The current economic landscape would suggest that large turnkey, project management houses are under pressure ­ now more than ever ­ to deliver on time and within budget. One only needs to briefly study the annual financials of big­project firms to deduce an average margin of 3.6%.

Slim profits require some very prudent protocols around risk management. Our research highlights that most organisations do not incorporporate specialist HR consultation into their expat deployment, in­country, and repatriation framework. Capital projects with senior expatriates place additional risk on profit margins considering that they have a commitment failure rate of 40% in developed countries. However, the majority of project value exists in the developing world which increases this risk rate to as much as 70%, research has shown.

Repatriation, the ramifications for the deserted team, project retardation and customer penalties can translate into hundreds of millions. A rigorous and systematic approach to selecting and onboarding project professionals will increase the rate of adoption in­country, increase team efficiency levels in complex and remote locations, and reduce the risk associated with expat desertion.

Slim profits require some very prudent protocols around risk management.

If expat risk is commonplace in your organisation, Target TalentWorX suggests a measured approach to expatriate success. Positioning your expatriate workforce need not carry excessive budgets which are deemed the industry norm.

We recommend a full range of accurate measures that have a ‘Project Finance’ rigour to their inputs. The output is effective, it significantly improves productivity and reflects in bottom line.

Make contact with us for a formal orientation on the solutions addressing expatriate risk.