By Perry Yeatman
Because of globalization, impacting today's workforce requires even more managers and executives with international experience. Companies are increasingly sending Americans
abroad, both to fill important roles in countries around the globe and to ensure they are building a team of experienced international executives needed to run global businesses
and functions.
In fact, according to the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM), 69% of large companies plan to increase the number of American workers they send abroad this year--up
from 21% just two years ago.
Working abroad can fast-track your career, broaden your professional capabilities, increase your pay and expand your personal horizons. Why pound the pavement in Peoria when
you could be strolling the streets of Paris? Use the top 10 tips below to help you land a foreign assignment.
1. Perform your current duties with excellence. If you aren't doing a great job in your current role, there is no way your organization is going to be willing to invest in
sending you overseas.
2. Make your international aspirations known. Incorporate them into your performance reviews. Despite an individual company's or manager's good intentions, the reality today is
that you must be in charge of managing your own career. While management may be willing to invest in you, it's still up to you to make your desires known. They can't read your
mind and, in this instance, subtlety is not your friend.
So, raise your hand and raise it often, if need be. Let your direct boss know you want a foreign assignment. Let HR know. Let those in the international part of your business
know.
3. Find a mentor to advocate for you, especially one with an international network. In addition to making your desires clear, given the size of many companies today, you
shouldn't just rely on the formal systems and processes to get you abroad. You need to make a personal connection and find someone who will be your champion and advocate. One of
the best ways to do that is to seek out a mentor, ideally one who is located in the region or market you want to move to.
4. Learn and/or practice a foreign language. There's no question that speaking a foreign language is a plus in landing an overseas assignment. But, it's not always a
prerequisite. There are some jobs and some regions where language is non-negotiable--you must have it. Latin America comes to mind here. But there are regional roles in places
like Asia Pacific, for example, where the common business language is English.
5. Research those countries you might be transferred to so you can make an informed decision. By the time an offer materializes it's too late to start thinking about where
you'd be interested in moving to. Start thinking about this early on. Consider what you want and where your company is likely to have the most needs. Be flexible, but specific. If
there are regions or markets you simply would not go to, make that clear. Early research will help you prepare and make the best choice when the offer comes, and it'll also help
ensure your company finds a placement you would at least be willing to seriously think about.
6. Demonstrate your cultural awareness and sensitivity while still in your home market. Because it's always a risk to send an employee overseas, the more you can do to make
your employer confident that you will do well internationally, the better off you'll be. Start studying the culture and customs of your desired future home and, wherever
appropriate, show your employer what you know.
7. Point out ways you can make a difference for your organization overseas. Not only will your organization want to know you can survive overseas, it will want to know how you
will add value beyond what a local employee in that market might be able to provide. You need to think about what unique skills and capabilities you can offer the organization,
and how they would be of value in the market you want to relocate to.
And, you need to find ways to make these skills as tangible as possible for your company to understand, both by how you articulate them and how you demonstrate them, even in
your current role, if possible.
8. Package yourself and your accomplishments in a non-self-serving way that demonstrates your potential value. It's rare that the details of your job today are the same as they
would be in an overseas role. Find ways to package and market yourself and your skills in ways that make your potential as clear as possible to your employer, both in your current
job and for the job you want. Often, the best way to do this is by focusing on your core competencies--strategic thinking, problem solving, team building or political savvy, for
example--since these will travel with you and are likely to be important in any intentional role.
9. Volunteer for special projects involving international work. Another great way to demonstrate your potential value is to volunteer for international projects. This lets you
show how you can work in cross-cultural teams and that you understand the dimensions of international work, not to mention the actual work content, all of which will make your
employer more confident about your likely success overseas.
10. If you believe you will not be transferred by an organization, you can move to the country of your choice on your own. If you know the market or city you really want to
move to and no opportunities are available in your current job, one alternative is to take the risk and move yourself. You may not be able to negotiate an expat package once you
are there, but you will certainly increase your chances of finding a job in that market as any organization you apply to can see that you are serious.
This is a big plus for a potential employer because the number-one reason an expat is likely to return early from an overseas assignment is the inability to make their personal
life work in their new home country. If you've taken that risk out of the equation, you are a much more desirable hire. PRN
CONTACT:
Perry Yeatman is SVP, Corporate Affairs, Kraft Foods and co-author of Get Ahead by Going Abroad: A Woman's Guide to Fast Track Career Success (Collins, 2007). She
can be reached at [email protected].