Dear readers,
It’s been a long time since I wrote my last post. Among a million of other good reasons for being quiet, the main one was that I was moving countries (or relocating, as it’s called at Intel) with my family. It took at least 9 months since the decision was made until I started in my new office in the UK, and another half a year for us to finally settle. Now I can reflect on the entire “relocation project”, and I wanted to share some of my thoughts with you.
First of all, why relocate? The international long-term assignments or even one-way moves are not that uncommon at Intel. The company initiates them if the job has to be physically based at some particular location. There may be many reasons for that – facilities availability, proximity to a particular customer, cost of operations, legal requirements, etc. In all cases, Intel first tries to find a local candidate for the job, but it’s not always possible. Then an employee or a candidate from another location needs to be “re-located”, i.e. his or her move should be facilitated (and of course, it requires the employee’s willingness to move).
Second, how does relocation work? Intel always makes sure international hiring processes or relocation of an existing employee is fully compliant with legislation at both locations; it’s a part of our commitment of doing business with uncompromising integrity. That’s why the move project is a big and complicated one, especially when the employee moves with his or her entire family (in my case – we even brought the dog).
Third, how much does relocation cost? Many people have asked how this works. The answer is – Intel pays for the relocation, but the amount, terms, etc. are always individually discussed. The business is there to make money, and if a move or an international hire is required for the business, it’s often cheaper to pay to relocate a suitable candidate or an existing employee than lose in other ways because the job is not done.
Now that I’m done with my first international move with Intel (this actually was the third move – my first two were “local”, i.e. within Russia), I can re-confirm that it was definitely worth the hassle. Despite all the inconveniences associated with settling some 3000 miles away from our old home, my family and I are happy that we went for it. Not only because it’s always a very challenging and rewarding professional opportunity, but from a personal development perspective it is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for many of us! So if after several years Intel wants me to move further, I’ll definitely consider it.
What do you think? Would you go for a job at Intel in another country?
Vladimir was born in 1977 in Zhukovsky, near Moscow, graduated from Moscow Aviation Institute receiving Masters degree in Computers in 2000.
He started his career in IT in 1991 as a assistant in the compute lab of Tupolev Aircraft Design Bureau.
Before joining Intel in 2003 Vladimir held several IT jobs in different companies (ranging from Education to Investment Banking verticals), beginning as a programmer and reaching Deputy Head of IT and Project Manager positions.
At Intel he started as IT Construction Project Manager, supporting Intel R&D growth in Russia then transitioned to Site IT Manager for 3 biggest Russian sites in Nizhny Novgorod, Sarov and Moscow, then he joined IT@Intel Program, supporting European Enterprise sales team & Marketing .
For over 4 years, from 2007 till 2012, Vladimir was working as General Manager for Intel branch in Nizhny Novgorod. He was responsible for running the operations of the oldest and biggest Intel site in Russia, supporting its continued growth.
Since 2012 Vladimir is working as the Risk & Controls Program Manager for Greater Europe Region.
Vladimirs hobbies include teaching (he delivers over 150 hours of trainings at Intel annually), motor sports (rally racing), rollerblading and reading modern literature & classics.