cross-border tax, pensions, social security and share plan issues. Jonathan also works with clients in designing and implementing global mobility strategies, policies and processes.

PwC’s People Business helps clients to realise and discover the potential of their people by providing a single integrated people consulting and solutions service.

Our services range from payroll and immigration solutions through employment taxes and industrial relations advice to change management, culture consulting, HR technology, organisation design and remuneration and leadership.

Email: Jonathan.b.dunlea@au.pwc.com

Victor Sojo Victor Sojo is a post-doctoral Research Fellow with the Centre for Ethical Leadership and an Honorary Fellow in the Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences at the University of Melbourne. Victor is the lead researcher in the CEL’s Gender Equality Programme. He conducts empirical research, meta-analyses and literature reviews in the areas of gender equality at work and organisational diversity management.

The CEL conducts internationally regarded academic research and delivers programs and tools to develop the ethical leadership capability of both senior and emerging leaders. The CEL’s work is undertaken in partnership with a range of major organisations in both the profit and not for profit sectors and an extensive network of domestic and international academic collaboration.

Email: vsojo@cel.edu.au

i Based on analysis of PwC data covering 6,581 outbound expatriates from Australia ii Altman, N. J., & Shortland, S. (2008). Women and International Assignments: Taking Stock – A 25-Year Review. Human Resource Management, 47, 199-216. iii PwC Next Generation Diversity: Developing Tomorrow’s Female Leaders, 2014 iv Caligiuri, P. M., Tarique, I., & Jacobs, R. (2009) Selection for international assignments. Human Resource Management Review 19, 251-262; Harris, H. & Brewster, C. (1999). The coffee-machine system: How international selection really works. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 10, 488-500.

Harris & Brewster (1999) op. cit.; Stainbackm K., Ratliff, T. N., & Roscigno, V. J. (2011). The context of workplace sex discrimination: Sex composition, workplace culture and relative power. Social Forces, 89, 1165-1188. v Demographic data for over 10,000 recipients of PwC Australia tax services Van der Velde, M. E. G., Bossink, C. J. H., & Jansen, P. G. W. (2005). Gender differences in the determinants of the willingness to accept and international assignment. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 66, 81−103. vi Lowe, K. B., Downes, M., & Kroeck, K. G. (1999). The impact of gender and location on the willingness to accept overseas assignments. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 10, 223–234. vii McNulty, Y. (2005), The trailing spouse survey: A four-year study of accompanying spouse issues on international assignments. Unpublished manuscript. viii Cole, N. D. (2011), Managing global talent: solving the spousal adjustment problem. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 22, 1504-1530. ix Mercer Human Resource Consulting (2006), 2005/2006 International Assignments Survey. New York: Mercer Human Resource Consulting x Carraher, S. E., Sullivan, S. E., & Crocitto, M. M. (2008). Mentoring across global boundaries: An empirical examination of home and host country mentors on expatriate career outcomes. Journal of International Business Studies, 39, 1310−1326. xi GMAC Global Relocation Services, National Foreign Trade Council, and SHRM Global Forum. (2004). Global relocation trends: 2003/2004 survey report. Oak Brook, IL: Author.

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Autumn  International HR Adviser

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Case Study - American Express’ Education Policy For Their Expatriate Employees

Challenges Of Education Across Mobility Pathways Choosing the right education policy for a global mobility programme is one of the more difficult tasks any Global Mobility Director must face. Getting an idea of costs is one challenge (see AIRINC's Education Report for Kuala Lumpur, for example), but many factors must be weighed in order to establish a programme that balances employee and business needs successfully. AIRINC Client Services Manager, Adam Silver, interviewed American Express Director of Global Mobility Services, Tricia Schneider, to get her take on how important the right education choices are across a diverse mobility programme, and to discuss some of the considerations American Express takes into account in its global operations.

AS: Could You Talk A Little Bit About Yourself And Your Role At American Express?

TS: I'm the Director of Global Mobility Services for American Express. I started at American Express in 2012, but I have over twenty years of experience in the industry.

My team is responsible for successfully executing the American Express mobility programme globally, including permanent transfers (intra- and inter-country) and expatriate assignments, while providing a positive return on investment. We act as a Centre of Excellence under Compensation and Benefits to ensure that mobility is an enabler of business and global talent strategies while meeting its financial objectives.

AS: Can You Talk A Little About What Kind Of Mobility Pathways American Express Has, And How The Different Paths May Address Education Differently?

TS: We have two major pathways: permanent transfers and traditional expatriate assignments.

Most of the time we use the permanent transfer route, which entails moving the employee's payroll and benefits from one location to the other. Within this pathway, from an international perspective, we have three tiers. We have a lump sum tier that can be used for any level, and it International HR Adviser  Spring

allows the employee choice and flexibility.

We still provide compliance services like immigration along with soft-side services like home finding, educational counselling, and tax orientation.

The second tier we call an International Relocation Programme and we provide it for our managers and above. It is more of a typical relocation package with a core plus flexible options. Included in our core programme is educational counselling to help explain the destination country's school system and guide the employee on potential school options and costing.

We also have a flexible option, chosen by the leader, to provide a differential to the family for up to three years. This enables us to offset educational costs if the family is not paying for education in the origin location. In some countries there is a fee for foreigners to enter public school, and this would be covered as well.

The third tier is what we call an International Local Plus Programme.

We have strict eligibility criteria around this programme, including sign-off from Talent Acquisition Management, the Line of Business, and the Human Resource Business Partner. The intent is a strategic talent opportunity with the potential for multiple country moves within a three- to six-year period. Under this programme we provide educational counselling and placement services along with the cost of tuition on a declining scale over a three-year period. If the employee chooses public school, we provide an allowance to cover tutoring or assistance in assimilating.

The second pathway is of course the more traditional expatriate programme route. We have a Short-Term Programme for assignments of less than one year, under which family is not supported.

We then have a Long-Term Assignment Programme, in which we have fewer than twenty employees currently on assignment, and that's really our global strategic leadership population. We cover educational counselling and placement along with full tuition reimbursement during the time of the assignment.

AS: How Did You Establish These Differences?

TS: Every year we look at our peer group and at industry best practices, and we also listen to our stakeholders, who include the Line of Business, Employees, and Human Resource Business Partners. Based on the information and feedback, we determine how best to approach our programme design. Because we are hiring a significant number of employees from the technology industry, we have found that using lump sums with soft-side services provides the best results for certain business groups.

Additionally, through listening to our employees, we realised we had to address pre-schooling requirements for threeand four-year-old children with a similar benefit to help ready them for school in the new country.

What we've also found is that a lot of times employees actually may be paying for tuition in their origin location, so what we didn't want to do was to over-enrich employees in that middle tier, but we also don't want them to be out of pocket if they haven't been paying for education.

So we felt that a differential was a good option that balanced budgeting from a business perspective but also addressed the employees' needs, and it's been very well received.

At the higher tier and in the long term expatriate programme, we're really looking at moving the family around, so we felt the need to address the multiple country perspective by covering tuition.

AS: Do You Find You Have Different Challenges With Regard To Education Policy Internationally Versus Domestically?

TS: I do see it differently; when people are moving within a country they already understand the general educational system, but they still need counselling for the local nuances. Across countries, they don't understand the system, and many people become worried about whether they are doing the right thing for their children.

What I see that's very interesting is that when a leader starts socialising a potential opportunity, or even just doing some career succession planning, employees will start to look at the education systems and options in advance of an actual offer.

Case Study - American Express’ Education Policy For Their Expatriate Employees Over the past year we have socialised the challenges with moving employees with children during the school year along with educating on preparation and timing required, especially in some of our higher volume countries. I think it’s really opened up leadership’s eyes, especially if you’re moving people with children, that they have to think a lot further ahead than, “I want somebody there in 21 days.”

AS: So Getting Well Ahead Of Education Is Really A Big Key In Making The Assignment Successful. Do You Think There Are Other Key Actions Or Factors That Help You Implement Your Policy Successfully?

TS: For us it is important to make sure that this is the right move for the business, from a career planning perspective, and for the employee and the family. We have implemented eligibility criteria and sign-offs by various parties to ensure that all these aspects are considered. We have a 42% female mobile population along with a high dual-income population. In order to address our demographic, we need to provide benefits that support the career of the trailing spouse, who is often a male.

One of the things we've had to consider with our intra-country programmes is moves during the school year. We've addressed the schooling piece on an intra-country basis by providing support for the employee to travel home regularly while the family is staying behind to finish out the school year. This benefit has enabled employees to accept positions knowing they have the support to return home.

AS: Are There Locations Where It's More Or Less Difficult To Send People Internationally From An Education Perspective?

TS: Yes, it's usually in the countries where we have permanent relocators. Some of these countries have public school systems that do not support foreigners with inclusion programmes, or whose public schools charge fees for foreigners.

I would say we find these practices more prevalent in the Asia PAC region. The education benefit covers alternatives so that employees and families have choices to pursue.

It can also be challenging in these countries because service providers operate more on the traditional line of expat international schools rather than parochial or public schools. So we've

partnered up with them and provided training on our employee types so that they can offer the right servicing.

AS: What Kind Of Guidance Do You Think Is Important, Especially In Cases Where You're Providing The Employee With Counselling, But Not Specifically With Financial Support?

TS: So, believe it or not, we have not received complaints. I think when they're getting a lump sum they realise it is fairly generous and it is meant to include any financial impact related to schooling.

Further, we have employees questioning whether they need the educational counselling, but we absolutely feel it is necessary. From our perspective, we want them to understand up front, eyes wide open, how the educational system

AS: Do You Find That Kind Of Challenge As Well In Your International Moves, And Have You Taken Similar Steps In Those Kinds Of Cases For Cross-Border?

TS: Yes, we have. From a cross-border perspective, we tend to plan ahead. So if we have people we're potentially moving next year, we're already planning the school piece this year. If everything works with the school piece, they might actually move ahead of the intended plan.

We also have a family staying behind benefit, based on programme, so an employee can return home quarterly while the children are finishing out the school year.

Source: AIRINC Education Report for Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur. For more information email: publications@air-inc.com

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Case Study - American Express’ Education Policy For Their Expatriate Employees works and what are the differences from the origin country. I think they really appreciate it in the long run.

AS: So For Your Lump Sum Employees, Do You Provide Them With An Indication Of What The School Costs Are Going To Be In The Host Location? Is That Part Of The Counselling That They Receive Or Is That Something Else?

TS: It is part of the counselling. We have also instituted an even more proactive approach, in partnership with AIRINC, using the Education Reports by country.

This provides them with educational information and costs up front that any employee can access via our intranet site (see chart on previous page).

AS: What Does American Express Define As A SchoolAged Child?

TS: We're defining school-aged children from three to eighteen years old. Are they going to the international school at age three? No, but they might be going to a Montessori school or another type of programme to help them grasp the language and some of the host country's cultural nuances. So we do include that population and offer support provisions.

AS: That's A Pretty Generous Policy. What Was The Driver Behind Having The School Age Go All The Way Down To Three Years Old? TS: It could be considered generous, but we had a lot of complaints when we had it at five years of age. A number of home locations, including the UK and the US, have pre-kindergarten programmes, so people felt like we weren't supporting that.

Listening to the voice of our customer we needed to address it. We have found that the parents feel that they're being supported in that process. When the children hit age five, if the family is still on assignment, then they also have the capabilities needed to take assessment tests and obtain placement. It's a much better holistic approach for the family.

AS: How Do You Handle Change In Family Size While On Assignment? For Example, What If An Assignee Marries Somebody With Children While On Assignment?

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TS: We have had cases like this, even within our small population of expatriates.

We just make whatever change would be applicable for the assignee per the programme guidelines. We actually had an employee who married someone with two children. They came over, we provided educational counselling and placement, and then we provided the educational tuition benefit. We also changed the goods and services differential and adjusted the home leave and other related provisions to include the new family size.

AS: So Is That A Decision Made To Maintain Equity Or For Simplicity?

TS: It was definitely not for simplicity! It was for equity, and employees definitely notice it. We look at this sort of provision very similarly to the way we look at benefits, so if you're in the US and you're getting medical benefits and you get married or you have a life event, we at American Express address those life change events and you can, for example, add people on to your benefits. We very much feel that mobility fits in this category, so we want to address those life events, especially for people who are out on assignment for a period of time; you can't expect them to just put their lives on hold for four years.

AS: I've Recently Had A Client Ask For A Housing Exception Because They Had An Assignee Whose Children Were Going To Three Different Schools In The Host Location. Do You Think That Assignees' Education Requirements Should Affect Other Allowances, For Example Housing Subsidies Or Transportation?

TS: I guess we're a little bit more generous; we cover the cost of transportation to and from school. Actually, we've seen this particular issue in the UK. We have a couple of families in the UK whose children go to different schools. Also included in the benefit is boarding to offset some of the challenges if it fits within the pre-established cap for that country. Another way of handling this is to place the family in a neutral housing area, halfway between schools.

AS: Since You've Implemented The Policies We've Discussed So Far, Have You Measured

The Happiness Rate With Your Education Programme?

TS: Yes, we survey of our population from the year prior in the May timeframe.

This way they have time to settle and assimilate, so we can accurately determine how they're feeling.

Part of the survey discusses how well the family adjusted. In our last survey (May 2014), 98% of the employees were happy they relocated and 93% felt they had adjusted in the first six months.

Eighty-eight percent of the families felt they had adjusted in the first six months, which is a pretty good adjustment rate.

We also asked them about the service providers and benefits, and we had 100% satisfaction on the education piece.

Adam Silver: Client Service Manager Adam Silver has over a decade of experience with global mobility as both an expat himself and as a client service manager at AIRINC. Adam manages a diverse mix of AIRINC clients in the consumer goods, technology and finance industries; working with them on policy, strategy and administration. Associates for International Research, Inc., 1100 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge Massachusetts, USA 02138 E: ASilver@air-inc.com Tricia Schneider American Express Director, Global Mobility Services Global Ownership Virtual – New Orleans, LA US E: Tricia.joy.p.schneider@aexp.com Phone: +1 504-301-3425 Tricia Schneider is the Director of Global Mobility Services for American Express, a Fortune 500, $31.6 billion global services company, providing customers with access to products, insights and experiences that enrich lives and build business success. As the leader in global payments, American Express is the largest card issuer by purchase volume and operates a worldwide network that processes millions of merchant transactions daily with over 65,000 employees in 130 countries.

In this role, Tricia is responsible for successfully executing American Express’ mobility programme globally while providing a positive ROI.

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VIRTUAL WORKING

Virtual Teams: Vital Success Factors Virtual teams and remote working programmes are now an established part of the corporate landscape and offer huge benefits to companies who manage them successfully. Virtual or remote working can save significant amounts of time and money, and provides companies with the flexibility to harness the right talent for the right projects, and to ‘follow the sun’, offering availability to clients anywhere in the world at any time of day or night.

Challenges Of Virtual Team Working However, it is frequently cited that more than 50% of global virtual teams fail to meet their objectives. This is hardly surprising as working with colleagues who are not co-located and communicating via technology is not the natural way of working for most of us human beings, particularly for those from relationshipfocused cultures where communication tends to be less direct and more reliant on non-verbal cues.

Whether virtual or face-to-face, teams by their nature require interaction and collaboration; team members share ideas and information, support each other and cover each other’s work. This all requires good working relationships between team members, harder to establish when individuals have rarely or sometimes never met face-to-face. The absence of informal conversation over lunch or coffee, those water cooler moments, or a shared joke on the way out of the office at the end of the day, makes it much harder for virtual team members to form a bond and to build that sense of ‘we’ that will support them through challenging projects.

‘It can be a bit lonely sometimes, and sometimes I can feel like I am working in a vacuum.’

Partnerships Manager, Consumer Association Without good relationships it can be harder to build trust between team members. Trust forms the glue that binds a virtual team together and higher levels of trust lead to improved knowledge sharing, increased innovation, a greater sense of commitment and more openness to change. In virtual teams trust is less likely to develop organically and teams need to dedicate time, attention and International HR Adviser Spring

specific protocols to ensuring trust is fostered, such as through training or coaching initiatives.

Undoubtedly the biggest challenge facing teams is communication; how, when, who with, how often to communicate. Getting the communication right is not only about investing in collaborative technologies, but also means developing soft skills and understanding individuals’ differing communication needs and styles. Creating opportunities for informal communication across the team, as well as ensuring that the right information gets to the right people at the right time, is essential.

‘I miss the lack of interaction and easy exchange of ideas.’

European Sales Manager, IT Company

The Cost Of Getting It Wrong ‘Take a typical team, make it virtual and expect trouble’.

Lipnack and Stamps (2000) Poor relationships, a lack of meaningful communication and an absence of trust can lead to a significant drop in effectiveness and an increased delay in meeting deadlines.

A 2005 Deloitte study of IT projects outsourced to virtual work groups found that 66% failed to satisfy the clients’ requirements. We have all heard the negative stories about endless online meetings where a couple of people dominate and everyone else is busy checking their emails or doing something else. Apparently 90% of audio conference participants multi-task during meetings.** We know about the missed deadlines, low morale, poor communication leading to unnecessary work, email messages that cause misunderstanding or offence.

This can be the reality of working as part of a virtual structure with the end result that time and money are wasted, employees become disengaged and demotivated, projects fail to deliver and clients are disappointed.

The Benefits Of Getting It Right But it’s not all bad news. It has been widely acknowledged that in addition to offering cost savings through reduced travel, office space and local recruitment campaigns, when managed properly, virtual teams can actually out-perform co-located teams. A recent Stanford study suggested a 13% increase in productivity when employees work remotely. But the mistake can be to assume that the

same management tools, guidelines and communication protocols that work for co-located teams will be effective with geographically dispersed teams.

Investment in time, planning and soft skills training can create extremely positive outcomes for virtual teams.

Strong relationships where team members communicate freely, provide support and trust each other’s motivations can be developed. Team members can learn from each other and maximise the opportunities of working in a culturally diverse team. Online meetings can be just as, if not more, efficient than face-to-face meetings. And projects can be delivered on time and on budget with no impact on client satisfaction.

A flexible virtual team working structure can also mean significant improvements in employee engagement, leading to improved staff retention – and its associated cost savings. When managed well, many employees appreciate the opportunity to collaborate with, and learn from, the best talent in their organisation from across the globe and to gain allimportant international experience. Those employees working remotely from their home appreciate the flexibility that remote working offers and the ability to really focus on important tasks without distractions.

How Training Helps Many companies focus on the time and space challenges of virtual working and invest heavily in technology. However, the human challenges of virtual working are all too often neglected, with one recent survey* reporting that only approximately 16% of virtual employees at large multinationals received any training to prepare them for this new way of working.

Training that focuses on the human elements of virtual team working enables team members to understand, manage and adapt to the intercultural and interpersonal differences in working styles and expectations, as well as identifying their own patterns and preferences.

Participants also learn practical tools to communicate more effectively, manage conflict and build better relationships.

Example 1 A recent virtual training programme brought together scientific R&D

VIRTUAL WORKING team members in the UK and Italy to help them to understand each other’s working styles and to establish new and more effective ways of working and communicating together. A major challenge for this team had been when and how to communicate, and how to share relevant information appropriately. Prior to the training, British team members had found their Italian colleagues to be secretive and felt that they withheld important project information. Training helped both nationalities to understand each other’s communication style and how to break down negative perceptions in order to work more effectively together.

Example 2 A large global investment bank brought together finance team members from Europe and Asia for a series of virtual training workshops. The delegates were able to experience the trainer demonstrating best practice virtual communication, and had the opportunity to build their relationships with colleagues through learning more about each other’s culture and work style preferences, and through a greater understanding of the local and cultural challenges that each group faced.

Example 3 European and Indian project team members at a global health care firm recently attended a two part virtual training programme to help them work more effectively with their colleagues who they mostly had never met in person. The first part gave each cultural group a grounding in the other culture and an awareness of the impact of their own behaviours. The second part brought both groups together and enabled colleagues to share and breakdown perceptions and to establish shared values, communication protocols and a new ‘third’ way of working.

Example 4 In another case, a British brand manager responsible for teams throughout southern Europe learnt how to build relationships more effectively through email communication and reported a much more positive response from his virtual direct reports since attending training.

Tangible Outputs In addition to increasing their knowledge, building awareness and developing new skills, intact teams can leave training with a practical

team charter and action plan to implement into their daily work. These can include new communication protocols with easy wins such as the use of video or email guidelines, as well as commitments to each other in terms of response times or knowledge sharing.

Example 5 Managers of a pharmaceutical company from locations throughout North America and Europe attended a series of virtual training workshops. They were able to share best practice, test out new tools, and discuss communication models, and they also took away a list of ideas and suggestions that could be added to organisation-wide project set up documents and communication charters.

Cathy Wellings, Consultant, Farnham Castle Intercultural Training Cathy is a passionate and dynamic intercultural and communication skills trainer and coach with 25 years’ international experience of training, consultancy and management across the corporate, public and academic sectors. She has lived and worked in France and Spain and has managed numerous client projects both virtually and on the ground across the globe. She has worked with many large organisations including global banks, legal and insurance firms, retail companies, government departments and universities.

Established for more than 50 years, the Farnham Castle team, together with our worldwide network of global cultural experts have gained an unrivalled reputation for helping international companies develop cross-cultural workforce solutions that support international business growth.

We help organisations gain global competitive advantage by using seminar training, executive coaching, consultation, and other practical business tools to provide expatriate personnel and business travellers with the knowledge to understand and interact with different cultures, delivering intercultural competencies integral to succeed in today’s globalised world.

For a free global workforce consultation please contact: Gustavo Aranda at +44 (0)1252 720 409 or garanda@farnhamcastle.com or visit www.farnhamcastletraining.com

UPCOMING EVENTS AT FARNHAM CASTLE

Culture Bites – Free Webinar Series Families Matter – Protect your Global Mobility Investment with Expat Family Support 3rd June 2015 The Mexican Way – A Taste of Mexico 1st July 2015 South Korea – Practical Business Advice 9th September 2015 Nigeria – Cultural Top Tips for Business Success 7th October 2015 Managing the expatriate adjustment lifecycle: from predeparture, through culture shock and adjustment to eventual repatriation 4th November 2015 To secure your participation visit www.farnhamcastletraining.com or contact Dianne Hosking at +44 (0)1252 720 415 or dhosking@farnhamcastle.com

The Expatriate's Guide to Living in the UK If you would like to order extra copies of the enclosed

2015 Expatriate’s Guide To Living In The UK for your expatriate employees who are relocating to the UK, please email damian@expatsguidetotheuk.com

The 2015 Ex Guide to L patriate's iving in th e UK

Price £5.00

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* RW3 Virtual Teams Report 2012 ** Raindance Communications 2004

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The Changing Role Of Global Mobility

The Changing Role Of Global Mobility I have worked in International Human Resources since 1999. There is not one day where I do not learn anything new!

I remember that I sat in the last row of a very expensive Global Mobility seminar in Berlin. I was about three months into a role that was at least one shoe size too big for my experience. I must have made a big impression in the interview. I had landed my dream job as the “HR International” Advisor for Asia Pacific responsible for around 80 assignees and representatives of a large global bank. The seminar was a waste of money on me. It was far too specific and detailed. The cases were more the exceptions than the general rule, and I am happy that at least I remembered when to apply the “183-day-rule” in a case of double taxation, and when to not even bother.

We Are Not Relocation Professionals Even Though We Often Engage Them Later in my Human Resources career, I noticed that there really isn't a lot of good advice out there for international Human Resources professionals, plus if you say you work in “Global Mobility”, a lot of people think you are doing relocation. When talking to other HR Professionals and senior managers they often underestimate the complexity of Global Mobility, and one of the remarks that still makes me angry is when Global Mobility Professionals are called “Admin staff ”, because what we do requires an enormous knowledge and skill set.

If you are one of my colleagues you probably share my view that a Global Mobility Professional has to be: • Highly analytical (you are a comp and cost expert) • Highly technical (you are an expert on tax, social security, immigration, employment law) • Highly experiential (you have to have moved 200 expats to know your job) • Highly sensitive (you work with talents and their families in a phase of high stress) • Highly intercultural (you speak at least four languages and deal with numerous cultures).

We need to build up our own professional standard and education whilst we need to learn to work more in line with the International HR Adviser Spring

businesses and clients we serve. We need to step up and become real consultants.

Five Megatrends Since the year 2000 many Human Resources departments have been restructured and adopted an organisation model with HR business partners, centres of expertise and shared service centres (“Dave-Ulrich-Model”). Some forward-thinking Human Resources Professionals claim that we have to move away from our traditional ways of working and sharing work. Structures have become flatter and more fluid.

HR Leaders and business line managers seek input from Global Mobility Professionals directly and earlier in the process. A Big4 Consulting Firm on the other hand just stated that “Global Mobility Shared Service Centres” are the new black for 2015 (see Deloitte www. internationalhradviser.co.uk/storage/ downloads/Global Mobility Shared Service Centres That's The Bottom Line Deloitte.pdf ).

Let’s take a look at trends we are confronted with that influence our work. We have all been influenced by five megatrends: • Technology • Globalised corporations • Global economic crisis • Generation X, Y and Game • The population growth in China/India and South East Asia.

From these five mega trends we can already see eight Global Mobility trends that were also mentioned in a report by Worldwide ERC (2012).

Eight Global Mobility Trends In A Nutshell • Repatriation retention continues to be an issue for many companies • Selection and assessment of candidates includes more intercultural skills than in the past • Third-party vendor management (the management of all providers involved in the GM process such as relocation companies, intercultural trainers, spouse career coaches and more), is driven by global alignment and costreduction but most companies have regional quality needs • Local plus packages (local market salary

and contract plus housing or support with relocation), seem to indicate constant policy reviews with input from assignees • Alignment of Global Mobility programmes with Talent Management where talent is the driver • More assignments from traditional inbound countries such as India and China pose challenges for traditional outbound locations • Cost containment for less strategic assignments. We see more short-term and commuter assignments, developmental assignments and local-to-local transfers • GM value proposition needs to define the higher value of the GM function for business growth. In other words: GM has to prove its relevance for business critical operations. (Source: Worldwide ERC – 2012).

The Changing Role Of Global Mobility You have noticed the change happening.

You realise it’s not about you any longer.

It’s about HR as a whole. What has been preached to us over the last 20 years is entirely wrong. We cannot be strategic business partners unless we are in a strategic function (see HBR Blog Post).

Where Are These Strategic Functions?

They have to do with the talent life cycle, with recruiting, with moving talents into the right places at the right time, and with developing our current and future leaders so that they are able to deal with the complexity of dealing with today’s world. We are in the centre of this change but only a few of us have seen it coming.

More Transparency In The Assignee Population Many assignees have been burnt by the experiences of expats around the world.

They heard horror stories of lack of social security, lower standards of living, marital breakdowns, children being traumatised and not able to study. They have also heard the repatriation reality: Assignees were not promoted when they repatriated.

The stories are online. Ten years ago there was hardly any communication outside of the traditional “expat clubs”.

Now, experiences are shared. Companies have lost the trust of their employees.

The Changing Role Of Global Mobility Employees of all ages and colours (especially the younger generations), are seeking transparency for their international careers, benefits and working hours.

More Dual Career Couples Dual Career couples and their issues did not really raise any eyebrows twenty years ago. “Expat wife” was a career aspiration.

Now women take the lead and are becoming a major assignee population.

Trailing husbands form support groups from Basel to Barcelona.

The Global Mobility Professionals We still work with tools that are basically excel sheets. We still need to fill hundreds of forms. We still need to seek approval for every minor exception to the policy and stay up all night when an expat is in a dangerous country.

What Should Change For You? We think that the profile of Global Mobility Professionals needs to be raised.

We think we need to be trendsetters, we think we need to be more up to speed on social media, have better tools and be self-guided learners. In short: We think we need to be globally competent.

Angela Weinberger has lived in Germany, Switzerland, UK, India and Australia. After her graduation in "International Business Studies" of the University of Paderborn, she worked in Human Resources specialising in Global Mobility during her corporate career at a large global bank and one of the Big 4 Professional Services Firms in Germany and later Switzerland.

Angela is known in the German-speaking world as a Global Mobility Expert. She started her company Global People Transitions GmbH in 2012. She offers career and executive coaching to expats and their spouses through programmes. She also works with expats on improving their intercultural communication and prepares expat families for their stint in Switzerland through intercultural training.

She consults HR Professionals on how to improve the international assignment experience for expats, their spouses and families. Her working languages are English and German, but she also communicates in French, Spanish, understands Swiss German and learns Arabic.

Angela recently published “The Global Mobility Workbook – A Step-by-Step Guide for Managing International Assignments”. (Available on Amazon) Link to Website www.globalpeopletransitions.com References Worldwide ERC – 2012 www.ighr.com/Libraries/Case_Studies/SupportandRetentionStrategies_1.sflb.ashx Programmes www.worldwideerc.org/Education/GMS/Pages/gms.aspx Deloitte – Shared Service Centres www.internationalhradviser.co.uk/storage/downloads/Global Mobility Shared Service Centres That's The Bottom Line Deloitte.pdf HBR Blog http://http//blogs.hbr.org/2014/10/its-not-hrs-job-to-be-strategic/ www.internationalhradviser.co.uk/storage/downloads/Repatriation.pdf

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PAY DIFFERENTIATION

Analysing The Pay Gap If there’s one thing guaranteed to create heated debate in the media, it’s the disparity in wages between the highest- and lowest-paid people in organisations. This is a topic that can become quite controversial quite quickly, but a lot of the debate surrounding it can be unhelpful and actually misleading. In fact, it’s a topic that requires deep analysis of lots of different factors – all of which businesses need to understand in order to navigate the pay gap and better serve their employees and shareholders.

We conducted research recently that shows that the pay gap is now on the rise in twice as many countries as it is falling (42 to 21) and this rise between lower-level workers and senior managers has widened in every region worldwide. But it’s worth asking why this is, and how companies should manage the growing gap?

Why? One of the most misunderstood aspects of the debate is that the size of the pay gap depends on a number of factors, not least the shape of the company and the types of workers it employs.

For example, a company that employs more people at a lower wage will have a higher disparity, especially if it’s a multinational operating in lower wage markets. However, a company that has fewer people but mainly hires skilled people (such as a consulting firm or law firm) will have a smaller gap, even though they may have a CEO who earns far more than their counterpart in a manufacturing company.

These nuances aside, the pay gap has definitely accelerated since the recession. But this is not purely a postrecession issue. This has been building for the last 30 years – through boom as well as bust – and it’s the result of two of the megatrends changing business: globalisation and digitisation.

Globalisation has opened up new markets and new workforces, meaning companies can now access a new pool of workers at lower cost. This new competition can affect wages in a company’s home market.

Another upshot is that, because of the increased complexity of multinational workforces, top executives are responsible for wider areas and more people, often resulting in larger pay packets.

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Digitisation has also had a significant impact on pay. Many jobs have become simpler, reducing the level of skill needed for a huge number of roles. But digitisation has also led to a boom in the need for professionals to design and manage global systems. The digital revolution has also made it easier for companies to go global and take advantage of lower staff costs and larger markets.

The ‘Hollowing Out’ Of Organisations There’s no doubt that a large pay gap between jobs can cause huge discontent among the workforce. Similarly, the increased need for more skilled people to keep pace with the changes in technology and globalisation is leaving those in more routine and unskilled jobs out in the cold – as they become less and less important, or entirely redundant.

But it’s not just the lower-level jobs that are being wiped out. Many former middle-management roles, such as legal executives or accountants have suffered a similar fate. What we’re actually seeing is the ‘hollowing out’ of companies.

Our research shows that the reduction in middle management roles leads to senior managers increasing their ‘span of control’, where they are seeing more complex work and greater responsibility than in previous years, leading to more pay.

What Can Companies Do? The most important thing is for companies to tackle the pay gap head-on and take steps to navigate the challenges it presents. Organisations need to be transparent with employees and communicate why reward policies are in place. Being proactive and explaining the underlying trends at work can really help guard against possible dissatisfaction.

Also, organisations should be realistic.

They need to be aware of the changing demands on the workforce, and then plan ahead, gather insight and put a framework in place to manage and develop employees. Alongside this, organisations need to be clear about the skills they need and the skills they think they’ll need in the future. This thinking doesn’t have to be confined to a company – there may be national or even international skills demands, especially when it comes to training young people.

Importantly, organisations should consider how skills can be taught in work.

From our research, this is particularly important with young people. In many cases, they haven’t yet learned (either at school or university) the ‘soft skills’ – such as emotional intelligence, leadership and the ability to solve complex and unusual problems. These are now highly valued skills in the workplace.

Companies should also invest in their development programmes to upskill their workforces to meet the future demands of their businesses. This also helps create a talent pipeline. It’s no longer enough for companies to solely rely on hiring smart university graduates. As our “Best Companies for Leadership” study shows, the best companies actually develop and increase the skills of their own people (and promote from within), which is both cheaper and more reliable than going to the market.

None of this is easy. But done properly, these solutions present an opportunity for organisations to navigate the pay gap and to genuinely improve employee engagement.

Our research shows that Europe has seen the smallest change globally, with an average increase in the pay gap of only 2.2 % since 2008. It is also the region with the greatest number of countries that have experienced a decrease in the pay gap, with Switzerland, France and Poland recording falls of 3.3%, 5.6%, and 12.8% respectively.

North America, by comparison, has experienced a 7.2% increase in senior manager pay compared to lower level employees. The United States alone has seen a 10.6% increase.

What explains this divergence between North America and Europe? Local employment practices are a major factor. In response to the recession, many companies in Europe introduced communal pay cuts to avoid job losses. In comparison, US companies more frequently cut jobs and asked the remaining senior managers to expand their scope of work during the recession.

Many of those who remained employed received a pay increase as compensation for their expanded role, leading in part to the widening job level pay gap.

Ben Frost, Consultant, Hay Group www.haygroup.com

ACCOMMODATION

How Is The Private ‘Home Stay’ Offering Relevant To The Corporate And Relocation Market?

Travellers on longer business assignments or those relocating to a new city are today demanding more from their allocated temporary accommodation solution. With an increasingly global workforce space, affordability, privacy and ‘home-like’ amenities are top of mind for business travellers. Employers, too, are keen to offer inspiring and comfortable surroundings, helping employees settle in faster and ultimately leading to more productive and focused workforce.

The changing preferences of millennial travellers, long-time road warriors with a need for destination authenticity, and those simply seeking an affordable alternative have given rise to demand for new vendors of travel accommodation.

The ‘serviced apartment’, an umbrella term, which incorporates Aparthotels (also called ‘extended stay hotels’ in North America) is an apartment with varying ranges of ancillary services and typically no minimum stay period. There’s also Corporate Housing – fully furnished residences that include cleaning and guest service elements. Both categories have seen huge growth, reaching over three quarters of a million apartments worldwide to date (source: The Global Serviced Apartments Industry Report).

There are, however, newer options that are seeing even more remarkable success.

Utilising private homes, and part of the rise of the ‘sharing economy’, they provide an even more personal and authentic ‘home from home’ experience albeit with a varying degree of curation and standards of service.

The sharing economy is seen as challenging traditional notions of private ownership, instead based on the shared production, access or consumption of goods and services. Its origins were in not-for-profit initiatives such as Craigslist (1995), Wikipedia (2001), and Couchsurfing (2003). For shortterm accommodation over the past two decades, people have rented their second homes on Vacation Rentals by Owner, better known as VRBO and

more recently online Travel Agents such as HomeAway and FlipKey. Slicker user interfaces, mobile technology and social media have enabled the latest expansion of the sharing economy and turned it into big business: Airbnb allows individuals to share over 1million listed homes with travellers, while Uber transforms private cars into common resource.

Smart employees are embracing these accommodation solutions that suit their on-demand work life balance. More often than not, however, employers are less keen. In the eyes of many HR teams and travel managers, the sharing economy can potentially compromise company travel policy.

As the market evolves and matures, the emergence of sophisticated vendors is inevitable. In the case of onefinestay, curation is an important component - the team visits and selects private homes, then prepares them to a high standard for guest stays. The company is already catering to the needs of a specific group of travellers who, more than anything else, need assurance of the quality of accommodation and an experience standard.

This is already proving very successful with leisure travellers – onefinestay is a preferred supplier for Virtuoso, the travel industry’s leading network of travel advisors, and AMEX Centurion.

As the private home stay market matures and more players address the industry’s needs - including traveller tracking, safety, consistency and SLAs - HR advisors will see more choice and competition offering access to this category.

Linden Dover, onefinestay Business Development Manager - Global Sales EMEA region.

Since joining onefinestay's operations team four years ago, Linden has spent the last two years raising awareness of onefinestay amongst the travel trade as a compelling and reliable alternative to traditional hotels or serviced apartments.

For preferential rates sign up here: www. onefinestay.com/partners or enquire directly on tasales@onefinestay.com T: + 44 (0) 203 588 0615 Spring International HR Adviser

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DATA PROTECTION

Data With Destiny HR departments do not suffer from a lack of data. Companies collect all sorts of information about their employees to support their recruitment, training, mobility, pay and benefit programmes.

Being able to use this data in a more creative way to establish patterns and trends, to analyse the specific benefits your workforce would value or to identify areas of risk will help improve business performance and give HR a seat at the top table in terms of strategic initiatives and growth. However, these opportunities are balanced by significant legal and reputational risks. Data privacy really matters to employees; they fear employers using their health and biometrical data as well as their credit rating to make decisions about their employability and also the benefits that may be offered to them; they worry their data is not properly secured; and they worry about who else it may be passed to particularly when the company is part of an international business. For companies operating across borders, transferring data across jurisdictions is vital in a variety of contexts from recruitment through to training and talent development and the management of benefits and remuneration. As the world of work becomes more mobile, data needs to travel with employees from location to location.

In Europe, new rules are being introduced to try and combat the issues that are thrown up by the increasingly innovative ways data is used. While these rules are not expected to come into force until 2017, companies will need to start getting their houses in order to ensure they comply with the stringent new requirements. Employers will need explicit consent from employees to process their data, and this will require more than simply requiring employees to confirm their consent as part of signing their employment contract. Companies will need to set out very clearly how data will be used and for what purpose.

Given this will change as rapidly as innovation, this will not be an easy task as it is difficult to conceive today all the ways data may be used in say five years’ time. Drafting policies with a layered approach, with further explanation being readily available is one way to try International HR Adviser Spring

and combat this, but it also requires a strong commitment to regularly update information and affected employees.

Another potential area of difficulty is balancing data protection obligations against the need to undertake monitoring and investigations without “tipping off ” employees. The amount and type of data an employer can obtain about their employees and their conduct is hugely varied and incredibly useful in this context, but under the new Regulations there will be increased restrictions on the ability of an employer to access personal data notwithstanding these legitimate purposes. It will be challenging for employers to balance these obligations with those they owe to regulators and shareholders, not to mention other employees who may be disadvantaged by the conduct of the minority.

Employees will have the right to be forgotten, so will be able to apply to have their personal data deleted. Although the law currently requires data to only be held for as long as it is required for the purpose for which it was collected, very few companies undertake a regular cleanse of the data they have on their files. This will need to be done much more robustly and routinely under the new Regulations as well as upon application. Google has already had some 160,000 requests to remove data about individuals since an ECJ ruling in 2014 requiring it to remove embarrassing or inaccurate or outdated information.

Transferring data to other countries will become harder which will inevitably cause problems for international organisations who have central HR processing or compensation & benefits teams who handle data from all parts of the business on a global basis. And there will be significant sanctions for breaches of the Regulations with possible fines of EUR100m or 5% of annual worldwide turnover, not to mention reputational damage.

All of this, while challenging, creates real opportunities for HR professionals.

Documentation and processes will need to be overhauled to ensure employers have a clear picture of what data they hold, where it is being transferred and how and why it is being processed.

Employees outside of the EU will not be caught by these new regulations but, as an international employer, you are likely to

want to ensure consistency of treatment across your business wherever possible.

Given the lead in time for the Regulations, smart employers are already starting to carry out data protection health-checks on their core HR policies, the way in which consent is obtained, and reviewing how data is being used and whether that is consistent with the purposes previously notified to employees. Those who are getting this right will be better placed to capitalise on the real opportunities created by the increased digitalised workplace.

Sarah Henchoz, Employment Partner, Allen & Overy LLP. Visit the website: www.allenovery.com Email: sarah.henchoz@allenovery.com

International HR Adviser Don’t forget to re-register for your Free Annual Subscription to International HR Adviser by emailing helen@internationalhradviser.com

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DIARY DATES APRIL FEM Chicago Roadshow 27 April 2015 Chicago, USA Make your international assignees experiences the best they can be and attend the inaugural FEM Chicago Roadshow. Hundreds of global mobility professionals will gather for this one day conference and exhibition, benefitting from a cutting edge conference programme featuring top global mobility experts, the opportunity to network with leading suppliers to learn about the latest innovations expatriate management, plus the opportunity to meet, network and share best practice with industry peers.

For more information, please contact Iyla MacIntyre on +44(0) 20 7943 8027 or email iyla.macintyre@centaur.co.uk In-House/HR Global Mobility Professionals attend free – book your place at: www.femexpatriateglobalmobilityportal28.camp7.org/event-900321

MAY Southeast Asia HR Summit 2015 7-8 May 2015 Hilton Kuala Lumpur Hotel, Malaysia The Southeast Asia HR Summit is the premium forum bringing elite buyers and sellers together. As an invitation-only event taking place behind closed doors, the summit offers regional HR leaders and consultants and solution providers an intimate environment for a focused discussion of key new drivers shaping corporate priorities and HR strategies.

For more information, please visit: http://hrsea.marcusevans-summits. com/ or contact Khadija at SitiK@marcusevanskl.com

FEM London Roadshow 19 May 2015 London UK Make your international assignees experiences the best they can be and attend the inaugural FEM London Roadshow. Hundreds of global mobility professionals will gather for this one day conference and exhibition, benefitting from a cutting edge conference programme featuring top global mobility experts, the opportunity to network with leading suppliers to learn about the latest innovations expatriate management, plus the opportunity to meet, network and share best practice with industry peers.

For more information, please contact Iyla MacIntyre on +44(0) 20 7943 8027 or email iyla.macintyre@centaur.co.uk In-House/HR Global Mobility Professionals attend free – book your place at: www.totallyexpat.memberlodge.com/event-907490

European HR Inspired Conference 20 May 2015 Central London, UK The 3rd European HR Inspired Conference will take place on 20th May 2015 in Central London for a senior gathering of HR executives looking to engage with other director level professionals who want to discuss Employee Engagement, Talent Management and HR Data & Metrics.

Thought leadership is being delivered by Siemens, Deutsche Post DHL, Ebay, Belkin International, Mattel, Intercontinental Hotels, Diageo and Cafcass in a series of master classes, roundtables and panel discussions.

This complimentary format for senior HR practitioners working at medium to large organisations will allow executives the chance to gain insights into similar businesses who are solving key challenges within their HR departments.

For more information contact Chris Mills at c.mills@cibexmedia.com or call +44 7583 934217 or visit www.hrinspired.co.uk

JUNE The Economist Events Talent Management 2015 - The New Work Order 16 June 2015 London Marriott Grosvenor Square, UK How can companies respond quickly to the new work order and attract and retain vital talent?

As your workforce becomes more global, dispersed and agile, how do International HR Adviser Spring

you engage your talent to develop them, keep them happy, productive and working for you?

Join us on June 16th at London Marriott Grosvenor Square, London where we challenge the traditional, siloed approaches to talent management through case-studies, presentations, focus groups and discussions from international C-Suite, HR leaders and government officials.

International HR Adviser magazine Subscriber Offer - subscribers save 15% on the standard delegate rate. Quote code IHRA/DC when booking.

Register here: www.economist.com/events-conferences/emea/talentmanagement-2015

FEM New York Roadshow 16 June 2015 New York, USA Make your international assignees experiences the best they can be and attend the inaugural FEM New York Roadshow. Hundreds of global mobility professionals will gather for this one day conference and exhibition, benefitting from a cutting edge conference programme featuring top global mobility experts, the opportunity to network with leading suppliers to learn about the latest innovations expatriate management, plus the opportunity to meet, network and share best practice with industry peers.

For more information, please contact Iyla MacIntyre on +44(0) 20 7943 8027 or email iyla.macintyre@centaur.co.uk In-House/HR Global Mobility Professionals attend free – book your place at: www.femexpatriateglobalmobilityportal28.camp7.org/event877540

SEPTEMBER Worldwide ERC® Global Workforce Summit: Talent Mobility in LATAM 9-10 September 2015 Sheraton São Paulo WTC Hotel, São Paulo, Brazil Following the resounding success of its first Latin American programme last year, Worldwide ERC® will be returning to Brazil in September 2015 for another talent mobility Summit. Gain the calibre of trustworthy, reliable and current information on talent mobility that will empower you to work smarter, faster and more confidently. Join us as we explore region-specific challenges and opportunities, as well as global talent mobility solutions and trends.

Learn more and register at www.worldwideerc.org/events

OCTOBER 4th Annual Global HR Excellence 19-21 October 2015 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Do not miss the perfect platform to explore the dynamics of talent management - retention strategies and people development plans while discovering the latest updates in strategic HR and innovative HR applications and technologies. Customise your own programme by selecting any of these streams on DAY 1&2. Choices of streams to choose from are: Talent and Capability Development; Change Management and Leadership; Business Transformation and Rewards.

Be a part of this prestigious course that can help you revolutionise the way you view and manage your human capital to their full potential!

For more details, please contact CindyC@marcusevanskl.com or call +60327236745.

Alternatively, please visit www.hrexcellence-lse.com

If you would like to advertise a conference or exhibition on our Diary Dates and on www.internationalhradviser.com please email damian@internationalhradviser.com

DIRECTORY Assignment Management services Total Reward Group Chart House, 10 Western Road, Borough Green, Kent, TN15 8AG Contact: Simon Richardson Telephone: +44 (0) 1732 780777 Fax: +44 (0) 1732 668284 Email: simon.richardson@totalrewardgroup.com Website: www.totalrewardgroup.com Total Reward Group is a ‘boutique’ employee owned reward practice, providing consultancy, search, interim managers and professional training for analysts.

The Global Mobility division of TRG provides both advisory services on policy development, as well as fully outsourced assignment management services, which provides a ‘virtual’ in house Global Mobility HR service.

BUSINESS ASSOCIATION J-1 VISA PROGRAMME BRITISHAMERICAN BUSINESS (BAB) 52 Vanderbilt Avenue, 20th Floor New York, NY 10017, USA Contact: Tamra Eker Telephone: +212 661 4060 Fax: +212 661 4074 Email: teker@babinc.org Website: www.babinc.org BritishAmerican Business’s J-1 visa programme assists companies in offering US training and work experience to qualified employees of any nationality and from anywhere in the world, for a time period of up to 18 months. Sectors covered by our J-1 Visa designation include management, business, commerce, finance, law, industry, sciences, engineering, architecture, information media & communications.

Using the J-1 Visa helps companies overcome cross-cultural differences and improve communication between US and overseas offices; enhance employee recruitment/ retention efforts by offering US assignments; and meet global mobility challenges. Please call to discuss the programme with our J-1 Visa Programme Administrator.

INSURANCE AND FINANCIAL SERVICES ZURICH INTERNATIONAL LIFE Abbey Gardens, 4-6 Abbey Street Reading, Berkshire, RG1 3BA Contact: Adele Cox Telephone: +44 (0) 118 952 4253 Fax: + 44 (0) 118 952 4300 E-mail: adele.cox@zurich.com Website: www.zurichinternational.com Zurich International Life is a global provider of life insurance, investment and protection products. Our corporate range offers flexible, portable solutions, designed to suit multinational organisations with an internationally mobile workforce. The International pension plan offers a cost effective, bundled retirement benefits solution comprising of trust services,

investment funds and online administration.

International group protection is designed to protect an employers’ most important asset – their employees – and offers a range of life and disability protection.

With a local presence in key global business hubs and over 20 years experience of implementing and administering plans world wide, we’ve developed our knowledge and understanding of key markets to meet the needs of our customers and business partners.

INTERNATIONAL EMPLOYEE BENEFITS Willis Employee Benefits Limited 51 Lime Street, London EC3M 7DQ Contact: Chris Metz Telephone: +44 (0)203 124 8897 Email: webl@willis.com Website: www.willisemployeebenefits.co.uk Twitter: @WillisGroup LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/willis Our global footprint and local presence in over 120 countries means you can depend on us to provide high quality compliant responses to the complicated issues of having a population dispersed throughout a number of countries – whether it’s your business travellers, global hires, short term or long term assignees. Willis can advise on and place a range of healthcare, disability, life and retirement solutions that fit the needs of your highly valued and demanding workforce.

INTERNATIONAL HR CONSULTANTS DELOITTE LLP Stonecutter Court, 1 Stonecutter Street, London, EC4A 4TR Contact: Robert Hodkinson, Partner Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7007 1832 Fax: +44 (0) 20 7007 1060 E-mail: rhodkinson@deloitte.co.uk Website: www.deloitte.co.uk Whether you are creating your first international mobility programme for employees or addressing fundamental changes to an existing programme, our International Human Resources team can help. Deloitte provides consulting support that has an appreciation for each company’s size, background and unique cultural environment, aligning your international programme goals with corporate business strategies. Our consultants have developed deep expertise in many fields based on first hand experience with many of the world’s leading organisations: international assignment policy and process design, benchmarking, service delivery modelling, improving vendor management and helping our clients become more compliant and their administration more cost-effective.

INTERNATIONAL MOVING DT MOVING LTD 49 Wates Way, Mitcham, Greater London, CR4 4HR Contact: Tim Daniells

Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7622 4393 Fax: +44 (0) 20 7720 3897 Email: london@dtmoving.com Website: www.dtmoving.com DT Moving is a world leading international moving company. Founded in 1870, we serve corporate customers all over the globe with an award-winning* move management and destination service programme. Through our London and Paris headquarters and worldwide network of global partners, we help clients achieve their workforce mobility goals.

Every employee we relocate receives a dedicated DT Moving team member as a central point of coordination, support and advice to ensure every part of their relocation runs smoothly.

Our goal is your complete satisfaction, and with a 96% customer rating for 2014, we offer unrivalled quality at competitive rates. *Awarded nine global relocation awards since 2010.

RELOCATION HCR RELOCATION UK Head office - Belvedere House, Basing View, Basingstoke, RG21 4HG UK Contact: Louise Hardy - Business Development Executive Telephone: +44(0)1256 313887 email: louise.hardy@hcr.co.uk website: www.hcr.co.uk Twitter: @relochatter LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/hcrgroup-limited We look after people, your people. we have a dedicated, high performing and professional team to deliver our award winning relocation service. our knowledge, experience and empathy ensures that each of your relocating employees and their families are carefully managed and that their specific needs are considered.

HCR has a true ‘one point of contact’ philosophy; one dedicated, cross trained account Manager and lead Relocation Consultant who will manage, co-ordinate, deliver and provide comprehensive support for every relocation case.

SANTA FE RELOCATION SERVICES Central Way, Park Royal, London, NW10 7XW Contact: Mark Rising Telephone: +44 (0) 208 961 4141 Fax: +44 (0)208 965 4484 email: Mark.Rising@SantaFeRelo.com website: www.santaferelo.com Thinking Relocation? Think Santa Fe Relocation Services.

Santa Fe Relocation Services provides the full range of relocation services to support businesses with international interests from diverse industry sectors. Santa Fe is conveniently located across six continents and offers holistic relocation solutions to support businesses and relocating employees. Last year, we handled 120,000 relocations globally. Our core services are Immigration, Moving, Relocation, Real Estate and Records Management.

We make it easy.

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DIRECTORY RELOCATION ASSOCIATIONS ASSOCIATION OF RELOCATION PROFESSIONALS (ARP) PO Box 189, Diss, IP22 1PE Contact: Tad Zurlinden Telephone: +44 (0)8700 726 727 Fax: +44 (0)1379 641 940 Email: enquiries@arp-relocation.com Website: www.arp-relocation.com The ARP is the professional association for the relocation industry in the UK. The ARP’s activities include seminars throughout the year, an annual conference, the publication of an annual Directory of Members and a website, which is updated regularly.

THE EUROPEAN RELOCATION ASSOCIATION (EuRA) PO Box 189, Diss, Norfolk, IP22 1PE Telephone +44(0)8700 726 727 Fax: +44(0)1379 641 940 E-mail: enquiries@eura-relocation.com Website: www.eura-relocation.com EuRA is an industry body for Relocation Professionals in both Europe and Worldwide.

EuRa have launched The EuRA Quality Seal, the world’s first accreditation programme for relocation providers.

This pioneering initiative provides a straight forward, cost effective audit to reflect your company’s excellence in providing relocation services.

SCHOOLS International Community School 21 Star Street, London, W2 1QB Contact: Laura Thompson, Director of Marketing and Secondary Admissions Tel: +44 (0) 20 7402 0416 Web: www.icschool.co.uk Email: admissions@ics.uk.net An international day school located in 3 sites in the centre of London. We offer all three International Baccalaurate Programmes (PYP, MYP, and Diploma) to children aged 3-18yrs.

ICS has a diverse community with 45 different nationalities, and boasts a strong tradition of working with students in a highly personalised tuition framework thus enabling every student to reach their maximum potential in a rigorous but supportive environment. For students needing English Language Support we offer our unique Preparation Programme that allows students to study mainstream academic subjects alongside the language tuition. We also welcome & provide outstanding support to children with Special Educational Needs. Students at ICS benefit from a wide ranging sports & activity programme during term time and also during school holidays. We have outdoor education centres at Chorleywood and Bawdsey, Suffolk and offer educational trips abroad as part of our Travel & Learn Programme. This year ICS is proud to be celebrating 35 years of offering international education.

International HR Adviser Spring

ISL Group of Schools ISL Surrey Old Woking Road, Woking, Surrey GU22 8HY Contact: Claudine Hakim Telephone: +44 (0)1483 750 409 ISL London 139 Gunnersbury Avenue, London W3 8LG Contact: Yoel Gordon Telephone: +44 (0)20 8992 5823 ISL Qatar PO Box 18511, North Duhail, Qatar Contact: Nivin El Aawar Telephone: +974 4433 8600 Website: www.islschools.org Email: hmulkey@islschools.org The International School of London (ISL) Group has schools in London, Surrey, and Qatar. The internationally recognised primary and secondary curricula have embedded language programmes (mother tongue, English as an Additional Language, and second language) which continue throughout the student’s stay in the school. A team of experienced and qualified teachers and administrators provides every student with the opportunity to grow and learn in an environment that respects diversity and promotes identity, understanding, and a passion for learning.

MARYMOUNT INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL LONDON Address: George Road, Kingston upon Thames, KT2 7PE Contact: Mrs Cheryl Eysele Telephone: +44 (0)20 8949 0571 Email: admissions@marymountlondon.com Website: www.marymountlondon.com With an outstanding record teaching the respected International Baccalaureate for over 30 years, Marymount offers day and boarding to girls aged 11-18 who gain places at the world’s best universities.

Consistently ranked within the top 5% globally, Marymount also offers the pre-IB Middle Years Programme; this stretches students without the need for incessant testing. The nurturing, supportive Catholic Community welcomes all faiths and achieves a shared purpose for girls of more than 40 nationalities.

NEWLAND COLLEGE Newland Park, Chalfont St Giles Buckinghamshire HP8 4AD Registrar: Sophia Haig Website: www.newlandcollege.co.uk Email: info@newlandcollege.co.uk Newland College is set in 100 acres of parkland in the heart of the Chilterns, 45 mins from central London.

We are co-ed, with entry points at 11 and 13 years of age. We provide the International Baccalaureate curriculum. Boarding and day options are available. Email info@newlandcollege.co.uk to arrange a visit.

TASIS THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN ENGLAND Coldharbour Lane, Thorpe, Surrey, TW20 8TE Contact: Karen House Telephone: +44 (0)1932 582316

Email: ukadmissions@tasisengland.org Website: www.tasisengland.org TASIS England offers the International Baccalaureate Diploma, an American college preparatory curriculum, and AP courses to its diverse community of coed day (3-18) and boarding (14-18) students from 50 nations. The excellent academic programme, including ESL, is taught in small classes, allowing the individualised attention needed to encourage every student to reach their potential. Outstanding opportunities in art, drama, music, and athletics provide a balanced education. Extensive summer opportunities are also offered. Located close to London on a beautiful and historic 46-acre estate.

SERVICED APARTMENTS BBF Avenue de Roodebeek 78 box 9, Brussels Contact: Bernard Kerkhof Telephone: +32 (0)2 705 05 21 Email: info@bbf.be Website: www.bbf.be Twitter: @BBFBelgium LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/bbfserviced-apartments BBF is specialised in the rental of serviced apartments since 1992.

Today we are leader in the market of temporary housing with a portfolio of over 1500 apartments in Brussels. We also offer corporate housing in other cities such as Budapest.

Our flexible rental packages include excellent solutions for short and long term accommodation for personal and business travellers. For long term accommodation, minimum one year, we can offer unfurnished apartments where one has the choice to install their own furniture.

TAXATION BDO LLP 55 Baker Street, London, W1U 7EU Contact: Andrew Bailey Telephone: 020 7893 2946 Fax: 020 7893 2418 E-mail: andrew.bailey@bdo.co.uk Website: www.bdo.co.uk BDO LLP is the award-winning, UK Member Firm of BDO International, the world's fifth largest accountancy network with more than 600 offices in 100 countries.

We have a partner-led approach, which delivers the highest quality of service by using short, functional chains of communication to aid decision-making. Clients benefit from our fresh thinking, constructive challenge and practical understanding of the issues they face. Developing strong, personal relationships with our clients is at the forefront of our service approach.

Tax advice is just one of our award-winning services and our expatriate team give practical and direct advice, delivering solutions which suit your needs.

If you would like to advertise in this Directory, the cost is £175 per issue or £700 for the year (4 issues). Please email damian@internationalhradviser.com

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