We have lived in a world where freedom of movement was common practice. Business trips arranged and taking place the following day and opportunities to work from abroad or go on assignment were part of “business as usual”. What we are seeing now is certainly not something we have seen before, nor what anyone would have predicted 12 months ago.

Over the past few years discussion has been dominated by the growing desire of business to get the right talent to the right places and the new generations’ desire for globalization.
COVID-19 pulled the handbrake on the global movement of people and brought unexpected challenges for global mobility. Companies were not ready for this sudden stop nor were they ready for the impact of this crisis.

Companies are focusing on finding out where their people are and on doing what is necessary to protect them and their families. 

This sounds simple enough. However, many companies do not have technology in place that determines the location of employees. And this is critical because the measures needed to protect them are changing each day as conditions and emergency protocols evolve in their respective countries or regions.

What are the next steps we should think about now, with regard to mobile workers?