circumstances of the business. In this way organisations can achieve optimal business outcomes. Assessing the balance between best practice and


best fit is like balancing the weights of items on an old- fashioned set of scales. Too much emphasis on best practice may result in a solution that is benchmarked to industry standards but may be inappropriate


to


the organisation’s specific circumstances; too much emphasis on individual tailoring and best fit can result in a bespoke approach but potentially this may be out of alignment with competitors leading to a company’s potential disadvantage. So getting this balance right is a juggling act for all organisations. There will be no standard solution to weighing up


“Assessing the balance between best practice and best fit is like balancing the weights of items on an old-fashioned set of scales.”


Above: Host, Jayne Constantinis at the Innovation Festival for Global Working


INNOVATION: BEST PRACTICE AND BEST FIT FOR THE FUTURE The 2023 Think Global People and Relocate Awards took innovation as the over-arching theme with the aim of highlighting excellence across a range of global people management and mobility areas. Its objective was to showcase excellence in the leadership of people and delivery of mobility services. Dr Sue Shortland explains.


LEARNING FROM THE AWARDS: BEST PRACTICE VERSUS BEST FIT A best practice approach suggests that organisations will be following the most forward-thinking, relevant and appropriate


solutions in managing their


people. Typically, a best practice approach involves benchmarking against other organisations deemed to be appropriate comparators, distilling the information on their practices to extract the best approaches and to incorporate these within an organisation’s own policy design and implementation. However, benchmarking against others – although


helpful and potentially able to provide an appropriate solution – may not necessarily represent the specific conditions under which any particular employer and its employees operate. By its very nature, a best fit approach involves tailoring solutions to the particular conditions of the organisation and its situation, be that economic, political, financial or geographical. As such, approaches to international leadership and global mobility should encompass both best practice in the marketplace as well as an individual, best fit, approach linked to the exact


6


the merits of a benchmarked versus a best fit approach. So this is where innovation in international leadership and global mobility comes to the fore. And that is why the 2023 Think Global People and Relocate Awards focused on innovation this year, it being particularly important given the unstable economic, financial and geopolitical climate.


THE AWARDS AND JUDGING PROCESS This year’s awards provided the


framework for


organisations of all sizes to demonstrate exciting and novel approaches contributing to best practice as well as tailored, best fit solutions to management and mobility issues. This year, there were the following categories: • Excellence in global mobility, global policy design or implementation


• Destination services provider of the year • Best serviced apartment provider • Excellence in technology or analytics • Excellence


in talent diversity and inclusion


• Excellence in education – schools or education consultancy • Best research contribution or book • Excellence in environmental, social and governance issues • Excellence in global leadership and innovation


The entrants were required to present evidence under the following headings: • to provide a unique, exceptional experience;


quality mobility


• a responsive, resource-efficient and cost-effective service, differentiated from others in the field; and


• being supported by your leadership team to deliver innovative and inspirational service in an increasingly global and diverse marketplace.


In judging the categories, the independent judges focused on evidence provided within the entry statement given, supporting documentation and accompanying video material, commenting specifically on each entrant’s contribution to knowledge and advancement of understanding of management of global people, the impact and implications for practice, and innovation and best practice. Each of the categories was judged by two or three judges working as a panel.


development, deployment,


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