32 BCBusiness december 2014 roslan rahman/aFp/getty images
i n t e r n a t i o n a l B u s i n e s s
The Expat Survival Guide
Relocating to another country? What every business
person needs to know before you go
by Felicity Stone
L
iving and working abroad can be
rewarding, but uprooting yourself—
especially with a family—isn't easy.
And according to Statistics Canada,
more British Columbians move
out of the country (for work and other
reasons) than Canadians from any other
province. Allan Nichols, president of
the Canadian Expat Association; Linda
Lachapelle, director of business develop-
ment at Cartus Relocation Canada; and
Christina Diles, a partner in Deloitte's
Global Employer Services Group and a
member of the Canadian Employment
Relocations Council's Pacific Region
committee, offer insights on navigating
foreign waters.
Connect with
Local Canadians
"If somebody's being relocated, then
the resources would often come from
the organization that they're working
with here in Canada," says Allan Nich-
ols. For someone moving without cor-
porate support, Canadian chambers of
commerce, social clubs and diplomatic
offices "are really key to success as an
expat abroad. Being involved in those
organizations gives you an instant net-
work where you can ask for referrals,
and that's exceptionally important."
Now back in B.C., where he is leisure
sales manager at the Fairmont Empress
in Victoria, Nichols lived and worked in
Japan for 10 years. As an expat, one of
his biggest challenges was integrating
into Japanese society and figuring out
local business practices. He received
support from his employer and joined
a Canadian club. He also made friends
with the Canadian consul in Nagoya,
where he lived. "We became hiking bud-
dies, and that was a fantastic opportu-
FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Two expatriate western
businessmen in the financial
district of Raffles Place
in Singapore.
Top international destinations for Canadians relocating (Canadian citizens living abroad)
united states
1,062,640
Australia
27,289
united Kingdom
73,000
Hong Kong
sAR
300,000
