Your employee relocation program is likely a huge part of your human resources budget. It can often feel like a giant expense that can't be avoided, but there are many ways to cut costs and optimize your program efficiency. Whether it's streamlining policy options, or adding policies to address various employee needs, here are 4 ways to optimize your relocation program:
1. Review Your Metrics
Take a look at your metrics and look for trends and patterns that show opportunities for improvement. You can often identify areas for cost savings, time savings, employee satisfaction, or all three. Here are a few key metrics to focus on:
- # of relocations; Was the actual number higher or lower than expected?
- How were your policies broken down?
- How many exceptions did you make?
- How many failed relocations? why?
- How many policies did you have to create or re-write? Why?
2. Talk to Your Employees
Is your relocation program meeting the needs of your employees? Are they satisfied with their benefits? Did they have a good relocation experience? This feedback can identify areas to improve your program. You might be surprised at which benefits employees really need - or don't.
3. Audit the Competition
Make sure the relocation benefits you're offering are in line with - or better than - what your competitors are offering. This will help you attract and win top talent. Reducing the time it takes to find and attract candidates is a huge budget win for Recruiting and HR teams. On the flip side, you may learn that you're offering too much and can adjust your relocation program slightly without sacrificing competitive advantage.
4. Use Technology for Efficiency
Make use of recruiting and relocation software to streamline your processes and reduce manual admin work for overall cost savings. Time savings is huge for HR, especially in high-growth industries. Technology can also help with the first point, reviewing your metrics, by streamlining reporting and data-gathering to quickly and easily find cost saving opportunities.
