As mobility and talent management continue to draw closer together within organizations, there is one type of program where these two functions have always seemed closely aligned: rotational assignments.
Many rotational assignments are designed to provide employees with experiences in multiple environments, allowing them to be exposed to a variety of work duties and challenged to further develop themselves through these work experiences.
Many companies have designed rotational assignments so that they can be leveraged to:
· Promote company culture
· Fill skills gaps by bringing in talent for cross functional support
· Transfer knowledge and best practice
· Develop talented/high-potential employees
· Attract, develop and retain Millennial workers
· Manage client or internal work projects
· Develop leadership within the organization
The employee selection criteria, specific location, job experience and duration for the rotations are all customized to the goals of each specific corporate rotational program. These can be either domestic rotations within a given country or can be cross-border rotations that touch 2, 3 or even 4 different countries.
Rotational programs tend to be structured as a group of short-term assignments usually somewhere between 3-6 months in each location. The support companies offer to employees is usually very typical of most short-term assignment packages and include things like:
· Immigration and Tax assistance, as needed
· International Medical Coverage and Emergency Assistance
· Housing and utilities
· Local transportation
· Cost of Living allowance
· Possibly a small shipment
These programs have a host of benefits for companies, some of which are improved levels of employee engagement, improved retention, increased leadership capabilities and building a meaningful shared culture. We expect to see more companies and more employees involved with rotational mobility experiences the rest of 2016 and beyond.
That is why we are surveying corporate mobility programs! Help us to gather data on how and why companies have organized rotational assignment programs. We will then share the survey report back with you!
Thank you for your participation.