Relocation Policy - Key Factor In The Success Of A Company's Relocation Program

According to Worldwide ERC, US companies alone spend $12.2 billion each year on corporate relocations. Companies that relocate or plan to relocate a large number of employees may find that putting in place a relocation policy is essential.

Each company's relocation policy can be different as it is tailored to suit the needs of the firm and their employees. This written policy serves as a foundation for each aspect of the relocation as it outlines the protocol to be used, the benefits offered, the different relocation packages provided, the partners used to assist and the people to contact at each step.

Relocating employees can cost upwards of $25,000 per employee and this cost can increase dramatically depending on the employee's position, family size etc. Despite this cost, it can sometimes be more cost effective to relocate existing employees rather than recruiting, interviewing, hiring and training a new employee.

In the case of relocating existing employees instead of new hires, businesses can continue operating as usual as the employees do not need training in order to start working efficiently. However, the transition to a new location can still be stressful for transferees and can therefore affect their productivity. In order to ensure that productivity levels stay high, having a good relocation policy that addresses all of the transferees needs inside as well as outside of the workplace is key.

Upcoming relocations can be daunting for employees; they therefore have many questions they require answers to regarding their move. Human Resources teams are often the ones these questions are directed at; a clearly set relocation policy therefore saves the HR department time, as it informs employees of what to expect during their relocation and reduces the need to answer so many questions.

Developing a relocation policy is therefore key to making corporate expansion run more smoothly, however the goals and benefits of the policy need to be fully defined before its implementation.