Jim McKnight spent a wonderful five years working in Bangkok. He had a lucrative contract as a general manager with a European company in international sales. Even his wife and children greatly enjoyed their experience in Thailand; his son married a Thai woman who he met there. However, repatriating back home in 1998 and looking for work was not so pleasant. "When I really started looking seriously for a job, I was in for a nasty surprise," recalls McKnight.

Getting Back into the Job Market

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The company McKnight worked for fulfilled its obligation by moving him back to the US and granted him interviews at the parent company in Europe, but there were no suitable openings available. Once home, he needed to start a job search from scratch without current client contacts, which are critical in sales.

McKnight's experience is not uncommon. According to a recent study by the Center for Global Assignments, more than 80 percent of the companies surveyed who send expats abroad don't guarantee them a job when they return. Additionally, individuals who have had vast experience and success overseas often find that their international experience is discounted.

This was the case with McKnight. "My track record did not matter," he explains. "The fact that I had not been active in domestic business since 1993 [seemed to be] held against me. I had many interviews and the recruiters loved my resume, but the hiring sales managers wanted a person who could bring contacts into the company."

In December 1999, he finally settled on a job with a local engineering company at a fraction of his former salary. Only recently did McKnight's persistence pay off; he found a senior position with a power plant developer who can use his gas turbine experience.

Reverse Culture Shock

Returning home can be a cultural challenge as well. The McKnights' annual visits helped keep them connected with friends and family, thus easing their transition back. But not everyone has such an easy transition.

Individuals often experience reverse culture shock. Living overseas can be transforming; employees and their families are often eager to share their new insights with family and friends. However, "most people don't show much interest in looking at photos or hearing about new foods or the political climate of a country several thousand miles away," says one individual who recently returned from overseas.

And spouses often have to reinvent their professional selves in a market that has changed. Children return to find that former playmates have formed new circles of friends, so they too must start over, even in an old neighborhood.

Help Is Available

McKnight would consider going overseas again but only with a contract "that would take me right through retirement." This is understandable, considering the stress of his recent repatriation. For those professionals who are not that far along in their careers, however, other actions can be taken to ease reentry.

Individuals can request repatriation counseling programs offered by many global relocation or cross-cultural training companies for themselves and their families. They should plan at least one trip home to candidly discuss their post-assignment professional options with key executives and HR professionals. Ideally, this should be done six to 12 months prior to repatriation. It is also an excellent idea to develop and maintain good communication with headquarters throughout the assignment via email so as not to fall prey to being out of sight, out of mind.

What are progressive companies doing about the problem? Some are offering end-of-assignment bonuses, others are providing repatriation counseling and the most forward-thinking are implementing proactive placement strategies to assure a good job fit back at home using the individual's background and experience overseas.