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Reduce the Stress of Corporate Relocations with a Project Manager

In a survey conducted by OnePoll, 45% of respondents said moving was by far the most stressful event in their life. That means nearly half of the people polled considered moving more stressful than getting married, divorced or having kids.

Besides the logistics of a move, adding stressors such as buying or selling a home, beginning a new job or learning a new location can take an emotional toll on a relocating employee. If the transferee has a family, they can also be emotionally impacted by the stress.

Most relocations are mutually beneficial, frequently offering employees career growth, new skill- building opportunities or a path to a leadership role, while helping employers strategically place talent where and when they need it most. But they also involve a level of trust, particularly for those employees moving with families, that employers will help ensure moves will be as seamless and stress-free as possible. Here are some ways you can make your employee feel like your most valuable asset during a move.

Make Transferees Feel Supported During a Move

As the war for talent continues, it’s important to consider more than the costs and logistics of an employee relocation. Employers focusing on the bottom line and coordination alone can cause unnecessary stress for transferees and their families.

These are humans juggling competing priorities, such as enrolling their children in new schools, finding a new home in their budget, getting new driver’s licenses, transferring insurance and more. There is also the possibility of family members struggling to adjust to the transition while the employee tries to assimilate into their new role.

International relocations raise the stakes even higher and can add more layers of complexity to the situation. Supporting staff’s emotional well-being during a transfer is critical to the success of an assignment.

Here are some areas in which you can offer support to make a move more seamless:

  • Household goods moving, including pre-move sorting and donating, packing and unloading
  • Temporary storage
  • Immigration services
  • Lists of community resources
  • Lists of education options
  • Help buying or selling homes
  • Language or cultural training
  • Resources on local shopping
  • Resources on healthcare options

Minimize the Stress of a Corporate Move with a Project Manager

When relocating an employee to fill a critical role in your organization, you want them to be able to focus on their job—not their move. Some relocation companies offer on-site project managers to relocate vital employees with minimal disruption.

These dedicated project managers act as an extension of HR to deliver a superior experience while handling the complicated details of a corporate move. They manage movers and vendors, answer questions for transferees, keep moves on schedule and on budget, and consolidate costs by using the volume of moves they manage through strategic partnerships to secure competitive rates with highly vetted suppliers. This enables HR leaders to focus on their role of supporting people instead of getting bogged down with the logistics and tactical details of every move.

The advantages of choosing a mover with a dedicated project manager to support staff far outweighs the cost. Some examples of the kinds of benefits you can realize include:

  • Gaining full control over the move experience
  • Enabling relocating employees to focus on their new role
  • Removing the burden of managing moves from HR
  • Keeping the project on track and reducing risks of additional costs
  • Improving the employee and family experience
  • Saving time and money with on-the-spot decision making

For more than a century, Suddath has supported companies with domestic and international employee relocations. Our team of highly-skilled and trained professionals expertly manage your moves by understanding your culture and goals. To learn more about how our project managers can make moving less stressful for you and your employees, contact us today.