Words of Wisdom from the Pennsylvania Conference for Women
By Melissa Seitz Medford, Consulting Service Manager, TRC Global Mobility
Recently I had the privilege to attend the 14th annual Pennsylvania Conference for Women in Philadelphia. The Conference is self-defined as, “A non-profit, non-partisan, one-day professional and personal development event for women that features dozens of renowned speakers sharing inspirational stories and leading seminars on the issues that matter most to women.” The approximately 12,000 attendees were mostly women, but I was encouraged to see quite a few men as well. As it turned out, the messages at the conference resonated with everyone, regardless of gender. I think they are particularly germane for our employee mobility industry and its female majority.
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Too often, a company identifies an ideal candidate for a role that will require employee relocation and then communicates only with the candidate about the potential relocation. Ironically, the accompanying spouse/partner and family often endure the brunt of the move. 
With the hard work of defining your company’s needs and vetting prospective relocation management companies complete, the final step of the selection process is negotiating the contract with your chosen 
In developing specifications for a new, outsourced provider, it is best to begin with an evaluation of your current employee mobility process and policies, and a frank assessment of how well they meet the needs of your internal customers (recruiters, managers and 
In the not-so-distant past, a “trailing spouse” was typically the female partner of an expatriate male who ran the household and took care of the children’s needs while the family was on assignment. Today, the term “trailing spouse” is rarely used at all. As in non-expatriate society, family relationships are far more fluid and individual today. The accompanying partner or spouse might be responsible for the household and the children, might have a career or might have some combination of work and family responsibilities. 
What makes the “ideal expatriate”? Companies that deploy employees abroad are keenly interested in the answer to this question. According to Worldwide ERC, a traditional, long-term international assignment can cost a company $1m or more. In the worst-case scenario, if the 
In an increasingly volatile world, companies are trying to ensure their global mobility strategy remains competitive while increasing their return on investment from costly global assignments. Interestingly, more employees are interested in a global stint now than in the past, even those at relatively junior levels. In many organizations, realizing one’s career potential all but requires a global assignment.
The economy has recovered and job-hunters have more leverage than they’ve had in years. They are much more willing to relocate for the right opportunity if the employer is willing to offer 