Don t make mobility a condition

Don't make mobility a condition

While many people cite international travel as a prerequisite for taking a job (at least until they find out how much fun it really isn't), there are others who shun the concept of being moved around at an employer's whim. Indeed, the prevailing wisdom is that the mobility issue (or lack of a will to be mobile) is one of the biggest problems facing cross- border operating companies today. Working spouses and a desire not to disturb a child's schooling are usually cited as the top reasons for wanting to stay put. Therefore, smart recruiters are not trying to lay down the condition that employees need to be mobile. Anyway, thanks to today's communication technology it is possible to stay in one place your entire career and manage remote teams (possibly with site visits on a regular basis). Once again this refusal to move just because an employer wants you to plays straight into the hands of the ˜being myself ' argument. A decade or so ago, managers would gladly up sticks, with their family trailing behind (hence the term trailing spouses) and no questions asked. Those old enough to recall IBM in its hey-day of the 1970s will recall that the acronym didn't just stand for International Business Machines, but ˜I've Been Moved.'

A lot has changed since those days. Professionals tend to partner with other professionals. Today there is less likelihood than ever before of them just simply agreeing to a national or continental move just because the other partner's firm has requested it. People put down roots and their lifestyle becomes part of that stability. Unless there are good reasons to want to change that lifestyle and try another, there are fewer and fewer reasons these days for moving. This means that to attract the right kind of talent into a business, managers have to find other solutions. Of course there will always be managers whose lifestyle option is crafted around the idea of moving every few years . They - and very often their spouse too - find these ˜ adventures ' exciting and very fulfilling. They are who they are. Not only do they eagerly embrace a new geography and a new work challenge, they totally revel in it. These people are - and will continue to be - like gold dust. When you find them put them quickly on your ˜most endangered species' list. Really, do it. These people should be protected by the World Wildlife Fund. They are rare beasts and should be treated as such.

Then again, the other tendency is to find that an unwillingness to be highly mobile is something that develops over time. Again it is about lifestyle choices. Young, single people often crave new experiences and are eager to travel and discover new opportunities, places and cultures. As we age, our horizons don't necessarily narrow, but they do mature. We put down roots, we become more firmly tied to a place or places that reflect who we are and what we want to be (and work is only a part of that). So again, employees need to be understood and encouraged for what they can contribute at different times in their lives. They change, we must change too if we are to accommodate them and use their talents in the best possible way.