Mobility leaders everywhere are feeling it: shrinking teams, expanding responsibilities.

The scope of global mobility has grown far beyond move management. Today, teams are navigating visas, remote work policies, compliance risk, workforce planning, and employee experience…all while maintaining day-to-day operations.

In other words, leaner teams, longer to-do lists.

So the big question becomes: how do you structure and support a mobility team to be both operationally efficient and strategically impactful? And how do you create the capacity for big-picture thinking when the day-to-day never stops?

Mobility Teams: Small, But Mighty

Across the market, mobility programs tend to fall into one of two categories:

1. High‑volume, high‑complexity programs

These programs—like those managing 250–500+ moves—often calculate optimal staffing in the 8–12 FTE range.

2. Everyone else

This mirrors what Weichert’s Designing Mobility for Success Survey uncovered: most mobility teams are small, centralized, and highly lean, even in global organizations. The average team size of 5.6 FTEs is pulled upward by a small number of very large programs—while the most common team size is far smaller.

There’s no universal formula for team size. Structure depends on program volume, geographic spread, and policy complexity. But one factor matters most: where mobility sits within the organization. That positioning often determines how much influence the function has on talent strategy and business outcomes.

Our survey explored how mobility teams are making the shift from transactional administrators to strategic partners, and how they’re using technology, governance, and human expertise to increase their impact.

The results? Mobility teams come in all shapes and sizes — from ultra-lean teams of one to large groups of 25+. The takeaway is clear: most organizations are running mobility through highly lean operating models.

This makes organizational alignment more important than ever.

You Can Sit with Us!

For years, global mobility has existed alongside other HR functions; essential, but often behind the scenes. The world of work has changed, and mobility’s role has expanded right along with it. Today, mobility programs directly influence talent attraction, development, workforce agility, and business continuity.

Our survey found that nearly 60% of mobility functions sit within Total Rewards, and 73% operate under a centralized model. These structures can provide stronger governance and visibility, but only if the function is empowered to think beyond transactions.

Mobility doesn’t just “support” the business anymore. It helps shape how talent moves, grows, and stays.

As mobility’s importance increases, how do you know that your mobility function is  living in a space that will foster its growth and align with the program’s strategic intent? Start by asking:

1. What is the purpose of your mobility program?
Is it primarily about attracting new talent, developing existing employees, filling critical roles, or enabling workforce flexibility?

2. Do you have access to the right expertise?
Are compensation, tax, and immigration specialists easily accessible so your mobility team can operate effectively?

3. Has reliance on mobility increased — but resources haven’t?
If your business depends more on mobility today, are budgets, tools, and staffing levels keeping pace?

4. Are you measuring success?
Can you clearly track outcomes and identify barriers that prevent the function from achieving its goals?

Structuring your mobility A-team isn’t an exact science, but knowing how your peer organizations are pivoting can help guide your own adjustments. Download PART 1 of our Designing Mobility for Success Report for deeper insights into team structures and trends. Or connect with our Advisory Services Team for a tailored analysis of your program.