by Donna Koppensteiner, SVP of Business Development at Runzheimer
Now more than ever, relocating top performers is a crucial way for companies to grow their operations. Whether you’re moving employees to lead new geographic expansion efforts or to take charge of long-term, on-site engagements with valuable clients, relocation is an important part of running any business. But with workforce demographics changing rapidly, corporate relocation is no longer so straightforward.
|
New generations of employees are shaking up the workplace, leaving HR leaders scrambling to adjust course. Millennials (between 18 and 35 years old) account for more than one-in-three American workers, surpassing Gen X as the largest group in the nation’s labor force. By the time employers get comfortable with a Millennial majority in the office, Gen Z will have already started to flood the talent pool. These rising professionals bring new skillsets and expectations for what they want in order to stay with—let alone move for—their employers.
Today, only around one-third of Millennials feel it’s important to relocate, even once, for their careers, according to Runzheimer research. Already, HR managers are confronting the impact of these attitudes: 56% say it’s more challenging to entice Millennials to relocate than older employees.
Before broaching the subject of corporate relocation with today’s workers, employers need to step back and take a critical look at their relocation programs. The perks that enchanted employees before (such as the promise of a company car) don’t hold as much allure in today’s digital-first, mobile world. It’s HR and relocation leaders’ responsibility to understand these changing workforce preferences—or risk losing their best talent.
Here are a few considerations for HR leaders looking to revamp their corporate relocation offerings:
New Perks Outweigh Traditional Benefits
Today’s employees want more than what common relocation packages currently provide (for instance, mover’s compensation and temporary housing). In a fluctuating job market, financial cushions like relocation bonuses and guaranteed employment contracts hold much more sway than company cars or subsidized trips to find a new residence.
When possible, employers should also tailor relocation packages to an employee’s lifestyle needs. For example, family assistance could be a strong lure for Millennial employees, some of whom are likely to be starting their own families.
The Allure of Workday Flexibility
The explosion of smartphone and tablet adoption gave rise to an army of employees accustomed to working whenever, wherever they want. This is all the more reason why relocation programs should include perks aimed at employee flexibility, from personal technology stipends to schedule autonomy.
In fact, 84% of job seekers say that control over their work schedule influences their decisions to relocate. Employees value the ability to set their own hours or work a few days each month from home, arrangements that may help them acclimate to their new surroundings in the weeks immediately following a major move.
Location Still Matters
When deciding on potential candidates for relocation, “where” matters just as much as “who.” Millennial employees, for example, are more likely to seriously consider opportunities to move to a larger city, while Baby Boomers are more open to relocating somewhere comparable in size to their current home base.
Regional preferences also follow some distinct generational trends: coastal areas in the West and Southeastern U.S. rank highly among all job seekers, but younger employees are more likely to make a move to Pacific and Midwest states than their older colleagues.
Getting corporate relocation right starts with HR managers tuning into the evolving needs of their employees. In order to pave the way for long-term growth, leaders need to reimagine their relocation packages with business objectives and employee preferences in mind.
By revisiting and updating relocation packages to match what employees really want, employers can retain the key ingredient for successful, sustained company expansion: their top talent.
|
|
Donna Koppensteiner has more than 20 years of sales and business development expertise, the majority of which relates to the consumer travel, commercial fleet, and logistic services markets. As senior vice president at