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In recent years, the demand of expatriates has shifted from Westerners to expats from Asia. Many corporations in the West would send their employees to different countries for a short period of time to gain experience and transfer knowledge to their companies. However, companies in Asia are drawing attention due to their global economic success, resulting in an Eastern shift for expats.
This trend slowed immediately after the 2007 global financial crisis. Companies were forced to reduce expat packages and cut costs. But since the crisis, markets in Asia have matured and have reached a higher economic standing than other countries. According to Rashmi J. Dalai of the Wall Street Journal, “A large number of Western-educated Chinese, known as ‘sea turtles,’ have returned to lead companies, boasting better cultural fluency than expats”. Correspondingly, younger expats from Western countries are becoming drawn to Asia.
Better economic standards and the idea of an adventure is the cause of expats being lured to Eastern countries. This has increased the diversity of the expat talent availability pool and has caused expats to stay for longer periods of time in these countries. Not only are more expats being drawn to Asia, but “the demand for Asian talent has increased”. Therefore, many Asians are willing to travel abroad to expand their career and talents. This has had a positive effect on the economy, and has improved the growth of companies in Asia as well as diversified the expat talents pools.
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