How can businesses engage the adult “Third Culture Kid”?

7 Aug

By the age of 12 I had attended seven schools including an international school in Bangkok and a public school in Sydney. I was born in Taiwan, raised in a number of countries across APAC and currently live in Singapore. I look Chinese but I speak with an Australian twang. I say twang because it is mixed with some strange American-like accent that is sported by most international school children – yes, even those who went to a British international school like me. I am a child of expatriate parents, and I am what you would refer to as a Third Culture Kid (TCK).

Many of you may be familiar with the term TCK, but if you aren’t, the term TCK was pioneered by author Reken and sociologist Pollock. They define TCKs as “persons raised in a culture other than their parents' or the culture of the country named on their passport (where they are legally considered native) for a significant part of their early development years.” This includes children of immigrants or those who were sent overseas to boarding school at a young age. However for the purposes of this blog, I’d like to focus on a subcategory – children of expatriate parents.

About 30 years ago we began to see a surge in the number of expat packages being offered to employees by globally expanding businesses. And these employees, realising the many benefits that an international move would have on their career, ended up relocating to countries they would not have otherwise considered. And now, decades later, the offspring of these expats, AKA the first generation of TCKs, are growing up and entering the workforce.

Our unique identity as cultural chameleons enables us to quickly adapt to different people and environments, and provide valuable insights when it comes to bridging culture gaps and appealing to local clients. However, in order to engage and effectively retain adult TCKs in your organisation, it’s important to bear in mind that their motivations and beliefs might differ significantly to the other people in your team, even if they look like you or sound like them.

In this article I want to share some tips that will improve the way you attract, engage and retain adult TCKs.

Douglas Liu