In today’s cost-conscious business environment, slashing and burning global mobility programs may seem like an easy way to cut expenses. However, taking a strategic approach to mobility governance can yield significant savings without sacrificing the support employees need to succeed on assignment. By optimizing governance, companies can achieve cost efficiencies while enhancing employee experience, compliance, and overall program effectiveness—creating better mobility for both businesses and employees.
Strategic Mobility Governance: A Smarter Way to Cut Costs
Rather than automatically approving expatriate assignments, organizations should first ask critical questions:
- Is an expat truly necessary for this role? Could a local employee fill the position just as effectively?
- What alternative mobility models could be leveraged? Could a short-term assignment, extended business travel, or virtual assignment achieve the same objectives?
- Are there compliance and tax optimization opportunities? Understanding tax treaties and Social Security agreements can unlock cost efficiencies by reducing tax liabilities and ensuring compliance.
For instance, leveraging a local instead of using an expatriate assignment could result in savings of up to $1 million. Alternatively, host-based packages are also often appealing to the business because they tend to be less costly due to the lack of tax equalization or the absence of expatriate allowances. In another example, if you can leverage a short term assignment instead, and there is a tax and social security treaty between the locations, you may be able to reduce tax costs and reducing paying extra social security. By embracing alternative staffing models, companies can balance workforce flexibility with cost containment and ensure better mobility solutions for their global workforce.
Proactive Mobility: The Key to Seamless Execution
A common frustration in global mobility is being reactive—only being consulted after a mobility decision has already been made. Instead, organizations should proactively engage mobility teams in workforce planning. This can be achieved by:
- Raise your profile with leadership by sharing stories about the power of mobility supported by statistics. Define success measure it and report on it.
- Attending HR business partner meetings to ensure mobility considerations are factored into workforce plans and talent decision-making early on.
- Creating engaging marketing materials that highlight mobility program benefits and make it easy to use mobility, share with TA, HRBPs, and employees.
- Educating internal stakeholders about the full suite of mobility services available to drive informed decision-making.
By shifting from a reactive to a proactive approach, organizations can structure assignments more strategically, improving both cost efficiency and employee experience. Early engagement in workforce planning ensures mobility investments align with broader business goals rather than being last-minute, high-cost solutions. With the right governance in place, companies can make it easy by streamlining processes and optimizing global mobility strategies.
Striking the Right Balance: Cost Control Without Compromise
Cutting mobility costs does not have to mean cutting corners. Instead, organizations should focus on making intentional, informed, strategic decisions about when and how to deploy mobile talent. By refining governance structures, engaging stakeholders early, and leveraging technology, businesses can optimize their global mobility programs for cost-effectiveness and long-term success.
In the end, better governance leads to better mobility—supporting both the business and its employees while maintaining financial discipline. Organizations that take a proactive, data-driven approach will be well-positioned to navigate the complexities of global mobility
