In 1993, HEINEKEN Partner Network (now Global Connection) became the very first organisation to fully focus on spousal support. As we prepare to celebrate our 25th anniversary next year we look back at how it all began.
A new dawn
It’s less than 25 years ago that the first multinationals started to become aware of the impact expat partners had on the success of an expatriation. To be fair, before the dawn of professional partner support, some pioneers offered some help, often as a side business. But this approach only really gained momentum when a number of multinationals started to take a serious look at the matter in the nineties.
Schlumberger, Shell and HEINEKEN
While Schlumberger started a pilot program in 1996 and Shell founded it’s partner support organisation Outpost in 1995, the HEINEKEN Partner Network (HPN) predates them both. Established in 1993, HPN was the initiative of Ingeborg Hooft Graafland, who, after having lived for three years as an expat partner in Zaire, realised that her experience could be of great value to others. In our Expat & Partner Guide, she recalls: “A dream was born: to create a partner network in which various companies would collaborate in the interest of accompanying partners.”
2018: 25 year celebration
HPN gradually grew into what is now Global Connection. Consequently, in 2018 it will be 25 years since we launched operations. We are looking forward to celebrating a quarter of a century of experiences in this field!
