By: Sam Hoey | CRP, GMS

January 2, 2018

Employee relocation or workforce mobility refers to the processes or relocation services involved in the transfer of employees or potential employees from one location to another. Additional terms that refer to these processes may include:

Some of these terms may be used interchangeably. However, the terms global relocation and North America relocation may differ in the range of services commonly required for relocating an employee. Reference to global relocation is usually as an umbrella term, and includes North America relocation processes. Reference to North America relocation usually excludes processes commonly needed for international employee relocation such as visa acquisition, repatriation, and language training.

Generally, a company’s management of workforce mobility accounts for ongoing employee support services, supplier management, candidate selection, relocation benefits, and expense management. Corporate relocation programs vary between companies due to size, need, or destination.

The overall process of employee relocation is usually divided into one of four service brackets including:

Pre-Decision Services:

According to Worldwide ERC data, the average cost to relocate an executive level home-owning employee is approximately $97,000. For this reason, companies seek assurances that an employee is a good fit for relocation. Pre-decision services aim to uncover any potential issues that may arise prior to the employee’s relocation. As a result, these services reduce the risk of a failed relocation. Some of the most common reasons for failed relocations according to Worldwide ERC include:

  • Negative home equity
  • Slow real estate housing market
  • Family resistance to move
  • Spousal employment
  • High costs of housing

Examples of a few common pre-decision services include:

Candidate Assessment – Services that assess candidate expectation, skills, personal qualities, family circumstance, and financial preparedness.

Cost of Living Analysis – Cost of living comparison of origin and destination cities to help determine acceptable or competitive salary range.

Market Analysis – Determines the likely home sale timeline and identifies potential home sale challenges such as negative equity.

School Reports – Public and Private School reports provided to the relocating employee to aid community selection.

Moving Cost Estimates – Cost estimates on household goods transportation, helps budget for relocation costs.

Community Search and Tours – Coordinates community orientation tours to familiarize relocating employees to their new location, and assist in selecting an area that fits their particular interests.

Origin Services for Employee Relocation

Origin services account for all services necessary at the transferring employee’s origin location. Some of these services include:

Expense Management – Establishment of expense reporting and management services for both the company and employee. Also, this is designed to track and contain costs during the relocation process. Utilized throughout the entire relocation process*

Home Sale Assistance – May include connecting employees with real estate agents, home marketing assistance, and home buying programs.

Household Goods Management – Management of household goods transport from origin to destination. May include procurement of van line services, replacement insurance, and guaranteed “not to exceed” estimates for goods transportation.

Visa and Immigration Services – For international relocations, visa and immigration services organize company and employee documents required for visa acquisition.

Property Management – For employees not selling their home. May include rental marketing assistance, tenant management, vacant property management, landlord consulting, and property maintenance.

Destination Services for Employee Relocation

Destination services account for all services necessary at the transferring employee’s destination location. The range of destination services sometimes includes a further segmentation of “settling in services.” These services are aimed at helping the employee and their family acclimate to their new location. Some of these services may include:

Home Finding Services – Services include connecting employees with real estate agents at destination, home buying assistance, corporate housing, temporary housing, rental assistance, and home finding tours.

Settling in Services – Services that aid employee acclimation to their new location including access to online resources, attaining local driver’s license, child care, connecting utilities, and locating a primary care physician.

Vehicle Lease or Purchase – Services that assist relocating employees acquire a vehicle including loan support, and lease negotiation.

Family Assistance – Services that assist the relocating employee’s family, including spousal employment support, counseling services, and stress management assistance.

Return or Repatriation Services

In most cases, employee relocation services for individuals returning from temporary North America assignments are equivalent to services provided at departure. While there are some short term North America relocation programs among companies, the majority of return services handle an employee’s return from international assignment. International assignments are usually classified into one of four categories:

  1. Extended Business Travel (EBT): an assignment of 3 months or less.
  2. Short Term: An assignment lasting 6 months to a year (range may go up to 2 years).
  3. Long Term: An assignment lasting 2-3 years.
  4. Permanent: An assignment lasting 3 years or more.

For EBT, short term, and long term assignments, repatriation plans have become an industry recognized necessity for effective employee retention. According to Atlas surveys, around 40% of expatriate employees leave their sponsoring company after assignment. Repatriation services seek to close this gap. They also help organizations maximize their workforce investment. As a result, they retain employees that have acquired substantial knowledge capital. Repatriation is a dynamic service area that has wide variation. For example, repatriation counseling helps employees returning from international assignment manage cultural differences, and re-acclimate to North America life. Additional services may include:

  • Lease termination assistance
  • Home services termination (includes utilities)
  • Tax equalization

Workforce mobility seeks to analyze, manage, execute and optimize the processes involved in transferring an employee from one location to another. For more detailed descriptions of relocation services, please visit the following pages:

Global Relocation
North America Relocation

Conclusion

The corporate relocation experts at Global Mobility Solutions (GMS) have the knowledge and expertise to help your company remain competitive, reduce costs, and offer your employees the best relocation experience.

GMS was the first relocation company to register as a .com. The company also created the first online interactive tools and calculators, and revolutionized the entire relocation industry. GMS continues to set the industry pace as the pioneer in innovation and technology solutions with its proprietary MyRelocation® technology platform.

Global Mobility Solutions is proud to be named and ranked #1 Overall, and #1 in Quality of Service by HRO Today’s 2019 Baker’s Dozen Customer Satisfaction Survey.

Contact our team of experts to discuss how we can help improve your company’s corporate relocation program, or call us at 800.617.1904 or 480.922.0700 today.

Request your complimentary relocation policy review

Senior Vice President, Global Account Management Sam joined Global Mobility Solutions in 1996 and has a unique perspective with her 25 years of industry experience. Samantha offers her clients relocation expertise and a commitment to excellence in her. Her proficiency in orchestrating the BVO and GPO Programs, as well as relocation policy design and implementation, are invaluable assets to the accounts she manages. Her experience in administering Pre-Decision Relocation services to enhance the recruiting process further demonstrates her unique abilities to service her clients. Samantha’s diverse experience, leadership, and outstanding communication skills enable her to manage the relocation process for her clients with finesse and polished professionalism.

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