Connecting… when working globally: How do individuals navigate the social dimension of their global careers within the shifting global mobility landscape?

Various global labor market developments have prompted a significant shift the global mobility landscape. International mobility becomes increasingly diverse and short-term oriented, enabling international workers to shape their careers beyond the containments of organizations' traditional expatriation programs. However, organizations struggle to keep up with this shifting global mobility landscape, potentially risking their competitiveness. While traditional global mobility policies often rely on performance- and support-systems, recent scientific evidence suggests that organizations’ challenges in engaging global talents are primarily a matter of international workers’ social experiences. The author therefore argues for a fundamental re-thinking of traditional global mobility policies towards enabling-approaches by focusing on workers’ social experiences. To address this challenge, this dissertation explores how international workers navigate the social dimension of their careers within the shifting global mobility landscape. The research unravels how international workers become increasingly competent actors within their networks and how they adopt various strategies and practices to pursue their international careers depending on their social work context. Based on her findings, the author advocates for a more nuanced understanding of international workers as competent actors in their networks and encourages further research into the interpersonal and contextual aspects of international careers. With several suggestions at the micro-, meso-, and macro-level, the dissertation closes with an integrated view on designing contemporary global mobility policies.