With the upcoming holidays, household goods shipments may be delayed. To ensure your employees receive their shipments on time check with your household goods shippers for standard holiday delays and allow extra time for shipping.  A number of Paragon’s clients utilize AGS International Movers which issued the following advisory about shipping to Russia during the holidays:

As a result of the Russian New Year holidays, congestion can be expected at POE St. Petersburg. Therefore please take note of the following:

• Sea shipments: Rates and quotations provided to you previously will NOT BE VALID if the vessel arrives at St. Petersburg port between December 15 2010 and  January 11, 2011.
• Road shipments: We will not be able to accept any road shipments arriving in Moscow between  December 29, 2010 and  January 11, 2011.
• Air shipments: Do not send air shipments to AOE Moscow for arrival between  December 24, 2010 and  January 11, 2011.

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In response to the discovery of suspected explosive devices aboard cargo flights, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has enacted the following additional security measures:

Effective November 8, there is a minimum 30-day full ban on all U.S.-bound cargo designated as “elevated risk” which, according to the International Association of Movers (IAM) includes:

• Shipments described as “personal effects” or “household goods” either in the master air waybill,  the house waybill,  the manifest or where the commodity information is determined to be missing or inaccurate.

• Shipments paid for by cash or personal check or shipped cash on delivery.

• Shipments from a shipper not having an established business relationship for less than 30 calendar days, not having an established shipping address and not having an established billing address.

• Shipments from an International Air Transport Association (IATA) registered agent not having an established business relationship for less than 30 calendar days, an established shipping address and/or an established billing address.

• Cargo accepted from a foreign air carrier’s direct employees or authorized representatives.

• All shipments to the U.S. destination must also be accompanied by a written acceptance statement issued by the Issuing Agent on a separate document (this part of the requirement applies to shipments delivered as of November 15, 2010).

• A full ban is in effect for all high capacity toner and ink cartridges over 16 ounces.

• A full ban is in effect for all cargo originating in Yemen and Somali

How this affects you?
The ban, initially in effect for a 30 day minimum, has the potential to extend beyond 30 days. It would appear that this ban applies mainly to passenger airlines, creating a demand for air freighters to bring in household goods shipments, resulting in premium pricing.

These new measures will undoubtedly result in substantial delays in shipping times, reduced cargo capacity as well as possible increases in fees.

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Paragon is committed to global growth in the APAC region.  Underscoring that commitment is the signing of two major Korean companies through Paragon Korea for destination services.  As is indicated in the following article published in the Joongang Daily, Korea is a growing economy that is quickly becoming a top destination for global talent.

The Globalization of Jobs: The good and the bad of foreigners working at Korean firms

In recent years, the numbers of foreigners working at Korean companies has been growing as the 2008 global financial crisis has narrowed job opportunities in many advanced nations.

The global talent that has worked for several years in Korea say there are positive challenges as Korea is one of the fastest growing economies in Asia, and there are great opportunities as many of the companies are advancing into the global market.

Foreign employees working in Korea mostly agree that one of the strengths of Korean companies is the work ethic and corporate commitment here.

“The Korean corporate environment in general promotes a very strong work ethic and employees tirelessly put in hours to support their companies,” said David James Biske, who has been working at GM Daewoo for six years and currently is the development director.

Biske said he joined GM Daewoo to experience life abroad while promoting his career development. But more importantly, he liked the challenge of working at the automaker just after it was acquired by GM in 2004.

Dana Lee, a Chinese woman who has been working at Hyundai Motor for the last five years, also praises the country’s work ethic.

“I believe that this is the reason for the country’s fast development,” Lee said. Lee studied at the Graduate School of International Studies at Sogang University before working at Hyundai.

“There are certainly differences between Korea and the U.S. that affect the work environment,” said Steve Frawley, the first non-Korean executive at SK Telecom. “The U.S. tends to place a greater focus on individualism versus collectivism in Korea.”

To read the rest of this article click here

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Pulse Points 2010: Trends and Best Practices for Global Mobility Programmes

As relocation volume stabilises and shows signs of a slow, but steady recovery, early indicators suggest 2010 will be a year of programme recalibration. The U.S. housing market continues to struggle. Many practices highlighted in 2009’s Trends and Best Practices report still apply. Strict Home Marketing parameters, use of buyer incentives, and formal loss on sale and negative equity provisions remain. While these benefits will underscore most U.S. domestic programmes, Paragon is choosing to focus on some new themes this year as the impact of “The New Normal” is poised to take center stage.

Pulse Point 1: Due Diligence
As companies and transferees become risk adverse in the “New Normal” environment, Paragon predicts a bias towards more focused due diligence as the initial step in domestic transfers and international assignments.

To continue reading this White Paper, please click here.

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Over the years, many corporations have developed domestic and international relocation programs in isolation of one another.   Often, these were inconsistent, disjointed programs that were often managed by different company functions and/or managers in numerous countries responding to various human resource requirements. As corporations become more integrated related to business units and the talent to support them, it is now clear that this approach may cause compliance issues and many inconsistencies in service and policy applications. 

In response to this, Paragon Relocation offers a ‘One World Global Relocation Program’ to assist corporations with the development and implementation of a truly integrated, global mobility program built upon common objectives and a foundation of strong mobility principles. 

The result is an integrated strategy that builds upon key elements for both Domestic and International Relocation.  

Building all plans based on a comprehensive, corporate-wide mobility philosophy is the best way to ensure consistent policy application and proper administrative procedures are implemented in accordance with legal and tax compliance issues.  A well–written and all-inclusive Global Relocation Program, when combined with centralized administration, and supported by regional service centers, whether internal or outsourced, will allow the corporation to implement a global mobility strategy  with significant cost savings.

The ‘One World Global Relocation Program’ recognizes that over the course of a career, an employee may be asked to move multiple times either within country and/or across borders. As such, from a talent management standpoint, the employee and family will experience similar service and benefits around the world ,consistent with overall global corporate benefits philosophy. Global companies seeking to grow depend on their talent and streamlined corporate mobility is fundamental to talent retention.

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