Overview
This case study explores mBARC’s pivotal role in supporting Alcoa’s expatriate team at the Ma’aden operations in Saudi Arabia, particularly during the unprecedented challenges of the global pandemic and regional shifts.
The Challenge: Beyond Cultural Adjustment
Living and working as an expatriate in Saudi Arabia presents unique complexities. For the Alcoa team in Ma’aden, these challenges were magnified by a “double crisis”:
- Pandemic-Induced Isolation: COVID-19 brought severe travel restrictions, preventing assignees from visiting home for over 20 months. This led to significant personal stress, anxiety, and concern for family members in countries like Australia, India, and various parts of Europe.
- Career and Contract Uncertainty: Periods of organizational change and the naturally finite nature of global assignments created a “stay quiet, don’t rock the boat” mentality. Assignees often felt the weight of “not knowing” their future fates, which impacted both the employees and their spouses.
- High-Stakes Personal Needs: Beyond the job, assignees faced practical hurdles ranging from immigration issues and elder care concerns to assisting family members with resume writing and job applications in their home countries.
- Security and Regional Turmoil: Maintaining a sense of safety and focus while operating in a region prone to geopolitical shifts required constant, reliable support and communication.
The Solution: mBARC’s Global Readiness Program (GRP)
mBARC deployed its GRP framework, built on the principle of “being there” whenever needed. The program’s strategy was divided into three core phases:
- Preparation & Assessment
Before departure, mBARC conducted Global Pre-departure Assessments to evaluate the resiliency and cultural awareness of assignees and their spouses. A dedicated Navigator then developed a customized Support Plan to mitigate identified risks and physical or emotional challenges.
- Active Assignment Support
- 24/7 Accessibility: Assignees had round-the-clock access to Navigators for counseling on issues like work-life balance, relationship challenges, stress, and illness.
- Proactive Outreach: Regular “Status Checks” every six months ensured no employee felt forgotten, particularly during the isolation of the pandemic.
- Strategic Communication: mBARC acted as a neutral bridge, providing factual updates on health (e.g., vaccine progress) and security while referring specific corporate questions back to Alcoa’s internal experts to avoid misinformation.
- Successful Repatriation
Assignees were contacted 30 days before their departure to begin the reintegration process, ensuring a smooth transition back to their home country’s social and professional environments.
The Results: A Resilient, Supported Team
The intervention of mBARC’s GRP led to measurable success for Alcoa’s Ma’aden operations:
- Exceptional Morale & Focus: Despite the pandemic, reports consistently showed that team members remained “fully focused on their goals” and “pleased with their roles”. Employees reported that the support helped them feel valued and connected to the company.
- Normalization of Stress: Through regular outreach and materials on topics like “Career Planning” and “The Importance of a Mentor,” assignees moved from a state of high anxiety to feeling that things were “very much normalized overall”.
- Stronger Corporate Trust: The “trustful relationship” cultivated by mBARC ensured that assignees felt safe and supported. One assignee noted, “Despite the world events, things are really pretty good here… we’re lucky”.
- Retention and Transition Success: The program successfully managed the gradual reduction of the team as projects concluded, with assignees either repatriating smoothly or successfully transitioning to local roles outside of Alcoa.
By providing a human-centric “safety net,” mBARC transformed a potentially volatile expatriate experience into a model of organizational resilience. The Alcoa Ma’aden team didn’t just survive their assignments; they thrived, remaining motivated and secure in one of the world’s most complex environments.