RELOCATION POLICY


MILLENNIALS ON THE MOVE


As millennials gain an increasing share of mobility opportunities, relocation professionals must consider the policy components that motivate and support them. Millennials’ predisposition to travel suggests a less generous policy may be needed, reducing costs – but could millennial policy segmentation be a step too far? Dr Sue Shortland takes a closer look.


T


he workforce of today is becoming ever more diverse in its composition. The multi-generational nature of


the employee profile has received much publicity as baby-boomers work alongside generations X, Y and Z and millennials gain a greater share of what was once the preserve of the baby-boomers’ employment opportunities. With respect to mobility, the profile of a typical relocatee is changing. This has implications not only for relocation policy design but also for perceptions of equity and justice with organisations.


Understanding the demographics First of all, the terminology applied


to workforce generations needs some clarification. Baby-boomers are the post- war generation, with births in the period from the mid-1940s through to 1960-1964. Generation X follows on; birth years running from early to mid-1960s through to the early 1980s. Millennials (also known as Generation Y) were born in the period from the early 1980s through to the mid-1990s but in some definitions their birth years extend through to the early 2000s. Generation Z are the post- millennials with birth years starting from


the mid-1990s through to the mid-2000s. From the perspective of global mobility,


the stereotypical baby-boomer expatriate of the past has traditionally been in their early-40s, typically white, married and male, accompanied by a non-working spouse and children. The baby-boomer expatriates are now in decline as this group are now mid-50s+ with those born earlier in the period retiring or retired. Interestingly though, the demographic the current


profile of representative married or


partnered expatriate group has not changed significantly.


40 | Relocate | Autumn 2018


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