Lize-Mari Ras
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Global Representative Nomination For EuRa

EuRa Global Representative Nomination

As a proud member of EuRA, I am excited by the inclusion of a Global representative to the EuRA Executive Group, and since 1993 I’ve been running a business providing mobility services across Africa and have been chipping away at including the voice from developing destinations into the industry.

Relocation Africa’s Footprint

Our footprint is Africa – the entire continent – where we’ve been overcoming challenges and providing award-winning services to the global mobility industry for nearly 30 years. Relocating between 1st world locations is almost administrative – tossing an African city into the mix brings exciting challenges that we’ve been dealing with daily and I believe this gives me a unique set of skills and experience EuRA’s new global focus would benefit from.

The First Global Representative Of The EuRa Group

I’m honored to have been nominated for the position as the first global representative of the EuRA executive group – historically all positions have been held by European representatives.

Having served as the President of TIRA (The International Relocation Association) for a number of years, I understand the value that diversity brings to an organisation and I’ll make sure that the voice of the Global members is brought to the table, especially bringing diverse ideas and experiences into the discussions for the benefit of all EuRA members.

Bringing Diverse And Unique Relocation Perspectives

I believe that having the opportunity to bring in diverse and unique perspectives from outside the standard “gene-pool”, allows for a more robust and resilient outcome.

The ‘developing world’ has so much to bring to the table but seldom has the opportunity.

For example…

Do you know that the richest man ever to have lived (equalising to current values) is Emperor Mansa Musa from Mali in west Africa – he ruled in the 1300’s and traded in salt & gold and he is credited for funding and encouraging literature, education, architecture, and the arts.

His wealth was valued at $400bil – more than double the current richest man’s wealth.

Sustainability And Relocation

It may be because I’m a child of Africa, being born in what is now Zimbabwe, but I feel deeply rooted in nature, and during COVID, I immersed myself in my greatest passion – sustainability.

I currently proudly sit on the sustainability advisory board for Worldwide ERC.

This allows me to be a vocal proponent of entrenching sustainability within the global mobility industry at all levels. And yes, I am fully aware that this is not a sprint but rather a marathon, however I believe it is important to bring these conversations into the board discussions.

During my time I have helped develop and facilitate a sustainability course which guides members of the mobility industry on incorporating sustainability across their businesses.

I have also experienced the benefits of how radical collaboration accelerates sustainability from a trip I took to Rwanda on 2021. You can view the full story on our YouTube page.

Why Your Vote For The Position Matters

As Africans we’re facing challenges daily – from reliable electricity or safety & security issues , right through to educating expatriates on transitioning seamlessly into our environment – and I therefor believe that I would bring a unique skill-set to the board in this new global board position.

All full member’s of Eura have one vote for each of the 5 regions. They are:

Voting is between the 2nd and 9th of January 2023, and even if you are on holiday, please exercise your vote by clicking below:

Eura Voting Platform Link.

If you would like to hear more on this, please don’t hesitate to contact me at rene@relocationafrica.com.

 

Wishing you all a great start to 2023.

Kind regards
René Stegmann

 

Donna Christie
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Digital talent in Africa are in search of new horizons

 

Digital talent in Africa are exploring new opportunities and destinations. 73 percent will switch roles to advance their careers, compared to 63 percent globally*, putting them at the forefront of the emerging ‘great resignation’ trend.

This result gained from a survey of almost 10,000 employees in digital roles – part of BCG’s Decoding Global Talent series and https://www.the-network.com/

 

“Workers in digital roles emerged from the COVID-19 crisis relatively unscathed and as companies across all industries digitise, they are more in demand than ever,” says Rudi van Blerk, Principal and Recruiting Director at Boston Consulting Group, Johannesburg.

“This willingness to relocate is in stark contrast with the trend of decreasing mobility both globally with digital talent and with South Africans in a BCG study in March last year,” says van Blerk.

It was found that the most valued aspect of a digital employee’s job in Africa is a good work-life balance.

“Digital talent in Africa have shown that they are very open to working remotely for a foreign employer because it offers opportunities for workers to advance their careers even with international companies without needing to relocate,” says van Blerk.

Business sustainability, inclusion and environmental issues have significantly increased in importance over the last year. 50 percent globally and 46 percent in Africa would not work for companies that do not share their diversity and inclusion beliefs; 48 percent worldwide and 45 percent in Africa take the same stance regarding environmental policies.

An encouraging take on the future leaders in the digital realm.

If you are looking at new opportunities within Africa, whether it be as an employee or entrepreneur, please do not hesitate to contact us at info@relocationafrica.com

*January 2022 – iafrica.com

Andrew Stegmann
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Excited about the future

Navigating COVID

It’s been a privilege to be challenged with leadership these past 2 years, both at Relocation Africa, as well as personally coaching our kids through their final school years to face the world which has such an unpredictable future.

Many companies who have successfully navigated this period will have more streamlined and efficient processes. The fact that they’re still going is testament to their resilience and their leadership team – and probably their agility too.

Public Holidays

In South Africa we have 12 public holidays and we don’t shift them to a Monday as is the norm in the developed world. This year Good Friday & Easter Monday created the first of many consecutive four day weeks. The 27th April (Freedom Day – celebrating our first democratic election in 1994) is on a Wednesday and Workers Day (1st May – however, as it lands on a Sunday, Unions have ensured that their members don’t miss out on another day off work, so South Africa moves the public holiday to the next Monday) is on the 2nd May, giving us our 4th four day week in a row.

There is a double edged impact to these interruptions. Many businesses struggle to hit their momentum until we are through this unsettled period – did I mention there’s also a holiday on the 21st March – Human Rights Day. There is, however, a real vigour and energy released after the 2nd May as there is a visible and unobstructed runway that is attacked with the pent up energy.

Payroll Services

During the stuttering first quarter of 2022, our Remuneration Division has been building on our African Payroll solution. As COVID wanes we believe that businesses who’ve successfully navigated the pandemic and now are expanding into African markets, will be needing payroll solutions. We have been providing these payroll and payment services since 2002 in countries like Nigeria, Kenya, Ethiopia, Ghana & Angola, and now our payroll solution covers over 40 African countries.

Recent reporting describes an imminent or current recession in Europe, however the outlook in Africa is much more positive, with aspirational quotes such as “Africa’s economies are leading as a region of resilience with vast potential” which comes from the most recent AVCA report fuelling our excitement for what Africa has in store.

Exciting future

Although Relocation Africa’s forecast horizon is shorter than it has been during the 2010’s due to COVID, Africa’s emergence as an investment opportunity due to government interventions, the very important role NGO’s play across the continent as well as instability across Europe, we see a bright future for Africa.

We look forward to playing our part in stewarding Africa to its rightful place in the global economy.

Donna Christie
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Talent Africa

 

What Talent acquisition strategies are needed to ensure our future talent is secure?

The Great Resignation is the name given to the global trend of skilled workers resigning from jobs all over the world, it’s going to require businesses to carefully consider the risks of talent management and seek out strategies to ensure businesses can retain their talent or attract and acquire talent. What talent retention strategies can businesses consider supporting and value their talent within the company ecosystem and what talent acquisition strategies are needed when the “war for talent” is real.

There is no doubt that as an employer we want our employees to show up as their whole selves as they perform better and are equipped to unleash the fullest potential at work. When looking for talent retention strategies this is certainly a key consideration when businesses review flexibility and hybrid models to include work from home, work from office or work from anywhere.

There are various initiatives companies can lean on to ensure they can retain and attract talent to their businesses. As referred in an article from the World Economic Forum they propose some retention strategies which are helpful. In the Global Mobility sector, we have identified that companies are finding talent in different locations from their own offices and businesses are needing to convince the talent to relocate for the job. It has been reported that this becomes a barrier to the talent accepting the position. Speaking to a recruiter Phillipa Geard, she mentioned that often young talent are based in a location they have studied and often cannot afford to relocate for a position.  How do businesses overcome these challenges?

Phillipa also mentioned that when there are positions that require high skills sets in a more mature marketplace and currently for example digital and tech skills are highly sort after this talent this requires workplaces to offer attractive benefits, flexibility, and support for relocation to attract this scarce talent pool.

With relocation being the third most stressful life event means that companies should review how they are going to be competitive in acquiring the talent they need when the talent pool is not in their own locality. The world is changing and changing fast and as Lynn Shotwell from Worldwide ERC in her 2022 letter to the industry refers to “Mobility is emerging from the pandemic as a more vital partner with transferees and their organizations. Its role has taken on more talent acquisition, retention, and management elements as it evolves into a more visible bond with the global workforce.”

How is your business managing the talent acquisition strategy?
What strategies do you think businesses could consider to increase the talent pool?