Lloyds TSB International has announced that it has developed a new guidance service for multinational corporations, human resources professionals and relocation agents, who are all responsible for sending staff abroad.
The idea behind the launch of the welcome service is to improve the experience of international relocation, so that expats are able to adjust to living, working and travelling in a new country, which can be extremely daunting.
Some of the subjects covered by experts include navigating immigration, dealing with the issue of tax, finding suitable schools or academic institutions for children and young people and the importance of understanding and being attuned to cultural differences.
“As expatriate banking specialists, we understand the challenges and difficulties expats face when moving abroad,” commented Richard Musty, Lloyds TSB International’s private bank director.
“Our research among international assignees has found that while expats are happy living abroad, many would have benefited from more support from their employer.”
The announcement of these workshops comes on the back of recent research carried out by Lloyds TSB International, which found that a fifth (22 per cent) of expats had not received any support whatsoever from their employers.
It was also revealed that 46 per cent of respondents felt that had they received some assistance when moving overseas, they would have found it a much less stressful experience.
In helping their employees acclimatise to life abroad, multinational corporations are better placed to have a much more productive, enthusiastic and confident workforce.
After all, they recognise the importance of expanding their business abroad, so it pays to invest in managing their mobile and global employee base with a high level of professionalism.
This has to happen right from the start through to the finish. In other words, organisations need to be engaged from the moment they inform employees that they are being assigned abroad, help them sort out logistics like shipping and red tape, and work closely with them during their first few months.
It is an important investment for corporations to make, as Lloyds TSB has discovered. For example, in another study it conducted, it was found that professionals from the UK who were now living and working abroad were much happier than they had been back at home.
With a workforce that has this kind of atmosphere; businesses are certain to find that they are able to deliver a superior level of service, and in turn, keep hold of talented members of staff.