INSKILLS Forum: Unlocking hidden talent in skilled migration

The private sector is the primary driver of skilled migrant retention. While traditional focus has been on “employability,” there has been a shift toward “employer-ability”, the capacity of organizations to create environments where international talent and their spouses can thrive. Organizations play a role in the lived experiences of dual-career couples, which is a strategic necessity for national talent attraction and retention today. In this focused session, we will address the following questions: 

While academic literature has extensively documented the hurdles facing highly skilled migrants and highly skilled migrant spouses, such as “brain waste”, underemployment, non-recognition of skills and bureaucratic barriers, there are still major questions at multiple levels of analysis that need to be addressed. Different contexts require specific questions to be addressed. In this focused session, we will address the following questions: 

Artificial Intelligence offers transformative potential for the recruitment and integration of international talent. For “trailing spouses,” AI tools can bridge the networking gap by tailoring skills to local markets and simulating professional environments. For employers, AI can be a tool for recognizing the value of cognitive diversity. In this focused session, we will address the following questions: 

Migration policies often prioritize humanitarian imperatives while inadvertently sidelining skilled labor migrants. This creates a “market failure” where proclaimed skill shortages persist despite an available pool of migrant talent locally. We must move toward evidence-based policies that reconcile ethical commitments with pragmatic economic needs. In this focused session, we will address the following questions: 

Societal transformation is the final frontier of inclusion. When international talent is framed as a threat to native job security, friction is inevitable. Conversely, a societal ethos based on synergy perceives diverse workforces as collective potential to strive for a better and more innovative labor market. In this focused session, we will address the following questions: 

Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) serve as more than academic centers; they are pivotal agents in professional transition. This session examines how HEIs can pragmatically guide highly skilled migrants and their spouses through career transitions, resulting from disruptions in professional identity caused by migration. In this focused session, we will address the following questions: