The ‘Soft’ Side of Relocation Policy
As well as changing jobs, relocation changes lives. The outcome of a successful relocation will depend to a large extent on the ‘soft issues’ that affect a transferee. It is vital for a relocation policy to address these soft issues involved in a transferee’s decision making process.
According to the 2007 Employee Relocation Council Family Issues Research Report, couples that have dual careers are increasing, 58% of transferees have dependent children and the reluctance to relocate is due to employee/family resistance to move 67% of the time. Most concerns the employee experiences are personal, and the majority of employees will not be willing to share such information with the human resources department or new employer.
Additionally, the cultural complications surrounding a possible global assignment, with all the inherent challenges, and the potential stress can be overwhelming. In order to minimize stress and maximize the speed in which the employee becomes productive in the new location, it is important to engage with the employee. Ways to do this include:
- Communicate and initiate discussions with your employees as soon as possible, once the decision has been made, with transparency and sensitivity.
- Offer a pre-move visit for the employee and their family to see the new location and to meet the people who work there and to see the surrounding area.
- Allow your relocation provider to partner with relocation-trained real estate agents to assist in familiarizing the employee to the area and current real estate market.
- Provide assistance in relevant areas such as education provision, elder care, pets.
- Recognize the needs young children, teenagers and elder relatives.
- Be aware of the importance of the timing of a relocation and if there are short-term reasons for an employee not to relocate, such as a critical time in children’s education.
- Provide career counseling and help with job searches in the new location for the employee’s partner/spouse.
During a time of cost cutting, investing in a smoother transition for the employee and their family may yield benefits such as higher productivity, employee retention and reduction of risk of relocation failure. Even the most generous package financially does not guarantee a successful relocation.
Truly progressive organizations understand that family concerns impact the success of a domestic relocation or global assignment. And those are the companies that will succeed in today’s competitive environment.
Posted on 08/21/2009 in Relocation Policy | Comments (0)
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