About Sojourn Talent
Your partner's career moved. Yours doesn't have to stop.​
OUR STORY
Built from experience. Grounded in evidence.
Sojourn Talent was founded by Monika Surma, a former senior Canadian government official with more than 20 years of experience in international policy, multilateral negotiations, and global governance. She also spent 15 years as an accompanying partner across three international diplomatic postings.
Monika didn't build Sojourn Talent despite her experience as an accompanying partner. She built it because of it.
During those postings, Monika saw what the data confirms: highly qualified professionals — most of them women — repeatedly step back from careers to support a partner's international assignment. Not because they want to, but because the infrastructure to do otherwise simply doesn't exist. No local network. No employer visibility. No structured pathway back in.
Sojourn Talent was built to be that infrastructure — for New York City first, and beyond as the model proves out.
​THE CHALLENGE WE'RE ADDRESSING
A systemic gap with measurable consequences.
Each year, thousands of experienced professionals relocate to New York in support of a partner's diplomatic, UN, or corporate posting. Most arrive with advanced degrees, deep expertise, and years of career investment — and no local network, no employer visibility, and nowhere to start.
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Posting organisations focus on the employee. The partner is largely left to figure it out alone.
The consequences are real and measurable:
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Career disruption compounds across postings — the gap widens with every move.
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Professional isolation contributes to family strain, which is a leading cause of early posting returns.
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A failed international assignment costs an organisation $500,000 to $1,000,000 or more.
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The accompanying partner population is disproportionately women — making this a structural gender equity issue as much as a workforce one.
This is not a niche problem. New York City hosts the largest diplomatic community in the world. The scale of unaddressed professional disruption happening here — every year, across every posting cycle — is significant.
WHAT WE DO
Practical support. Real outcomes.
Sojourn Talent operates through three interconnected elements, designed to work together rather than in isolation.
Professional Engagement & Continuity
A structured 10-week career programme offering coaching, peer cohorts, pathway workshops, and employer networking. Designed to help accompanying partners clarify priorities, build momentum, and leave with a plan — whether they're pursuing employment, consulting, professional development, or meaningful community. Open to all: diplomatic, UN, corporate, and independent. Cohorts run seasonally in New York City.
Employer Access & Talent Visibility
A curated talent directory connecting internationally experienced professionals with organisations actively seeking global talent — for employment, project-based, advisory, and returnship opportunities. Launching Spring 2026.
Institutional & Systems Partnerships
Collaborations with missions, foreign ministries, multilateral organisations, private sector employers, and foundations to co-fund programme access, strengthen relocation support models, and develop practical solutions that improve assignment stability for everyone.
WHO WE WORK WITH
Four audiences. One integrated platform.
Sojourn Talent is designed to serve four distinct groups — and the relationships between them are part of what makes the model work.​​​​​​​
Accompanying partners
Experienced professionals navigating career continuity during an international posting. Whether you're looking for employment, advisory work, professional development, or simply a community that understands your situation — Sojourn Talent offers a structured path forward.
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Organisations posting staff internationally
Foreign ministries, diplomatic missions, multilateral organisations, and private sector companies that relocate staff internationally. Supporting the accompanying partner strengthens the posting outcome. Sojourn Talent works with institutions to co-fund programme access, provide integration support, and report on outcomes.
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Employers seeking international talent
Organisations looking to hire professionals with international experience, multilingual skills, and cross-cultural expertise. We are developing the Sojourn Talent directory to connect you with a qualified, largely untapped talent pool in New York City.
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Funders and foundations
Philanthropic organisations and foundations working on gender equity, workforce development, or global mobility. Sojourn Talent offers a scalable, evidence-based model with a clear theory of change and a community of impact ready to grow with the right support.
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LEADERSHIP
The team behind Sojourn Talent.​​
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Monika spent more than 20 years as a senior Canadian government official in international policy and multilateral negotiations, holding senior leadership roles in global governance, workforce strategy, and multilateral coordination. She also spent 15 years as an accompanying partner across three international diplomatic postings — an experience that directly shaped Sojourn Talent's design and mission.
Holly White — Programme Partner
​Holly is an ICF Associate Certified Coach (ACC) and human resources leader with 15 years of experience across the UN system, including UNDP, UNICEF, and UNFPA. She has worked in the United States and West Africa, bringing deep international and cross-cultural expertise to programme design and delivery. Holly leads Sojourn Talent's 12-week programme — from curriculum through to 1:1 coaching with participants.​​
​Together, Monika and Holly combine institutional strategy with hands-on talent development — ensuring that Sojourn Talent's approach is both systemically grounded and practically effective for the people it serves.
New York first. Then further.
After more than a year of research and development, Sojourn Talent began working with participants in New York City in early 2026. New York is the perfect place to prove the model. With the world's largest diplomatic community, a deep multilateral presence, and a robust private sector, New York offers both the need and the ecosystem to make this work.
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The goal is a sustainable platform with a proven programme, mission partnerships, and employer integrations — one that can expand to other international hubs as the model scales.
If you're an accompanying partner, a mission, an employer, or a funder who wants to be a part of what we're building — we'd love to hear from you.
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