At a moment when employment-based immigration is shifting by the week, the opening panel of the Immigration Summit at WERC Global 25 set the tone for a day focused on practical strategy. Moderator Kelli Duehning, partner at BAL and co-chair of the WERC Immigration Policy Forum, made that clear from the start: the session would center on what mobility and immigration leaders are doing now to manage uncertainty, protect talent pipelines, and guide their organizations with clarity.
Panelists Devika Bhagwandas, GMS-T, regional global mobility manager for the Americas at H&M; Ray Kirby, SCRP, SGMS-T, director of global mobility at Qualcomm; Cassie Ramos, lead global mobility partner at Biogen; and Denise Rahmani, senior immigration leader at Oracle shared how their programs are adapting, where risks are emerging, and what leadership needs to understand about long-term planning in an unpredictable environment.
Leading Through Uncertainty: Communication and Culture Shape the First Response
Rahmani opened with a reminder that volatility is not new—but the scale and speed of change demand agility.
“It’s remarkable but not surprising where we are right now,” she said. “At Oracle, we’ve learned that as large as our U.S. immigration program is, we’ve learned to be very agile. You have to pivot as things happen in the business and the White House and current administration.”
Her focus, echoed across the panel, was communication. She emphasized that “one of the key cornerstones to ensuring the least disruptive pivot is communication.”
Ramos underscored this theme from an employee-care standpoint. Her advice came with both candor and empathy: “Stop. Breathe. We’re going to get through this.”
She added: “This is an opportunity to dig into our immigration program and make clear what matters to us as an organization. Is it churning people through, or do we really care about our employees?” With half of her population having families, she noted: “Someone needs to have their back, and they need to know that.”
Kirby, meanwhile, described a culture rooted in steadiness rather than alarm.
“We are a company where we don’t want to inflict panic onto employees,” he said. Their deliberate approach is giving mobility teams space to think strategically about long-term hiring patterns, especially as changing fees and adjudication timelines influence business decisions.
Program Adjustments: PERM, L Visas, and the Mechanics of Compliance
A recurring thread was the intense scrutiny now surrounding PERM.
“When I think about the PERM program is compliance,” Kirby said. “A lot of companies in the room have had a lot of discussions about the PERM labor market this year. It creates a lot of additional scrutiny in the program.”
Ramos emphasized the value of transparency early in the process. “Pulling up the transparency about what’s possible with foreign nationals … helps with self-selection,” she said, noting that clarity up front reshapes program strategy and employee expectations.
On L visas, experiences varied. Bhagwandas shared that H&M had not encountered recent consular delays and highlighted the value of hands-on preparation: “One of the things I do a lot of is a lot of briefing sessions with them. As soon as they’re done with the interview, I reach out and ask how everything went.”
Kirby, however, described a very different picture in his organization: “We are [seeing issues]. Primarily with Chinese nationals … this process can take anywhere from six to eight weeks.” These delays have forced his team to revisit remote-work policies and expectation-setting for transferees.
Evolving Program Strategy: Mobility’s Seat at the Table Has Never Been More Important
A major theme was the widening strategic role of mobility in business and talent planning.
Rahmani described Oracle’s dual approach: “Oracle is a little bit ‘you decide and we’ll follow.’ As you decide, here’s what you need to consider. We’re a support program.” The company relies on both top-down alignment and bottom-up case management, which she calls the “Goldilocks approach”—not too big, not too small, but calibrated to what the business needs.
Ramos emphasized that mobility touches every corner of HR, making it essential to work across functions: “Global mobility is one of the functions that touches every other HR function. We’re a bit of a hub.” Her team has recently streamlined job descriptions and created documentation to ensure hiring practices withstand scrutiny and protect talent.
Kirby noted that his team is now more deeply integrated with talent leadership: “We have a seat at the table more than ever before.” He anticipates an increase in L visas and a rethinking of the organization’s “parking” strategies.
Bhagwandas explained how H&M leverages its global footprint to support employees when sponsorship complexity arises. “It’s not about parking anymore; it’s about relocating. Duty of care is paramount at the company.” Her pre-assessment process and senior leadership engagement ensure that sponsorship decisions are strategic and viable.
Educating the C-Suite: Risk, Retention, and the Reality of Immigration Today
Panelists agreed that executive awareness has surged.
Kirby shared that his team created an immigration task force: “We have been in lockstep through all of the changes throughout the past several months about what we will communicate and how.”
Rahmani spoke to the importance—and advantage—of longstanding relationships: “These relationships with our long-standing C-suite groups are well-forged and established. Every F-1 hire is a retention risk, and we’ve been saying that for years.” She also noted the need to stay mentally flexible: “It’s important in these times of change that we’re willing to unlearn.”
Ramos added that her leadership wants direct visibility into risk: “Risk is what we want to communicate the most, and that’s what senior leadership wants to hear about. How does this impact our business continuity?”
Planning for the Future: Legislative Awareness, Hesitant Talent, and the Need to ‘Buckle Up’
As the discussion turned to the years ahead, uncertainty remained the constant.
Ramos pointed to the growing role of government affairs: “We need to lean a lot more into the legislative policies. This is going to harm us.” Collaboration across HR and policy functions, she said, is essential for future workforce planning.
Kirby predicted behavioral shifts among employees: “There will be a hesitancy in the future for the talent to change companies. Internal talent will be hesitant to change job families and locations due to the long-term potential risks to their immigration challenges.”
Rahmani summarized the mindset needed for what comes next: “Buckle up, buttercup. Anything is possible.” Her guiding principle: rely on data, communicate clearly, and simplify what leadership needs to know.
Maintaining Agility: The Three Essentials
To close the session, panelists offered their keys to staying nimble in a volatile landscape.
Kirby listed three priorities: “Keeping your finger on the pulse of what’s happening in the industry,” “having clean data,” and “availability for yourself to support your employees.”
Bhagwandas noted the importance of staying informed without becoming overwhelmed, while Ramos returned to a core tenet: “Understanding your company’s culture.”
The opening panel of the Immigration Summit made it clear that programs can no longer assume stability in employment-based immigration. Agility, transparency, cross-functional alignment, and ongoing communication—with employees, leadership, and external partners—define the new operating model. As Rahmani put it, immigration leaders must be prepared to pivot quickly, unlearn old assumptions, and guide their organizations with clarity as change accelerates.