Mobility & Accountability: An Insider’s Perspective

[What follows is a missive on migrant issues in our specific domain, i.e. Global Mobility. In the context of this document, both Global Mobility & Mobility refer to the movement of people and resources across borders. Institutional & Organisational Accountability have been used interchangeably. Both imply transparency & the responsibility of the service provider towards their clientele as well as internal stakeholders.]

The international movement of people is a complex phenomenon influenced by a multitude of factors, including economic disparities, political instability, and environmental challenges. The migration process is dynamic, and increasing in volume by the minute. It’s a positive manifestation of globalisation, but It’s also fraught with legal and practical difficulties that migrants face. Often, the response to these challenges can be inadequate.

Mobility: An Overview

In recent years, the European blocs & North America have seen significant numbers of migrants arriving from non-EU countries. The movement of people, especially to European nations, presents significant challenges that require comprehensive and coordinated responses. Legal hurdles, inadequate reception conditions, and complex ‘integration’ procedures (like registering at the municipal office, applying for a tax ID) are just some of the issues that migrants face - young or old, wealthy or modest, brown or yellow. While there are solutions proposed to address these problems, institutional accountability remains a critical area for improvement to ensure the protection and integration of migrants into European societies. And it holds true, more so for private entities that facilitate mobility.

SUO Global’s success lies in its ability to bridge the gap between 2 sets of cogs:

Complex government policy, regulations & the average person
The Demand & the Supply in the Global Mobility diaspora.

These two encompass all the aspects of globalisation that affect the masses. They also encompass the gamut of bottlenecks that arise when one seeks to reap the fruits of a more open and dynamic world.

Mobility is central to the advancement of society thus far as well as tomorrow. Without the movement of people and resources in a seamless, hassle-free fashion, development will remain lopsided - detrimental to a more equal, cosmopolitan & business-friendly society. The issues that arise can be tackled by public policy on one hand, but private players have a huge role in mitigating them too. And more often than not, policy that follows action is much more successful than actions that follow after policy.

The Challenges

Immigration procedures are often complex & lengthy: On one side, the rising volume of applications has led to a genuine delay in processing at embassies, with some prescribing a year before an open appointment slot is available. But touts exploit this gap & perception, exaggerate them, and exploit prospective migrants - beyond just charging a bomb for the services & questionable workarounds.

The processes involved can often be discretionary,like with the procurement of Westward visas from developing nations. Predictably, anxieties rise over application contents, chances of approval, financial strain caused by the application costs (which pinches harder in case of rejection).
- Again. Since there’s no guarantee that can be given at any stage of the application procedure, the touts get a free-hand vis-a-vis fees for architecting a “perfect” application to “enhance” chances of success; and later as an excuse to ditch accountability when applications get rejected.
Siloed Services & Solution Providers: Candidates have no choice but to run from pillar to post, to get things going, figure out bottlenecks - even pay for delays, given the highly opaque, complex & daunting image pushed by touts vis-a-vis mobility procedures.
Transparency: in the same vein as the aforementioned, this causes a huge strain on time, finances and mental well-being, since ditching the process altogether lays waste to the time and money already sunk in by the candidate.
Credentials Portability & Recognition: a pain-point among all professionals engaged in professional domains such as healthcare, manpower & HR, engineering, law etc. Often, when such recognition is absent, candidates have only one way out - to rededicate years on training and qualifying assessments that will avail them a license to operate in their choice of destination.

Expectations: There is no dearth of dream-sellers in this industry. Even though client expectations need to be carefully tempered - especially with regard to timelines, chances of approval and financial implications.

Opportunities are misrepresented & lack of awareness is exploited - all ethics are shoved to the side in favour of “generating business”. It’s a phenomena more pervasive than the layperson imagines. Just look at the caseload of the Department of Homeland Security, or the plight of Indians, bearing the legal identity of irregular migrants, suffering indignities of the worst kind at refugee camps across North America & Europe.

Their testimonies are truly humbling, but eye-opening. Whether it’s donkey flights, passport-burnings or generating fake papers - there is an appalling difference in what they were sold and what they have received.

Those who fail to navigate the regulatory mechanism and gain legal status not only bear the indignity of returning home poorer than when they left, they are blacklisted and virtually banned from getting a visa any time soon. Sometimes the bans are decades-long, some are lifetime bans. This permanent record hamper the chances of getting a visa even to another destination. Their applications are always looked upon with suspicion.

Predictably, they tarnish the image of the home country too. And it reflects in the number of bilateral/multilateral MoUs signed, accessible visa schemes, visa-on-arrival/visa-free travel to other countries, application scrutiny & biased discretion, shrinking formal & informal migrant quotas, and sometimes, even diplomatic rows.

Institutional Accountability: to put it in layperson’s terms, it is a pledge to serve with integrity, in line with law, but more so with ethics. It’s a proactive initiative to be transparent in conduct, straightforward in communication & being open to scrutiny. It requires a multi-faceted approach that engages all stakeholders. The enormity of the task may require a similar need of time and deliberations, but until then, it is organisations like our own that need to step-up. It is us who should set the standards and lead by example. There are a few things we can address immediately and make a marked difference in the domain - slowly, but surely.

The Solution

Open Data Workflows:
- 24x7 accessibility to all project-based data - roadmap, numbers, bottlenecks, funds etc.
- Real-time communication & updates with both internal & external stakeholders.
Client-Centric Ethos:
- Clearly defined processes & devoted resources; avoiding industry buzzwords.
- Fact-based & pragmatic depiction of the investment involved & the risks associated with taking the plunge.
- No decision taken without their explicit consent.
- Immediate redressal of shortfalls, hiccups and worries.
- Dynamic & persistent analysis of Big Data, using expertise and cutting-edge AI tools to map out patterns & fuel insights.
- The client is human, and not just an application number. Being warm & straightforward and providing tailored solutions is imperative to growth.
Collaboration:
- The more networking opportunities are realised and partnerships forged, the more likely it is to enhance scrutiny and improve standards.
- Further, it has its own way of enhancing awareness & knowledge, which slowly permeates into society. It benefits more stakeholders and numbers that one may initially imagine.
Internal Feedback:
- Frequent & open communication vis-a-vis processes, wastage, review and analysis of previous cycles, realised & unrealised opportunities, PMS - can all help organically build a culture of learning, improvement and accountability on a day-to-day basis. Internal feedback is just as important as client feedback.

Executing these measures brings us closer to addressing Policy Coherence & the Root Causes at play. Consequently, this knowledge-rich and experiential understanding can lead to more effective & amiable Policy Advocacy. Thus, it puts us in a position to impact both the micro & macro levels of the ecosystem. And this impact permeates borders. In this domain, we have a clear & unique fortune, in the sense that:

The more people-centric & accountable we become, the higher the likelihood there is of generating more interest, more leads, and more business generation from all involved stakeholders.
- There have been dozens of studies conducted in the domain of behavioural economics, macro-social marketing, brand equity - all unanimously concluding that owning up to failure & providing redressal actually enhances brand loyalty.
Accountability has a domino effect on market competitiveness, innovation & societal inclusion.
There is simply no drawback in investing the time and resources to become a more accountable entity.

We hope this post has given you a holistic primer of Global Mobility, the problems that plague it, and how they can be overcome. Here’s to a more cosmopolitan, more innovative & more globalised ecosystem for all of us.