Foreigners Still Desired Despite Recession

This article in yesterday's "Financiele Dagblad" (p. 12):

Highly educated personnel from outside the country are still being actively recruited and handsomely rewarded by companies around the world, despite the recession. Under pressure from globalization, improved communication, and inexpensive travel possibilities, the hiring practices for foreign talent are changing. This according to a study by KPMG, which looked at 260 multinationals in 11 different countries.

Roughly 80% of the companies in question said they are seeing an improved labor mobility and can choose from a greater offering of talent. 73% of the companies polled say that the overall quality of their personnel improves as a result.

Three-quarters of the companies is of the opinion that the availiabity of foreign employees helps to create a global attitude within the company.

"The economic turmoil can create the short term possibility of the government calling a hiatus in immigration policy," said Luydert Smit from KPMG Meijburg. The international availability of labor remains an important part of a business' strategic planning.

“Challenge and opportunity always come together . . .

. . . under certain conditions, one could be transformed into the other.”
- Hu Jintao, President, People's Republic of China

China is positioning itself to come back stronger than ever after the crisis:
"The country is using its nearly $600 billion economic stimulus package to make its companies better able to compete in markets at home and abroad, to retrain migrant workers on an immense scale and to rapidly expand subsidies for research and development."

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/17/business/worldbusiness/17compete.html