Expats' partners, which career in Switzerland?

The 2 questions that people most frequently ask me about expat partners are:

"What type of profile they have?"

"How can they find a job if they do not speak local language(s)?"

I am always glad to have the opportunity to elaborate on these topics:

"Expat partners generally have comparable profiles to the ones of their spouses who have been hired aboard for their expertise. The main difference is that expat partners are already in Switzerland!"

"Even if, obviously, speaking French and German does help, many positions in Switzerland require first an excellent level in English."

I also like to provide some examples of roles occupied now by expat partners whom we have been so lucky to accompany:

"Marketing specialist, Photograph, Customer service associate, QA Compliance manager, Graphic designer, purchaser, Retail director, Engineer, Manager corporate affairs, Head of controlling, Payroll analyst, Administrative assistant, Clinical research director, Real estate specialist, Entrepreneur, and more."

If you are curious to know more about expat partners, read the previous post

“Accompanying spouse: Who are they?”

And once more, I take the opportunity to list some reasons why the expat partner are so important:

• Their qualification and profile make them very valuable to the Swiss society.  

• They are the cause number one of  early assignment interruptions  

• Their well-being has a major impact on the well-being of the expat partner, thus on his/her performance at work.  

• They are the family social integration facilitator.  

• They usually take care of the whole relocation  practical side.

Sandrine van den Oudenhoven

job4U2, "Relocation is a project for both"