Relocation Management

Some companies have very sophisticated well-thought-through global mobility programs that have been tried and tested for many years. Others are stepping into the global arena for the first time. Either way it doesn’t hurt to check the health of your global mobility program and consider what I would believe to be the 10 best practices to ensure your global relocation program is a successful one.

10 Best Practices to Ensure a Successful Global Relocation

1. Policy
   1. Make sure you have a formal global policy in place that has been reviewed by your global relocation provider for competitiveness and efficiency and bench-marked against industry standards.Candidate Selection 
2. Candidate Selection
   1. Utilize pre-decision surveys or interviews to ensure that your candidate is flexible, adaptable and ready to take on the challenge of an international assignment.
3. Benchmark
   1. Keep up-to-date as situations change, trends develop, and new products come to market.
4. Cost Estimates
   1. In today’s economic environment it’s prudent to have a cost estimate completed before sending someone on an assignment so you have an idea how much it is going to cost.
5. Cost Analysis
   1. Know what you’re spending and what policy changes or exceptions are costing or saving money. There are many examples of companies focusing on elements that are inexpensive and denying them, while allowing exceptions for other elements that are very expensive.
6. Track Exceptions
   1. Be sure to always track any policy exception that was made or declined and the cost of that exception. This will help you be consistent in how you treat other exception requests in the future.
7. Use Proven Providers
   1. Proven providers can give you good advice on all elements of a global relocation and can make the process easier for you.
8. Don’t Cut Corners to Reduce Costs
   1. There is usually a good reason to do something well.
9. Create a Repatriation and Reintegration Plan Well Before the Assignment Ends!
   1. If you don’t, you may risk losing a valuable employee. Statistics show that up to 70 percent of repatriated assignees leave their employer within two years, usually to join a competitor.

For more information on the above global mobility program components and services, please contact SIRVA Relocation for a consultation.

 

Before you announce that a corporate group move (or relocation) is taking place, it is important to be prepared. A part of that will be identifying the resources you will need. Consider all the internal departments that need to be involved or will be impacted by the move. Evaluate if you need to bring in outside resources to assist you in managing the move.

Too often people underestimate the complexity of a group move and the critical need to have the time to properly prepare for the move prior to it being announced. For those employees who are moving, as well as those employees who are not going to move, you or someone on the team need to have the answers to a number of critical questions such as:

Questions that need to be answered for employees who are moving:

• What organizational units and types of jobs will be involved?
• How many jobs will be moved? From where? To where?
• Has selection criteria been established? Will the criteria be publicized?
• How will transferees be selected and invited? What will be the administrative process for job offer and acceptance?
• Will transferees’ departure-area jobs be re-filled? If so, how?
• How many job openings in the new facility will be filled locally?
• Will there be new-hires to be relocated?
• Will group move relocation benefits expire at a certain point in time?

Questions that need to be answered for employees who are not moving:

• Why wasn’t I asked to move?
• Will I be offered a new job?
• Do I need to apply for it?
• When will my current job end?
• Will there be a stay or retention bonus?
• Is there a severance package?
• If a job opens up at the new location, can I apply for it?
• Can I apply for a job at another location?

Accurate and timely accounting of relocation expenses has a far-reaching impact on the overall performance and success of a corporate relocation program, to both the company and the individual transferee. An expense management process should support users without being burdensome, so they can concentrate on the other aspects of their jobs. Corporate relocation managers and/ or payroll managers should consider several key issues when evaluating the effectiveness of the expense management process in their companies.

Once a company has reviewed its current process and determined that improvements are needed, the next step is to decide how to make enhancements. In today’s business environment there are not many functions within an organization that are not a target for outsourcing, including expense management. And for a relocation manager, the decision to outsource this particular function will come with new questions that need to be addressed.

Questions to determine outsourcing readiness:

Is there an overall culture of familiarity with outsourcing transactional functions (e.g. benefits processing) that already exists within the company?

If the company has previously outsourced other functions, then formulating a plan to outsource the management of relocation expenses can be evaluated not only on its own merit, but can also rely on precedent and draw on successful processes that have been followed in the past. If this is not the case, then a transition project plan needs to be developed and approved.

Is this a core competency that the company has or wishes to retain?

Expense management is a very detailed process that requires an in-depth knowledge of the ever-changing tax laws and regulations at the federal and state levels. Part of the evaluation process is to assess the current depth of knowledge of the team and determine if it is adequate and can be sustained if team members change. In the end, the evaluation process may lead to questioning whether or not this is a function that should remain in-house.

To learn more about determining outsourcing readiness click here
 

Here at SIRVA our clients are increasingly asking how the continuous economic turmoil impacts their company insofar as their relocation program is concerned. Specifically, they want to know how their company can continue to effectively and efficiently hire new employees and relocate existing employees during these difficult times.

So what should companies do in such challenging times insofar as relocation is concerned? In addition to learning how to better leverage relocation policies currently in place, this is the optimal time for companies to look at some of the innovative and time-tested relocation program provisions that are proving highly effective at protecting both your company and your employees. Here are some suggestions:

Best Practices for Home Sale: Making sure your relocation program includes four (4) critical home sale provisions—regardless of what type of home sale program you have—and how to effectively enforce expectations.

Loss On Sale and Negative Equity: An inside look at the innovative new options for the company and the transferee in these two complicated, yet frequently encountered, situations.

Pre-Decision Analysis: Before the formal relocation process is started, companies need to assess whether candidates are able to actually complete the relocation in today’s economic climate.

Read the complete article now

According to the Trippel Survey&Research LLC Seventh Annual Relocation Managers Survey: Relocation Management Company Industry©, SIRVA Relocation ranked second in overall performance and satisfaction among the industry’s top six largest relocation companies. The company achieved the highest scores among the six largest relocation providers in eight of the 24 areas surveyed, and it also placed as one of the top three providers in 22 out of 24 areas surveyed among the largest relocation providers. SIRVA Relocation LLC is a subsidiary of SIRVA Inc., a leading global relocation services provider.

“These results are a direct reflection of our steadfast commitment to providing our customers with unparalleled service and value every day,” said SIRVA Inc. CEO Wes Lucas. “Our goal is to be the most trusted and sought-after relocation services provider in the industry based on the work we do and solutions we offer. I am elated to see that customers are recognizing the value we bring to the table.”

Trippel Survey&Research conducted this survey—which launched September 12 and concluded October 1—with the goal of obtaining evaluations from corporate relocation managers regarding levels of satisfaction with firms in the relocation industry. More than 300 survey evaluations—representing 298 different relocation management companies—were received. The six largest relocation management companies in the survey accounted for nearly 75 percent of all evaluations returned.

Categories in which SIRVA Relocation achieved the top score included: Responsiveness and flexibility to your needs; Service recovery; Year-end tax reporting; Management reporting; Identifying trends and responding to them; Suggesting policy recommendations; Suggesting ways to reduce your costs; and Taking actions that control or lower direct real estate costs.

Accurate and timely accounting of relocation expenses has a far-reaching impact on the overall performance and success of a corporate relocation program, to both the company and the individual transferee.

The company benefits in several ways when a “best in class” expense management process exists, including:

If you have a group move to manage and are seeking assistance, SIRVA Relocation is able to provide the following services:

Defining Objectives
SIRVA works closely with your Company’s management team to define the overall objectives of the move and ensure their implementation during the move process. As a part of our consultation, we will discuss the Company’s business and human resources goals and objectives, policy issues, the group move timeline, and factors to consider in the cost analysis and process development.

Relocation Cost Analysis
We provide expertise in analyzing the total cost of a group move by detailing the cost impact of policy decisions and local market conditions on both the Company and the employee.

Policy Design
SIRVA can incorporate your business objectives into an appropriate group move policy. A key component of policy design is the solicitation, review and analysis of your employees’ input via the employee survey that we will design to meet the needs of your employee population and the constraints your management has placed on the process. This information, along with policy and benefit guidelines, will result in a Group Move Policy Handbook detailing the corporate relocation program for your employees.

Employee Presentations
We have the depth of experience to assist the Company in securing the employee’s enthusiastic commitment to the move through a carefully planned and professionally presented program for the entire family. This program includes a complete overview of the new destination city and state, plus the ability for employees to ask questions and address concerns about the move. In short, we bring the experts in each resource area to the transferee.

Relocation Resource Center
SIRVA can prepare an on-site, on-going “Relocation Resource Center” for employees and their families, which provides information about the destination city’s schools, housing options, medical facilities, etc.

Information Kit
Each employee will receive a complete package of information about the destination city including, if appropriate, a video about the city. Employees will be assigned a personal relocation counselor who is available to answer questions, research any specific needs they or their family members may have, and arrange for individual home finding trips to the new city (if included in the plan).

Area Tours
SIRVA can organize area tours guaranteed to satisfy your employees’ questions about their new city.

Other services include:
• Home Marketing Assistance
• Home Purchase Assistance
• Home Finding Assistance
• Temporary Housing Assistance
• Spouse Job-Finding Assistance
• Employee Expense Tracking Administration and Tax Calculation Capabilities
• Mortgage Assistance
• Vendor Selection and Management
• Training Material and Programs

• Efficient use of staff
• Sophisticated processes that track corporate “spend” from initiation to payroll reporting to the “true-up” of expenses (as a result of the tax gross up methodology used)
• Consistent policy interpretation
• Objective and accurate expense reimbursement audits
• Reduction of exceptions requested
• Consistent tracking of exception approvals
• Convenient, accurate, single-source management reports
• Efficient reimbursement via payroll or check processing
• Reduced risk of penalties from IRS tax audits
• Accurate gross-ups, payroll reporting and year-end tax true-up

• Timely reimbursement of expense reports, normally within four days
• Information typically available online with easy access to policy, FAQs, and electronic expense reporting
• Convenience and speed in answering questions
• Year-end summary report including all expenses paid to or on their behalf
• Year-end reconciliation of relocation expenses, including an itemization of what is and what is not taxable and the tax gross up where applicable

Here are a few things to remember when instituting a cross-cultural awareness program into your corporate relocation program. For a full account of information regarding this service visit our resource library.

Don't forget the family
Just as spouses should be involved in the assignment selection process, they should be involved in training for global assignments. Some experts estimate that nearly 80 percent of all failed global (international) assignments can be linked to the spouse's inability to adjust to the new environment. Each member of the family faces special issues in the expatriate environment that should be addressed.

Other cultural resources
Organizations should consider utilizing their returning expatriates for help with cultural awareness initiatives. Employees who have already completed similar assignments can act as subject matter experts (SMEs) to help new expatriates learn business customs and how to navigate foreign business circles. SMEs can also prove invaluable in helping new expatriates learn the hierarchy in companies with which they will be dealing. It's important to note, however, that companies should not rely solely on employees to provide guidance to new expatriates. Relying exclusively on veteran expatriates can be problematic if the guidance reinforces cultural stereotypes or results in the new expatriate adopting the predecessor's bad habits. While other international assignees have a role to play in helping newcomers adjust, they should not replace professional consultants/trainers.

Alternative views
Although cross-cultural awareness is important, some might argue that its importance is just a hyped up myth. In actuality, on average only 30 percent of American managers sent on international assignment lasting from one to five years receive any cross-cultural training. It can be argued that managing is simply "managing," so where it is done is irrelevant. Another point of view is that any type of short-term cultural training would be ineffective because people can't learn to work and live in a foreign culture after only a few days (or even a few weeks) of training. Others argue that an understanding of a country's culture is something people assimilate over many years based on personal experiences in that specific culture. Others will say that corporate culture takes precedence over country culture. For example, a local employee working for a "bullish" American firm in Thailand might show traits of aggressiveness and conflict, which are not traits normally associated with the Thai culture. These traits, however, may be common in the corporate company culture of the employee's organization, causing the Thai employee to act outside his or her normal cultural dimensions.

Nevertheless, in order to be successful, an expatriate must be comfortable with his or her staff, colleagues, clients and business atmosphere--regardless of location. Cultural specialists also agree that to be successful in dealing with people from other cultures, expatriates need knowledge about the cultural differences (and the similarities) among work locations. The global employee of today's business world can only benefit from gaining cultural awareness, either through direct training or personal experience, which would lead to greater professional effectiveness and company performance. Read more

If you would like more information about cross-cultural education and how it can be added to your international relocation package/program, please contact our corporate relocation consulting team.

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.

Imagine that you are just leaving a meeting where you were told that your employer has decided to relocate a group of people from one location to another. The CEO told you that you are expected to manage the move. He/she stresses to you that the success of this group move is critical to the future of the company and everyone is counting on you to, "make it happen." Any number of business scenarios could lead to this decision.

Even though this may be your first experience in managing a group move, you may have heard stories about the stress group moves can bring to an organization and the people who are working on the relocation. You may recall hearing how a group move does not always turn out as planned, and that a lot can change between the time the plan is initiated and the last employee is in place at the new location.

Whatever you do, you need to be prepared for the responsibility of:

• Business disruption
• Talent loss
• Low employee morale
• Cost overruns
• Having your plan for the move challenged by others

You may not be able to eliminate all of the issues, but if you can bring an effective plan to the project and assemble the right team to execute the plan, the odds that the move will be a success and that you will survive the group move will be greatly  improved. The intent of our "How to Effectively Plan for a Group Move" white paper is to provide you with a proven approach to effective group move management.

 View white paper

If you would like more information about corporate relocation services including group move management consulting, contact us.

Accurate and timely accounting of relocation expenses has a far-reaching impact on the overall performance and success of a corporate relocation program, to both the company and the individual transferee. With relocation costs per employee homeowner topping $70,000 in recent years (according to averages reported by Worldwide ERC), effective management of expenses can easily exceed several million dollars annually for a company. Because all relocation services funnel through the expense management function, to be appropriately recorded and paid, this function is a significant responsibility for those managing the relocation program. As a result, corporate relocation managers and/or payroll managers should consider several key issues when evaluating the effectiveness of the expense management process in their companies...read more.

This March SIRVA University, SIRVA Relocation’s annual conference exploring corporate relocation industry trends and professional development, played host to 150 of the nation’s top relocation industry executives. The event, which was held at the Westin Kierland Resort in Scottsdale, Ariz., provided an exclusive forum for industry insiders to discuss vital, ongoing and emerging industry issues with experts
and colleagues.

Attendees included representatives from human resources, domestic and global relocation, procurement and supply chain departments from more than 75
different companies.

”Our industry is facing a lot of challenges, and SIRVA University provides an opportunity for human resource and relocation professionals/specialists to gather and discuss best practices and practical solutions,” noted Mike McMahon, president, SIRVA Relocation.

This year, conference roundtables and educational sessions covered topics ranging from tips for promoting relocation programs within an organization, home loss-on-sale assistance to relocation trends in China. Additional sessions addressed relocation fundamentals, such as policy trends and best practices, and provided a comprehensive history of the industry—on both a domestic and global scale.

“The educational roundtables in particular were an opportune time for attendees to interact directly with SIRVA executives and fellow relocation professionals,”
said McMahon. “And the keynote speakers were incredibly well received by all.”

SIRVA University Presentations Available Online

Those who were unable to attend this year’s event can download SIRVA University presentations and event images at www.sirvauniversity.com/agenda.asp. Individuals can also download audio recordings of the various sessions to hear them as they were presented, including question-and-answer sessions. Individuals seeking more information on SIRVA University 2008 can e-mail sirvau@sirva.com. If you'd like more information about SIRVA or corporate relocation consulting visit: www.sirva.com.

This March SIRVA University, SIRVA Relocation’s annual conference exploring corporate relocation industry trends and professional development, played host to 150 of the nation’s top relocation industry executives. The event, which was held at the Westin Kierland Resort in Scottsdale, Ariz., provided an exclusive forum for industry insiders to discuss vital, ongoing and emerging relocation industry issues with experts and colleagues.

Attendees included representatives from human resources, domestic relocation, global mobility, and procurement and supply chain departments from more than 75 different companies.

This year, conference roundtables and educational sessions covered topics ranging from promoting corporate relocation programs, home loss-on-sale assistance, developing employee relocation packages for global mobility and relocation trends in China. Additional sessions addressed relocation fundamentals, such as policy trends and best practices, and provided a comprehensive history of the industry—on both a domestic and global scale.

SIRVA University Presentations Available Online

Those who were unable to attend this year’s event can download SIRVA University presentations and event images at www.sirvauniversity.com/agenda.asp. Individuals can also download audio recordings of the various sessions to hear them as they were presented, including question-and-answer sessions. Individuals seeking more information on SIRVA University 2008 can e-mail sirvau@sirva.com.