Top 5 considerations when writing the best relocation policy for your business

A relocation policy is not something that should be rushed or taken too lightly. While it may look like little more than some paper for an employer, for your employee, this policy will determine the future of their career. If you are writing your relocation policy or expecting to do so in the future, here are 5 things you will need to take into consideration during the process:

Make the Move Worth It

Relocating isn’t something that your employees should just have to tolerate for the sake of their job; it should be an exciting opportunity that will propel their career. When offering benefits packages, consider how your package compares to those that your competitors and neighbour businesses might be offering. When your candidates consider the move and get the opinion of their friends and family, your benefits package is going to be the highlight of the conversation, so make it stand out and give your employees a lot to look forward to.

Flexibility

One size does not fit all and most successful relocation policies will understand that you cannot pay all of your employees the same amount to relocate. Similarly your policy should not be promising the same amount to employees moving 100 miles as employees moving over 1000 miles. You need to incorporate a level of flexibility into your relocation policy that will allow you to tailor the amount that you pay your employees according to their place in the company, the distance they are being asked to travel, and the general cost of their relocation.

Family

If you’re planning a drastic relocation, your policy should take into consideration the families and spouses of your employees. Many employee relocations fall through because partners disapprove of the move, so you should address these concerns personally. Keep communication open between yourself and your employees and make sure that their loved ones are involved in these conversations so they may tell you directly what it is about the relocation that they are unhappy about. You can do this by first encouraging your employees to discuss the matter with their partners as soon as possible – preferably as soon as the decision is announced. After all partners have been made aware, you can begin enquiring about their opinions and should there be anyone that isn’t supportive or has some grievances, a good solution would be to arrange a conference call between yourself, your employee and their partner. This way you can personally respond to any of their questions and give them more information about your plans.

Employment opportunities for family

One common concern of spouses and domestic partners that might prevent them of approving of a relocation is the prospect of having to leave their current place of employment in order to follow their significant others. If you have not found a location that has enough employment opportunities for the partners of your employees, then you will potentially be asking them to abandon their careers. In order to avoid this issue, it is recommend that you offer at least some level of assistance to get them back into employment at your new location. You can offer free reviews of their resume or refer to an agency to help them find a new job. By doing this you secure the happiness of your employees’ partners and avoid putting your employees in any distressful situations by having their household income cut in half.

In-house or outsourced

Choosing between arranging the relocation yourself or employing a global mobility service company is something that you will need to think about carefully as the circumstances of your move can decide which option is the most beneficial. If you are a small company, it may be more cost effective to make the arrangements yourself, however the process can be particularly tie consuming, and you will need to thoroughly research all of your options. On the other hand, a larger company with a fair few employees relocating will likely benefit from outsourcing the work to a global mobility services company like Santa Fe. This is because at Santa Fe, we have an extensive range of corporate relocation services for businesses to save them time and can easily take care of everything.

If you are organising your relocation policy and are in need of guidance, consider referring to us. Our aim is to help you and your employees make the most of your relocation.