Corporate relocation professionals need to develop flexible policies to meet the needs of their clients in today’s challenging economic climate. That was the consensus of a group discussion at a recent Relocation Professionals Round Table, held at Henkel’s North American consumer products headquarters in Scottsdale, Ariz.
The Round Table, held on July 29, was attended by 14 human resources professionals from seven companies in the greater Phoenix area and was sponsored by S&M Moving Systems. The meeting kicked off with a presentation by Joe Cardini, President of Bristol Global Mobility, who discussed trends in relocation and how the economy is impacting the relocation industry.
During the second part of the meeting, the attendees shared ideas and challenges with each other, particularly on the topics of policy development and outsourcing. Megan Dawson of Henkel Human Resources, one of the coordinators of the round table, said, “This group is a valuable resource for discussing issues and problems that we all face and talking through possible solutions.”
Regarding relocation policy development, the group discussed solutions for developing flexible policies that work across large corporations with diverse business units. Creative solutions and alternatives for costly home sale programs include:
• Lump sum payments for relocation;
• Offering “tiered” relocation policies rather than a “one size fits all” policy to allow for more flexibility;
• Offering temporary relocations for rotational-type job assignments;
• Establishing a pre-move questionnaire to ensure employees are aware of their liability and financial exposure if the relocation involves a home sale.
On the topic of outsourcing, the group discussed vendor relationships and ways to manage outsourcing more effectively. The roundtable attendees discussed the types of tasks being outsourced, what works well and what doesn’t. Companies attending the roundtable outsource all aspects of relocation, including expense management, transportation, and relocation service providers.
Companies attending the round table included Republic Services, ON Semiconductor, Intel, Henkel, Bechtel, Insight, and General Dynamics.
The next meeting of the Relocation Round Table is planned for February 2010 at Bechtel. For more information on the Round Table, contact Megan Dawson at Megan.Dawson@us.henkel.com.
