6 Essential Rules For Successful Employee Relocation

At some point, the situation may call for you to move some of your resources to a different business location. For instance, you might relocate them to open a new branch, develop their career, or fill a vacant position.

Employee relocation can be a laborious and demanding process, both for you and your worker. They’ll be moving to new environments, and this transition can be difficult, especially for those who have families.

For this reason, you must establish a company relocation policy to ensure a successful move from one location to another, especially if your business has multiple sites.

Offering your staff relocation assistance paints a positive picture for your business. As a result, you can hire new personnel and give your current ones reason to continue working for you. Ultimately, this leads to more production and business development in the big picture. (1)

So to help your staff relocate to and acclimate to their new location, here are six essential rules you must include in your employee relocation policy:

1. Openness

You have to give your workers a detailed explanation of the job description in the new location. Because of this, they get a clear perspective of what to expect after the move.

You may consider informing them about their responsibilities in this new site and the benefits they should expect. Alternatively, you can give them a clear explanation of both the upsides and downsides of the new role.

Additionally, inform them of the move early enough. One to two months before the planned move should be enough. This openness allows them to mentally and physically prepare to relocate.

As a result of this openness, your staff will be ready for the new job when they reach their destination and easily blend in their new job environment.

2. Household goods moving

Relocating is an expensive process. On average, one spends approximately USD$1,400 when making a local movement or USD$2,200 to USD$5,700 for hiring a moving company. (2)

On this account, you could help your team cover the moving expenses by offering them a relocation package. You can also guide them to find a reliable moving company to handle the process. Before choosing a company, you’ll need to consider the following:

• The distance of transportation: Inquire if the company offers both local and long-distance moving services.

• Packing services: These are necessary if your staff has many household items.

• Storage-in-transit (SIT) services: This is a vital service since some of your worker’s items will be temporarily stored before delivery to the final destination.  

• Costs: Go for a company that charges affordable rates.

Getting on top of the little details helps you choose a company that’ll deliver the services your team needs. This will make the relocation a seamless process.

3. Employee Relocation Incentives

Relocation incentives are additional payments of up to 25 percent of the basic pay a member of your team receives, especially if the conditions surrounding the positions they are going to fill are difficult. (3)

With such cost benefits, your worker finds it easy to cater to their needs, which include the following:

• Mortgage payments for the new house, whether they are buying or renting a house. 

• Temporary accommodation before they settle in a new home—for instance, if they will stay in a hotel.

• Tenancy management bills once they settle in a new apartment.

• Other personal essentials.

These are essential incentives so your team will be comfortable knowing that they can meet their financial needs in the new location. As a result, they can focus more at work and increase their productivity.

4. Orientation programs

You can sponsor orientation seminars to help your staff acclimate to their new neighborhoods or environments. There is no hard-and-fast rule with these seminars, but you must include the following items on your agenda:

• Area tours and house hunting

• Language and cultural training (if they are moving internationally)

Additionally, orientation is necessary to enhance your staff’s work productivity. You must encourage them to undergo a similar program in the new workplace. This will benefit them in the following ways:

• They’ll get accurate information about their duties.

• They’ll be more confident and comfortable and adapt faster to the job.

• They can easily communicate with the site supervisor.

• They’ll be more effective and productive. (4)

Orientation is a crucial tool for the performance of your staff when they move to a new location. Without informing or orienting your team ahead of the intended move, this can affect their productivity and quality of life.

5. Corporate relocation services

You may find it hard to meet your staff’s relocating needs. This can lead to your employee having a rough transition, ultimately affecting their productivity at work. On this account, you may want to outsource professional relocating services.

You can get professional services to help your employee in their transition to their new workplace at affordable rates. They’ll provide your employee with the necessary information:

• The legal requirements of the new location, such as cost of living adjustments (COLA)   regulations and calculations

• Immigration and tax calculation and coordination

• Global compensation management

They may also help sell your staff’s current home and help them purchase a new one in the new location. Thus, relocating service providers ensure that they provide your staff with extensive assistance for their new location. This makes moving easy and successful. 

6. Leniency

Relocating can be emotionally difficult for your staff as they leave familiar environments to foreign ones. For this reason, you mustn’t rush them in the process. You should remember that they are still adjusting to the new environment and will need some time to settle fully.

Give them this time and be lenient with them if they underperform initially. A week or two should be enough for them to adapt to the environment and get back to the swing of things.

Conclusion

Employee relocation is a difficult process, both for the employee and even for you in management. As you want your team to maintain productivity in their new job site, you should provide them with means that’ll ensure a smooth transition.

At the start of the move, be open and outline their duties and conditions of the new location clearly. You can also provide assistance in moving their possessions, offer them relocation incentives, sponsor and encourage them to undergo orientation programs in the new neighborhood, outsource corporate relocation services, and give them time to settle in before expecting them to return to their normal productivity levels.

By following this short guide, you are one step closer to successful employee relocation. In the long run, this will be productive for your company.

References

1. “Relocation: Relocation Policy And Procedures”, Source: https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/tools-and-samples/policies/pages/cms_015267.aspx 
2. “How Much Do Movers Cost?”, Source: https://www.forbes.com/advisor/home-improvement/movers-and-packers-cost/. 
3. “FAQ: Relocation Expenses – Department Of Energy”, Source: https://www.energy.gov/sites/prod/files/ReloExpensesQandAs.pdf 
4. “Why Is Orientation Important?”, Source: https://hr.oregonstate.edu/employees/administrators-supervisors/onboarding-process/why-orientation-important