iPMI Global Expatriate Life: Aon International People Mobility Survey Report

In this iPMI Global Expatriate Life In Focus article, we explore and analyse the Aon 2024 International People Mobility Survey Report.

The Aon 2024 International People Mobility Survey Report explores evolving trends and challenges in global mobility. It highlights the resurgence of business travel, influenced by factors like inflation, talent shortages, and political unrest. The report analyses key aspects of global mobility, including business travel, long-term assignments, and remote work. It examines how companies are adapting policies to address diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) concerns. Compliance, cost containment, and employee well being are identified as major concerns for organizations navigating international assignments and remote work arrangements. The study provides insights into regional variations, industry-specific trends, and recommendations for optimizing global mobility strategies.

Key Report Themes and Ideas:

Resurgence of Business Travel with Evolving Policies:

• Business travel has rebounded significantly in 2024, surpassing pre-COVID-19 levels. "This year, 2024, has seen further growth, with predictions that global business travel spend will surpass pre-COVID-19 levels."
• However, the policies and practices supporting business travel have changed substantially due to political instability, growing compliance demands, and increased focus on equitable treatment.
• Employers are innovating with flexible working, "bleisure" travel, and technology to stay connected with remote teams.
• Emphasis on ensuring employee safety, appropriate insurance, and well-documented processes for new working styles and a diverse workforce.

Top Factors Influencing Global Mobility:

Inflation/Rising Prices: Ranked as the top factor influencing global mobility in 2024 (51%), reflecting broader economic concerns. "This year, inflation and price increases are the top-ranked factor influencing global mobility, with 51% of respondents marking it as their first choice."

Talent Shortages: A major concern impacting global mobility strategies (49%). "Talent shortages: 2023’s highest-ranked factor may have fallen to second place in 2024, but it is still having a major impact on global mobility, with nearly half of participants (49%) saying that talent shortages are affecting their strategy." Employers are responding with remote working options and skills-based hiring.

Political Unrest/War Zones: A growing concern, affecting 22% of respondents.

Growing Awareness of Equitable Treatment: A key consideration, impacting global mobility in 18% of organizations.

The Importance of Compliance:

Compliance is a major and growing burden across all forms of international mobility. "Throughout this research, we can see the impact of growing compliance burdens on all forms of international mobility."

Increasingly complex country-specific rules and ambitious mobility plans necessitate a strong focus on compliance.

Compliance is the top concern for short-term assignments, with 54% of respondents citing it as a key challenge. "Compliance has become the most significant concern for employers with short-term assignments...the number of businesses concerned about compliance has almost doubled to 54% this year."

Similarly, compliance is the number one challenge for long-term international assignments.

ESG and DEIB as Core Considerations:

ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) policies are becoming core to business activity, driven by regulatory pressure and a focus on sustainable practices. "ESG policies have become a core part of business activity in many organisations. Regulatory pressure has also brought ESG into greater focus."

Organizations are taking measures to meet ESG policies related to global mobility, focusing on environmental factors (traveling less, offsetting carbon emissions), social factors (employee care), and governance (global mobility strategy and equitable benefits).

DEIB (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging) is a growing priority, with employers reviewing global benefit offerings and talent selection strategies to ensure equity and inclusion. "Diversity is a growing priority for all clients. Increasingly employers are reviewing their global benefit offerings and testing them against their DEIB strategy to ensure that benefits are equitable and support this agenda."

The Rise of "Bleisure" and Remote Working:

"Bleisure" (blending business and leisure travel) and work cations are emerging forms of global mobility, creating new challenges for organizations. "Blended work and leisure: the rise of ‘bleisure’ (combining business and leisure travel) and work cations (short-term working from a remote location) as emerging forms of global mobility create new challenges for organisations."

Employers need to update travel policies and insurance coverage to accommodate this trend.

Remote working has evolved into distinct personas: work cations, permanent remote workers (digital nomads), and international hybrid remote workers. The balance is based on work needs, the culture, and support protocols.

Compliance is a major challenge facing remote working, along with ensuring equal treatment of employees.

Challenges in Business Travel and International Assignments:

Business Travel Challenges: Compliance (54%), cost containment (47%), internal decision-making (21%), and safety (21%) are the top concerns for business travel.

International Assignment Challenges: Compliance (54%), cost containment (43%), relocation/convenience (20%), providing appropriate salaries/allowances (20%), and employee well being (19%) are key challenges for international assignments.

Safety concerns appear to be falling in priority, despite political uncertainty.

Cost containment is a major challenge for organizations for both short-term and long-term travel assignments.

Key Trends in Long-Term Assignments:

• Management/executive and technical/scientific roles are the most common for long-term assignments.
• There is a stabilization in international assignment frequency.
• Assignment types are mostly home-based or a mix of home and host-based, with regional variations.
• North America and Europe remain the most popular destinations.
• Companies are increasingly offering shorter-term assignments.
• There is a greater focus on talent development through long-term assignments.

Key Trends in Remote Working:

• New remote working personas are emerging.
• Compliance is a major challenge.
• Permanent remote workers and digital nomads: Digital nomad visas are being offered to make traveling the world and working remotely easier.
• Flexible working is becoming a permanent part of many organizations' work models.

Recommendations:

The report concludes with several recommendations for employers:

• Stay ahead of compliance demands: Outsource compliance-related tasks to reduce risk.
• Expand insurance coverage: Ensure insurance plans cover all types of travel, including workcations.
• Develop fair approaches to pay, benefits, and opportunities: Create transparent policies to support equity.
• Make travel policies inclusive: Align global mobility strategies with DEIB policies.
• Continue to account for ESG: Find greener ways of traveling and prioritize employee wellbeing.

Aon 2024 International People Mobility Survey Report FAQs

What are the top factors currently influencing global mobility strategies?

Inflation and rising prices are the most significant factor affecting global mobility in 2024, followed closely by talent shortages. Political unrest/warzones and growing awareness of equitable treatment are also having a notable impact. While ESG/Sustainability was a high priority in previous years, it has slightly decreased in importance, although still a key focus for businesses, particularly in regard to environmental concerns.

How has business travel changed post-pandemic?

Business travel is rebounding and expected to surpass pre-COVID-19 levels. However, new trends are emerging, including blended business and leisure travel ("bleisure"), greater consideration of ESG factors, and adaptations to accommodate remote work arrangements. The frequency of business travel is increasing, particularly in sectors like Financial Institutions and Industrials and Manufacturing, with most travel still focused within Europe.

What are the main challenges companies face regarding business travel and international assignments?

Compliance with increasingly complex country-specific rules and regulations is the top concern. Cost containment remains a significant challenge, as well as internal decision-making and ensuring up-to-date policies. For long-term assignments, providing appropriate salaries and allowances that are both competitive and equitable is a key hurdle, and the difficulty of relocation is also a key consideration.

How are companies addressing Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) within their global mobility programs?

Employers are reviewing their global benefit offerings to ensure they are equitable and support DEIB strategies. Actions include addressing equity in benefits and services, reviewing talent selection strategies to reduce bias in hiring, and focusing on safety and wellbeing for diverse employee groups, such as female or LGBTQ+ travellers. Belonging is also being increasingly emphasized.

What are "workcations" and how do they impact global mobility policies?

"Workcations" are a type of short-term remote work arrangement where employees blend leisure travel with remote work. They have become popular, creating new challenges for organizations, including the need to update global travel policies to differentiate between work and leisure time and ensure adequate business travel insurance coverage.

How has remote working impacted international assignments and global mobility strategies?

Remote working has opened up new possibilities for international talent management, creating new remote worker personas such as digital nomads, permanent remote workers, and international hybrid workers. This requires clear policies, contractual agreements, and compliance arrangements. A focus on global benefits, services and insurance solutions is required to support the safety, wellbeing, and convenience of remote workers.

What benefits are typically offered to employees on long-term international assignments, and who usually covers the costs?

Employers typically cover the majority of employee benefits for long-term assignments, around 70% of total costs. Work-related benefits like moving/relocation services, life cover, and business travel insurance are usually fully covered. Costs for medical benefits continue to rise year-on-year, with global average medical trend expected to be over 10%.

What steps can companies take to improve their global mobility programs and address emerging challenges?

Companies should stay ahead of compliance demands by outsourcing if necessary, expanding insurance to cover new types of travel, developing fair approaches to pay and benefits, and making travel policies inclusive to support a diverse workforce. Additionally, they should continue to account for ESG factors by finding greener travel options and prioritizing employee wellbeing.

iPMI Global CEO Chrisopher Knight concludes, “The report highlights a significant shift in the landscape of global mobility, marked by the resurgence of business travel, the rise of remote working, and evolving employee expectations. While business travel is rebounding, the policies and practices supporting it are undergoing radical changes, driven by factors such as political instability, growing compliance demands, talent shortages, and increased awareness of equity. The report emphasizes the need for businesses to adapt their strategies and embrace new approaches to benefits, services, and insurance solutions to effectively manage the risks and opportunities presented by this evolving environment. Key trends include a renewed focus on compliance, the blending of business and leisure travel ("bleisure"), the growing importance of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB), and the emergence of new remote working personas.”

“Aon can assist with creating a global mobility strategy, supporting the setup of a safe travel policy, supporting a culture of care, building an effective employee well being and resilience program, developing compliant international employee benefit programs, benchmarking compensation and rewards, cost containment, and access to international mobility solutions. A quick scan of the current situation can be carried out to ensure that all risks are under control.”

To download the complete report, please click here.