A two-tiered Family Support Program

Client Profile

• Industry: Aviation & Aerospace
• Headquarters: USA
• Company Size: Global enterprise with over 100,000 employees worldwide
• Mobility Program Size: 10-49 international assignments/year
• Geographic Scope of Assignment Footprint: Global, with primary operational hubs and international corporate stations spanning the Americas, EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa), and APAC (Asia-Pacific).

The Challenge: The Friction Behind the Move

The partnership between our Client and Expat Valley was catalyzed in 2024 by an immediate, complex assignment challenge: a relocating family urgently needed to navigate the highly specialized neurodiversity and special education landscape in the Netherlands.

This individual crisis exposed a wider, systemic challenge faced by global mobility programs worldwide. Traditional corporate relocation frameworks excel at the logistics of a move: such as immigration, taxes, and household goods shipping, but frequently leave a critical vulnerability unaddressed: the social and emotional adjustment of the accompanying family.

When family support is treated as a reactive afterthought, it introduces measurable friction and hidden business costs to the organization:

• The Productivity Drain: On average, employees spend up to 89 hours on relocation-related tasks during their initial weeks in a new location, with 69 of these hours occurring entirely during working time. This equates to an estimated productivity loss of $6,900 per relocation (Benivo, 2024). The two primary drivers of this loss are securing child education and establishing spousal support.
• The Assignment Failure Risk: Unhappy partners and unresolved children’s issues remain two of the most common reasons an international assignment fails entirely (EY, 2023).
• The Talent Acquisition Barrier: The potential negative impact on family life acts as a key personal barrier for 62% of employees considering an international assignment (Vialto, 2023).

 

The Solution: Aligning Care with Corporate Value Strategy

Recognizing that family care is not merely an emergency intervention but a pillar of employee performance, our Client’s Global Mobility team partnered with Expat Valley to formalize a proactive Family Support Program starting in 2025.

To secure internal sign-off, the program was strategically mapped directly to our Client’s corporate values:

1. Embracing DE&I and Belonging: Providing families with a specialized library and direct support to handle complex identity shifts, such as raising Third Culture Kids (TCKs) and managing the “grief and cycles of separation” that come with global mobility.
2. Proactive Safety & Duty of Care: Extending our Client’s rigorous safety culture to the emotional wellbeing of accompanying family members. By engaging Expat Valley early, our Client built a protective buffer to catch family vulnerabilities before they escalated into assignment failures.
3. Delivering Inviting, Attentive, and Premium Service: Ensuring that the care our Client promises its external customers is mirrored internally for its employees and their households during major life transitions (e.g., providing tools to help kids say goodbye or preparing for the hidden emotional toll of home leave).
4. Supplier Diversity and Procurement Alignment: As a female-owned business, Expat Valley perfectly aligned with our Client’s procurement goals regarding supplier diversity and supporting female leadership opportunities.
5. Financial Predictability (The Business Case): By testing the waters with the Guidebook Plan, our Client established an incredibly cost-effective framework. Historical modeling showed that had the program been active, total annual support costs would have ranged from a lean €405 (based on 2024 volumes) to €4,935 (during peak relocation years like 2022), proving that comprehensive “peace of mind” could be achieved at a fraction of the cost of a single failed $100k+ international assignment.

 

The Result: The Standard of Care in Action

Our Client successfully institutionalized the Family Support Program directly into its assignment portals and internal intranet infrastructure. Rather than an ad-hoc volunteer initiative, the program operates as a seamless, grey-labeled, two-tiered framework:

Tier 1: The Guidebook Plan (Universal Foundation)

Every international assignment involving children is automatically initiated into the Guidebook Plan. Designed to establish an immediate sense of belonging, this tier moves past digital resources to deliver a tactile, welcoming experience directly to the family’s doorstep:

• The Children’s First Aid Kid (pun intended): Replacing standard relocation corporate gifts, every child receives a physical “First Aid Kit” tailored to help them process the emotional transitions of moving.
• The Golden Envelope: Inside the kit is a personalized golden envelope addressed directly to the child.
• The Children’s Assignment Letter: Contained within the envelope is a formal assignment letter written specifically for them and personally signed by our Client’s Global Mobility Manager, which instantly validates the child’s role as an active partner in the family’s global journey.

Tier 2: The Sherpa Plan (Targeted Specialization)

Recognizing that global moves can expose hidden or complex vulnerabilities, the ecosystem scales fluidly. If a family is identified as having additional specialized requirements, such as navigating split-family arrangements or struggles with a family member settling-in, they are seamlessly transitioned to the Sherpa Plan for intensive, one-on-one support and expert guidance.

 

Maintaining Utilization and Community Connection

A program is only effective if families use it. To maintain high awareness and stay informed month after month, Expat Valley manages a dedicated, white-labeled monthly newsletter sent out under the banner of the Client’s Family Support Program. This consistent touchpoint keeps critical resources right at the assignee’s and their partner’s fingertips.

Every three months, the Expat Valley team proactively reaches out to all program members: to learn what family-related topics they would love to see featured in articles, webinars or videos; and to encourage people to book a call with a Global Family Expert, should any family-related worries or concerns exist.

 

Testimonial

“What stood out to us immediately was the value of having a true specialist step in and support the family during an incredibly personal and complex situation. Their expertise allowed the family to receive highly personalized guidance and advocacy, while preserving the appropriate boundaries between employer and employee. The family had access to an independent expert who could focus entirely on their needs, and we had confidence that they were being supported by someone with the right knowledge and local experience.

For our mobility team, it was a tremendous relief to know that a critical issue was being managed by professionals. It removed pressure from the company to navigate areas outside our expertise and ensured the employee felt supported rather than monitored. Ultimately, it strengthened the employee experience while allowing us to fulfill our duty of care in a thoughtful and respectful way.”

 

Do you want to find out how Expat Valley’s programs can elevate your relocation program?

Book a Consultation with Karlijn Jacobs, our Founder. In 30 minutes of your time we can:

1. Identify what family concerns and opportunities are most relevant for your organization’s talent pipeline and/or global mobility program,
2. Discuss which of our guidance plans forms the best combination of risk mitigation and employee experience improvement,
3. Give you concrete tools and data for the business case on family support.

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