Businesses participating in a survey by Prudential Relocation, a subsidiary of Prudential Financial Inc., indicated that the most common reason they reassign employees across national borders is to help ensure the success of the company’s expansion into new markets.
Representatives from 131 European-based companies from 12 countries and 30 industries participated in the survey, which examined short- and-long term international job assignment trends.
The majority of respondents (57 percent) indicated that the greatest business driver for international assignments was the need to support market expansion initiatives, and the primary reason (70 percent) specific individuals are sent on international assignments is to enable the transfer of knowledge. Tied for second place (23 percent) for key business drivers are merger and acquisition activities and startup efforts in the destination location.
“Mergers and acquisitions and startups are, in actuality, a form of market expansion,” said John O’Connell, senior vice president of international operations for Prudential Relocation. “Therefore, growing the business in new, high-potential markets is clearly a desired outcome of using international assignments as a staffing strategy in Europe.”
Another European mobility trend uncovered in the survey was the increasing preference for short-term international assignments, for which respondents forecasted a 70 percent increase during the next two years.
“The increasing use of short-term assignments is actually a global trend,” O’Connell pointed out.
Short-term assignments are expected to continue at an increasing rate, as will an overall mix of other types of assignments, such as traditional long-term assignments, permanent international relocations and alternatives such as cross-border commuter assignments and rotator assignments, he said.
The survey found that the top three European destination countries for assignees are the United Kingdom, Germany and France, but the Czech Republic, Italy, Russia, Spain, Poland, Belgium and the Netherlands are on the increase.
The survey found that housing costs are the fastest rising expense associated with international assignments.
“The most significant implication of these findings will be in housing and destination services,” O’Connell said. “Volume increases will mean greater demand and competition for housing and will thus drive market costs higher.
“We are seeing certain markets where housing costs and rents are going up on a monthly basis because of limited inventory, especially in developing Eastern European markets and major cities such as Paris and Moscow,” he added.
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