A Beginner’s Guide to Destination Services
Once you identify a candidate who is willing to relocate, the real work begins. There are two sides to every relocation: the departure side and the destination side. While departure benefits, such as home sales and lease breaks, are important, you can’t forget about the destination services your employee will require for a successful relocation. Ensuring that your employee is completely settled into the new location means you will have a happier, better adjusted employee.
Every move has its challenges, regardless if the move is U.S. domestic or overseas. Providing your employee with destination services goes a long way toward helping them to succeed, along with reducing any mobility risk factors. Because of this, many companies turn to a relocation management company, or RMC, to ensure all the pieces are in place.
Departure Services
For some countries, such as Switzerland and Singapore, departure services are critical to the success of your employee’s transfer or new assignment. RMCs such as WHR authorize departure services to our network of independent destination services providers. When the employee is prepared to vacate their property, the scope of work can include: assistance closing out lease agreements, return of deposits, final property walkthrough, key handover, property condition reports, and closing utility accounts. It’s also critical for your transferees to consider closing bank accounts, and filing change of residency or departure information as required by country. Last, but not least, WHR will review and recommend whether the employee and their family members should take immigration steps such as the cancellation of employment or dependent passes in their departure country.
Area Orientation
Navigating the complexities of international assignments requires a thorough understanding of the destination. Area Orientation services play a pivotal role in facilitating a smooth transition for relocating employees and their families. Beyond aiding in the decision-making process, these services provide an invaluable opportunity for expats to visualize their upcoming life in a new city, state, and/or country.
Our Area Orientation services encompass comprehensive guidance on various aspects, ensuring a well-informed decision:
- About the Country: Offering insights into the broader cultural and societal aspects of the destination country.
- About the Area: Detailed information about the specific region, including local customs, attractions, and community dynamics.
- Housing Overview: Providing a comprehensive view of housing options, rental markets, and neighborhood considerations.
- Schooling Overview: Addressing educational facilities, curriculum options, and enrollment processes.
- Q & A Session: A personalized question and answer session, allowing relocating individuals to seek clarifications on specific concerns.
WHR’s Orientation Tours provide a realistic overview, empowering transferees to make informed decisions and kick-start their assignments seamlessly. Whether conducted in person or online, these tours contribute significantly to a stress-free relocation experience, aligning with the diverse needs of global mobility.
Spousal Assistance
One of the primary reasons an employee will turn down a relocation assignment or end up in a failed situation is because their spouse was not given enough support. Helping your employee’s spouse find new employment, build a résumé, network in the new location, learn a new language, or adapt to a new culture, can make all the difference for your transferring employee and their family. This will also help you avoid employees turning down a relocation and avoid losing out on great talent.
In WHR’s Culture + Mobility Benchmark report, we found that only 39% of companies offer spousal assistance to their international population. Because relocating internationally adds another level of stress for the employee’s family, we believe incorporating this benefit will go a long way in helping you secure the right person for the available role.
Home Finding
After your employee learns a little more about the city, they can start the home search. It can be difficult to make the transition to a new city. Working closely with local agents who know the ins and outs of the city makes the process simpler and less stressful for the employee. Your RMC should be equipped to help connect your employees with qualified local real estate agents to help them find the home of their dreams, be it an apartment to rent or a new home to buy.
Mortgage Programs
If your employee is purchasing, they’ll need to arrange financing. Your RMC should be able to help connect your employees with a mortgage program. The employee should never feel obligated to use any referred mortgage providers, but it is an option many find beneficial because the mortgage provider will have a complete understanding of the relocation process.
Read more: Providing Mortgage Support to Transferring Employees in Today’s Housing Market.
Destination Closing Costs
In order to support relocating employees in their new location, companies consistently offer a reimbursement of destination closing costs. Closing costs can be quite pricey. And if the employee wasn’t anticipating a relocation, they may not have the funds to cover these fees on their own.
Incent to Rent
While not a common benefit, an “incent-to-rent” program offers you the ability to save significantly on future relocations. The “incent-to-rent” benefit gives current homeowners a bonus if they decide to rent in the new location instead of purchase. This is commonly offered to employees who relocate frequently and allows the company to avoid paying closing costs on the new home purchase and any future home sale costs.
Temporary Housing
Sometimes housing can’t be secured at the time the employee needs to report for their new position. In the event that this happens, they will need help coordinating temporary housing.
Most companies offer temporary housing as a benefit to their relocating employee population. While it may be costly, and isn’t ideal for the employee, it does help them feel less stressed and be more productive in the new location, making it an integral part of any great destination services package.
Corporate relocation isn’t always long-term, which is why we maintain a network of corporate or temporary housing providers and hotel chains. Offering this service allows short-term transferees to feel at home anywhere, no matter for how long.
Your relocation provider should work with temporary housing providers that, at a minimum, conduct unit inspections 24 hours prior to employee arrival, supply an inspection sheet for every unit with recent photos, and provide a phone number for 24/7 emergency assistance.
In order to control cost, many companies choose to cap this benefit, either monetarily or by timeframe. For this very reason, it is essential that your RMC have a strong network of corporate housing providers. Using both local and national companies will ensure that you are able to offer a unit that meets all your employee’s housing needs.
Download now: WHR’s Global Temporary Housing Benchmark Report
Settling-In Services
When making a major move, there are many details to consider. When you look to an RMC to handle the arrangements, you can be assured that your employee has everything that they require upon arrival in their new location. For instance, your employees may need help setting up utilities, banking, or getting a new driver’s license. Other assistance given can include help in finding schools, churches, or any other details that they need to get settled in.
Conclusion
In conclusion, a successful employee relocation hinges on thoughtful destination services that extend beyond departure logistics. By partnering with a reliable relocation management company (RMC), companies can address the diverse needs of their relocating employees, ensuring a smooth transition to the new location. From area orientation and spousal assistance to home finding, mortgage programs, and settling-in services, a comprehensive approach enhances employee well-being and ultimately contributes to a more satisfied and productive workforce. Embrace the power of strategic destination services to facilitate successful relocations and cultivate a positive corporate culture.
