What is a group move?
The definition of a group move is when 10 or more employees are being transferred from the same area and to the same area, at the same time, for the same business reason. Group moves are critical to the performance of the company and are of high strategic value in meeting the objectives of the business plan. If the group move is being driven by either a merger or an acquisition, the pressures only become greater as the already charged environment that a group move can create is compounded with the added factors of merging two different cultures. This reality, combined with the inherent risks that a merger or acquisition almost always adds, results in higher stakes and more pressure on corporate relocation program managers to make sure that the right group move process be in place.
Why do group moves fail?
In a series of internal reviews with subject matter experts who have had extensive experience in assisting our clients in planning and managing a wide range of corporate group moves, a number of reasons repeatedly rose to the top as to why a group move may fail:
- Announcing the move without adequate preparation or involvement
- Not having clearly defined objectives
- Lack of time and/or poor planning
- Losing control of the relocating transferees
- Not understanding the unique needs and dynamics of the group
- Not bringing outside resources in early enough
- Political pressure to use non-qualified suppliers
- Lack of senior management endorsement and involvement
How do you avoid the pitfalls? This topic will be covered in our next post. For more information about this subject or to view the complete white paper, visit our resource library.
