A series of trends and events are impacting the way APAC-based companies are doing business, as well as how international organizations engage with them. As workforce borders within this active region continue to blur, intercultural agility has become more important – and more nuanced – than ever before. Whether it’s a business that's building a diverse workforce within the APAC region or a multi-national company working across cultures to do business with them, employers and the employees that work for them must forget everything they think they know about intercultural communication. Growing workforce diversity means not just knowing about the culture a business is headquartered in, but also the many cultures making up their staff. Intercultural training has therefore become a crucial investment for any business hoping to thrive in this diverse landscape. 

Most mobile employees accept international relocations with mixed feelings that include excitement and curiosity. However, they’re often surprised when their move comes with more feelings of disorientation than they expected. Culture shock – the feelings of confusion, disconnectedness, and anxiety that people experience while integrating into a new culture – can make it difficult for mobile employees to transition into their new assignments effectively. It can also make it difficult for their accompanying families to settle into their new home, adding further stress to your employees’ relocation experiences. It all negatively impacts employees – but it has costly negative impacts for the organization, too.  Understanding the stages of culture shock can make dealing with it easier. Below, we take a look at each and offer suggestions your employees can use for navigating them. While supporting them on their journeys helps them to integrate into their new surroundings faster and with greater ease – it also benefits business productivity, organizational goals, and the company’s bottom line. Stages of Culture Shock & Suggestions for Dealing with Them

Between rising costs and limited budgets, it’s no surprise that many organizations turn to lump sum payments to control talent mobility spending. But is this approach effective – or can it actually end up costing companies more? In this blog post, we’ll discuss the unexpected costs associated with lump sum payment models, where they can go wrong, their impacts on the employee experience, and why managed moves benefit employees and organizations in the long run.  Perception vs. Reality: Lump Sum Payment Outcomes When organizations offer lump sum payments to their mobile employees, they're often being driven by a few assumptions. They believe that their mobile employees: Possess sufficient financial skills to manage their relocation budget Are savvy enough to procure the right relocation services/providers at the right times Have enough host-country knowledge to navigate area-specific nuances independently Will decrease the need for administrative resources by self-managing their relocations