New research* reveals that companies are increasingly viewing international mobility as key to bridging skills gaps and fuelling business growth, despite ongoing challenges with family-related assignment failures, rising costs, and slow technology adoption.
The 2025 Managing Mobility Survey, which gathered insights from 262 organisations across 30 countries, found that 95% of firms now outsource at least one mobility function to combat skills shortages and support growth objectives.
Key findings:
● High strategic value – International mobility is increasingly recognised as crucial for expertise transfer and company growth, with organisations strategically deploying talent to address skills gaps and provide international experience for potential senior management. The survey reveals a clear shift towards more strategic work for mobility professionals, with transactional responsibilities increasingly automated or outsourced.
● Family concerns derail assignments – Despite money being the primary focus during negotiations, family concerns remain a frequent cause of assignment failures with it being cited as the second most common reason for assignment failure. Employees or their families being unable to adapt to host locations remains a significant challenge, highlighting the importance of comprehensive support beyond financial packages.
● Rising costs – Administrative costs for international assignments have increased, with average annual costs reaching USD 9,800 (EUR 9,200) per long-term assignment and USD 8,700 (EUR 8,200) per short-term assignment. While larger programmes find efficiencies through technology and cost spreading, measuring return on investment remains problematic.
● Lagging tech adoption – Only 3% of companies report being fully satisfied with their mobility technology. Despite its recognised potential, AI adoption in global mobility remains tentative, with only a small minority of companies having introduced AI into their processes so far.
“As global mobility continues to evolve, we’re seeing organisations struggle to balance transactional and strategic responsibilities,” said Oliver Browne, Head of Content and Insights at ECA International. “With 60% of respondents finding this balance challenging or very challenging, there’s a clear need for more efficient processes and better technology integration to free up mobility professionals for more value-added work.”
The survey also found that finding suitably skilled candidates for long-term international assignments remains challenging for many organisations, emphasising the importance of effective talent management strategies. One solution to these difficulties lies in increasing the talent pool, with 42% of companies implementing diversity policies to achieve this.
%ECA International’s survey covered various industries, with significant representation from finance, engineering and tech.
