• Opportunity to experience new cultures ranked by expats as a top three motivator to relocate. However, language barriers (43%) and cultural adaptation (41%) are also cited as the top two challenges while on assignment.

• Cultural adaptation becomes more challenging for expats who have relocated more than once. Less than half of first-time assignees admit struggling with this, and this rises to 60% for those who have relocated twice or more.

• Yet employers are unaware of this culture fatigue. 81% of HR and mobility managers said their first-time assignees found cultural adaptation challenging, and this drops to 62% for those managing ‘seasoned’ expats on subsequent assignments.

Exposure to new cultures, adventure, and different lifestyles are top motivators for employees to relocate for work in 2025 – but managers have a different view.

This is according to new research from Crown World Mobility, which surveyed over 1,000 global expats as well as over 200 HR and mobility decision-makers. The latest report* The Changing Face of Relocation, compares the experiences and challenges of global expats with that of HR and mobility managers, to highlight key knowledge gaps and support needs.

The report claims that the appetite for relocation is currently high, with two thirds (66%) of HR and mobility decision-makers flagging an increase in the number of employees they relocated in the past year. 49% of HR and mobility managers said their employees’ appetite for relocation has grown over the last decade.

Motivators for relocation

However, HR and mobility managers have a skewed perception of what motivates employees to accept a foreign posting. According to the global expats surveyed by Crown, personal drivers, such as better quality of life (41%), the opportunity to experience new cultures (31%) and the excitement of change (27%), dominate the top four most attractive aspects of relocating.

Crown also surveyed over 150 assignees from selected top clients, who listed the experience of new cultures (27%) and adventure (17%) as top four drivers.

However, when asked the same question, HR and mobility managers believe professional drivers, such as career development (64%) and skills acquisition (60%), are of higher importance to relocating employees. Factors such as exposure to new cultures and adventure fail to rank within their top four drivers.

Caitlin Pyett, Global Consulting Lead at Crown World Mobility, adds: “By overlooking the elements of relocation that provide excitement and vibrancy in life, HR is missing its true attraction for employees. This will impact their ability to truly sell mobility in 2025 and attract new assignees.”

“The reality is that relocation today has become far more ‘democratised’ and is no longer reserved only for top-level C-suite executives. Assignee populations are more diverse in age, gender, and other socioeconomic backgrounds than ever before, and their reasons for wanting to relocate have evolved too. While career development is a goal shared universally by ambitious employees, the sense of adventure and chance at a new life can and should be framed as key benefits of relocating.”

Jo Danehl, Intercultural & Language Training Leader at Crown World Mobility adds: “It’s promising to see that the sense of adventure associated with an assignment has remained a significant player. Curiosity is an important trait to look out for in a successful assignee, as it shows open-mindedness and a real appetite for getting the most out of the assignment, both professionally and personally.”

Culture a double-edged sword

Exposure to new cultures is seen as a selling point prior to relocation, but this becomes a key challenge for employees while on assignment, with 46% of expats flagging cultural change as a challenging aspect of relocating. The top cultural challenges are learning the language (39%) and the different pace of life (37%). HR and mobility managers agree, with two fifths (41%) saying cultural adaptation was the main challenge for their employees after relocating – the second biggest challenge after language barriers (43%).

Cultural adaptation appears to get more challenging for employees the more assignments they complete. Among expats who have relocated multiple times, over half (56%) report encountering increased cultural differences as part of the process. Less than half of first-time assignees admit struggling with cultural adaptation, and this rises to 60% for those who have relocated twice or more.

Yet employers are in the dark when it comes to this challenge and appear to downplay culture’s impact on ‘seasoned’ assignees. 81% of HR and mobility managers said their first-time assignees found cultural adaptation challenging, and this drops to 62% for those managing expats on subsequent assignments. 48% of HR and mobility managers said their employees found cultural adaptation extremely challenging on their first relocation, vs. only 18% for subsequent relocations.

Jo Danehl adds: “HR believes that new cultures become easier to navigate after completing more than one assignment, but assignees themselves feel entirely different. HR may be overestimating these assignees’ ‘familiarity’ with the relocation process, or underestimating the ‘culture fatigue’ that can arise when relocating to a new country for the second, third or fourth time. No two assignments, countries, or cultures, are the same, and various different factors, such as age, family structure, and life stage can impact an assignee’s ability to integrate with their new country’s culture, network, socialize and take part in every-day life.”

“It’s important that HR remains mindful of this when preparing relocation packages for their employees and ensure they have heard their concerns and can provide the right supports before the relocation.”

The Changing Face of Relocation, from Crown World Mobility*