Hi, I'm Tone. I'm so happy you found me. 

I work with skilled migrants entering the Norwegian workforce, and I understand dual careers across borders from years of study and lived experience. 

My interest in expat partners and global mobility started a long long time ago. As an anthropology student, I worked with a group of highly skilled corporate expat partners in Oman. I spent 9 months sharing their lives, trying to understand adjustment processes and shifting social identities following a cross-border relocation or a high-mobility life with recurring relocations. 

I was fascinated to learn how often women stepped out of the formal workforce, coinciding with a global relocation, to prioritize motherhood. I was equally fascinated with how frequently this shift in priorities misaligned with women's perception of themselves as career-driven, skilled professionals and how often an intended short-term career break became a long-term or even permanent departure from the formal workforce.

The hallmark of anthropology is participant observation, trying to understand someone else's lives and perspectives. I understood a lot. 

But it wasn't until I 'went native' and married a high-mobility career expat, becoming an expat partner myself, that I could truly refer to lived experience. 

5 international moves with a family over 14 years gave me in-depth insights into, and lived experience in, navigating dual careers across borders.

I stepped out of the workforce to raise our family on the move for 8 years. I lived that life in between, that life of liminality, with love, commitment, and a learner mindset. Deciding to return to work came with pain and delight in equal amounts. 

• Places kept changing. We were still moving, and trying to stay connected to the formal workforce, when you KNOW you're leaving your host country in 3 years is rough.
• I had changed. I needed to identify my knowledge, my transferable skills, and my value proposition to create a portable career.  
• We, as a couple, had changed: we were both committed to our professional identities, but over the years, he had taken on a lead career/sole provider role, whilst I had taken on a lead parent role. Unpicking that pattern to make room for us both to work was -and still is- a work in progress.

I owe my return to work to my partner, a supportive organization, and other expat partners: both those who walked the steps before me and those who created the path with me. 

I have worked with and written about expat partner career support, formally and informally, paid and unpaid, for 10+ years: this is the thread that connects my career.

Today, I manage the Stavanger wing of Norway's largest mentor program for skilled migrants trying to enter the Norwegian workforce. I connect around 50 mentor-mentee pairs each year. 75% of candidates are expat partners. 

I believe in enabling dual career partners to make informed decisions about their lives and relocations, preferably before relocating. 

If I can support your journey in any way, I'll be delighted. I'd love to hear from you. 

You can reach me through LinkedIn or email.