RELOCATING YOUR RELOCATION PROGRAM
Your Guide to a Successful Implementation
Moving is Never Easy There is a reason relocation management companies exist and the reason is when people move, they need help. When you relocate your employees, you want to help them through the transition to the new location. You want to offer them guidance and tools to make it easier on them to be successful. So, by that same token, when you consider moving your entire relocation program to a new provider, you should expect the same support. Altair Global understands all the facets of relocation, and we’re here to guide all our new clients through relocating, not only their employees, but their whole program. Through the years, we’ve worked with companies large and small to help them make the move from their current supplier to Altair Global. During that time, we’ve learned a thing or two about what makes a transition seamless to relocating talent and successful on behalf of the mobility team and corporation. Keep reading to find out some simple ways to ensure a worry-free implementation process.
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Preparation is Paramount
While you prepare for your bid process, think through the realities of what it will mean to relocate your program, policies, processes and procedures. It is a big undertaking. But companies should never let the pain of change make them stay with a relocation service provider that isn’t the right fit anymore. Given the right guidance and assistance, any size program can be transitioned. Here are some major areas to consider:
Policies
If you haven’t done a policy update recently, now is a good time to take a look at your benefit offerings. Often times, your new relocation partner will offer a policy review as a part of the implementation. While some companies may think implementation is the ideal time to conduct a full program overhaul, Altair recommends holding off on making significant program changes during implementation. Pursuing significant program changes can result in implementation delays, and distract key stakeholders from focusing on key implementation tasks and milestones. Finally, program changes, especially those involving taking certain benefits away, could be viewed in a negative light. This could result in an unfavorable perception of the new service provider, thus impeding the new service provider’s ability to successfully assume management of your program. When you go into implementation, you should be prepared to work through each policy to:
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Revise or retire outdated policies Develop and formalize new policies
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Update language and branding (including an eye for using diverse and inclusive language) Identify potential future policy and program changes 3
Scheduling
As you plan your entire project schedule, remember that timelines can be deceiving and even if you think you are giving yourself enough time, you probably aren’t. Most companies try to accomplish the implementation in 90-days; however, the timeline really all depends on your specific program and how embedded your current supplier is in your process. In our experience, some larger programs can take significant time to uncouple and even smaller programs benefit from a full 90-days of transition. Just remember, unexpected internal projects, holidays, vacations, changing priorities and more will no doubt come into play during the timeline. Keep in mind that internal resource availability is also a key factor in implementation success so ensure you have buy-in from all the important and required parties. Having a predetermined, go-live date in mind is the first step to building your timeline; however, do realize that it is better to implement correctly and give your teams enough time than to cut corners to meet an arbitrary date.
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Resources
With regard to resources, you will need to compile a list of all the necessary internal stakeholders for your transition. Typically, a project of this nature needs the input and involvement of the following subject matter experts (SMEs):
Supplier Management
Legal
Human Resources
Corporate Logistics (Travel)
Payroll/Tax
Finance/Treasury
Information Technology
Compliance
Additional company resources may be required based on the size and complexity of your relocation program, and the time necessary for each SME to be involved will also vary. Given that these types of projects span multiple departments and levels of buy-in and sign-off, it is imperative to have laid the groundwork and prepared your internal teams for their part of the project.
In-process Moves
There are several options for handling the transition of moves that are already in process. In the simplest terms, you can choose to move all files to the new supplier immediately or you can choose to move files based on their timing and/or stage. Each option has considerations that could be a pro or a con, depending on your outlook. The main thing is to prioritize the experience of the employee and how disruptive each option could be to their journey. No matter what option you choose for your in-process relocations, your new partner should be able to ease the transition for your employees. 5
Communication is Key
An integral component of any implementation project is the ongoing communication with your new provider. Before beginning implementation, you should ensure there is an established procedure for the consistent flow of information between your company and the relocation management company. Most importantly, this is the time to set expectations and preferences. The implementation and transition period sets the tone for the entire relationship, so to keep communication effective, both organizations should set the ground rules on who owns certain decisions, who the key stakeholders are and what is an acceptable cadence for decisions and responses. This will allow the process to flow much more smoothly as all parties will be working from pre-established expectations.
Scope and Fees
Typically, the final contract negotiations are completed during the implementation and transition phase. During the implementation, companies may have uncovered additional services or processes that they did not bid out originally. It is extremely important to add to and modify the scope of work as these items are discovered. As such, be prepared to discuss additional fees, if you have expanded your service expectations from what was initially priced. As in any industry, scope creep can become a major stumbling block to an implementation if the scope of services changes dramatically during the transition. Remaining transparent during discussions and negotiations encourages a true partnership and sets the relationship up for success. 6
Implementation is Important
Overall, the process of moving your relocation program to a new provider can be a daunting task; however, the pain of change is never a strong enough reason to continue to stay in a dysfunctional relationship. While it takes time to reevaluate the things that you want from your policies and your new provider, the end result can often be a much more beneficial offering to your talent and can increase the efficiency and productivity of the internal mobility team – and the same is true, even if you are staying with your current provider. If you do decide to not make a move, you should still take the time to reevaluate your current program and find ways to improve and update where necessary. The most important thing is to go into an implementation with proper expectations of both your internal teams as well as your relocation partner. Set realistic goals and timelines from the beginning so that no one is disappointed or frustrated. In today’s business world, no one has one project to work on, so there will need to be times of flexibility and compromise. Ideally, this is the time to really build a basis of knowledge and trust with your new partner. If you go into the implementation and transition process with clear goals and a strong desire to work through any challenges in respectful, cooperative ways, you can’t help but be successful.
Reach out to Altair Global if you are ready to transition your program today! 7
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