Home Away From Home

Turning Your International Relocation Into A Lifetime Enhancement
Your guide to personal and professional success while living abroad.

Before considering a move abroad, employees need to know what their responsibilities will be in the foreign office, as well as what job they will be returning to upon repatriation. Consider questions such as: What will the living conditions be for my family? What will my spouse do about his/her career? What will the educational environment be for my children?

The following excerpt is from the first chapter in Home Away From Home, designed to help employees evaluate a foreign assignment, as well as save corporations millions of dollars by avoiding failed assignments.

Topics Include:

Relocation 101 offers personal and professional relocation advice for individuals and families moving in and around their own countries. It addresses today’s most challenging relocation topics including:

• Business Strategies
• Intercultural Skills
• Dual Career Options
• Children and Educational Considerations
• Home Sales Techniques
• Medical Care Guidelines
• Repatriation Advice
• Internet Sites, Checklists and Business Card Holders

Excerpt from Chapter 1

While individuals of any personality can manage moving abroad, you might find you have an easier transition if you and your family can answer “yes” to the following questions:

• Are you adventuresome?
• Are you able to admit when you are wrong?
• Can you laugh at yourself?
• Do you welcome new experiences?
• Do you make friends easily?
• Could you adapt to a different standard of living?
• Do you adjust to new situations easily?
• When complications arise, are you courteous and polite?

If you have a two-career family, your spouse needs to evaluate how a job disruption or termination will affect his/her career and how the change could impact your family in general. Other considerations of course are your children’s ages and activities, the length of the tour and whether you are caring for an elder relative. All of these issues will be addressed within this book.

It is in your own, and your company’s, best interest to plan an international assignment that will have a high rate of success. You need to understand as much as possible about the country and the proposed assignment. You also need to have a realistic idea about how the overseas experience could fit into your company’s future planning and business structure after repatriation.

The amount of business travel your new position will require is another consideration. If you move your family to a distant country and then you are away from home a large percentage of the time, it will create another emotional challenge.

If you have concerns about any of these points, now is the time to discuss them with your employer.