Working overseas
By Paul Edwards | thebigchair.com.au | 01 February
Image: Kate Oliver
So the prospect of another Melbourne winter has inspired you to look overseas for your next career move?
Hardly an adequate reason. But add to the chill of winter incentives such as higher pay, tax breaks and a chance to see the world and it's a combination that many Australians find difficult to resist.
So where are the good jobs, the happy job-hunting grounds for workers with the travel bug?
Margaret McCartney, of relocation and migration consultants Expat International, says there are big pay packets and plenty of jobs for Australian construction and architecture workers in the United Arab Emirates, particularly the boom city of Dubai.
"And it doesn't end there," she adds. "Australians in most professional disciplines are generally well regarded overseas - we have a reputation as hard workers. There's a call for finance professionals in USA and Asia, including Russia in more recent times, and lawyers in the UK.''
However, if your current company proposes an overseas post, Ms McCartney says you should never blindly accept.
"Important basic package components should include visa acquisition and maintenance throughout assignment, cost of living adjustment when the host location is higher than home, housing allowance when rents are higher, and a household or
personal goods shipping allowance.
Any package from the company should also include:
* Relocation assistance, medical and personal insurance
* Medical and emergency evacuation provisions
* International tax advice and annual tax return preparation
* A written contract on leave provisions that take in travel to and from the new location
A vital consideration is establishing what plan the company has while you're away and when you return, she adds.
Unprepared expats have problems even before they fly out of Australia, according to cultural trainer Jane Hayman, of International Consultants Centre.
"Cultural preparations are at least as important as packing suitcases. Before they leave, assignees should have a full day session in which they reflect on the nature of culture and identify their own cultural values and behaviours. This gives them a framework to look at the typical behaviours of the new culture and understand underlying values and history."
For instance, an Australian manager in Fiji may feel frustrated when half his/her staff take a week off to attend a funeral of a distant relative.
"Knowing a bit about animist beliefs, the importance of the chief and the village structure and the difficulty of infrastructure and transport connections may help defuse the frustration and allow the manager to better understand what's going on. An expat assignment can fail for many reasons, but one that goes wrong because of the expat's lack of cultural understanding is a preventable disaster at a personal, corporate and institutional level.''
Collecting savvy before souvenirs
Working overseas is usually a two-way process. Australian workers heading for an expat lifestyle are mirrored by the heading-home brigade. On their resumes are two words prized above most others - overseas experience.
The notion is that you do a couple of years overseas - say LA, London or New York _ then return to Australia and wait for the headhunters to make tracks to your door.
If only it were that easy, says Sue Ellson, founder of Newcomers Network, who almost daily hears of repatriates struggling to break back into Australia's workplace.
"Many Australians decide that although they want to live and work overseas, they also want to return to Australia to raise their children, support aging parents or enjoy a less stressful way of life. Unfortunately, they don't always plan for this when they leave and if they are out of Australia for more than five years, they're going to have a very difficult time repatriating. I advise all expatriates to keep their connections with Australia, most importantly with their nearest and dearest friends and family, but also in relation to their profession. Australia will always be where they are from, but a healthy global mindset allows it to remain a part of who they are now.''
Ms Ellson says expats should develop their own personal and professional databases and keep in touch frequently.
"Keep sending emails with photos of yourself at work and at play. It could lead to good quality referrals if you get back without a job. In many cases it's not what you know or who you know, but who refers you that counts. The bottom line is: keep collecting savvy, not souvenirs, while you're away.''
