Outstanding service, a consultative, partnership approach, and responsiveness to assignees’ needs were among the attributes that made NEI Global Relocation's Relocate Awards 2017 entry stand out.
New for the 2015/16 awards, this category was well supported again in 2017. It recognises the strategic partnership between a relocation management company (RMC) and its corporate clients, and the contribution made by RMCs to mobility, supporting business growth, moving talent, and maximising ROI.
With nearly 400 staff and around 35,000 service partners around the world, US-headquartered
NEI Global Relocation prides itself on its outstanding customer service.
CEO Randy Wilson says, “Our consultative, partnership approach includes proactive involvement, effective policy analysis, benchmarking, and ongoing recommendations for improvement – all without losing sight of our goal to relocate our clients’ most valuable assets, their employees.”
Many of NEI’s staff, explains chief global mobility officer Michelle Moore, have first-hand experience of relocating, which enhances their understanding of the challenges faced by assignees. They are asked to improve work efficiencies by 2 per cent each year, achieving time savings of 4.4 per cent in 2016.
The approach is working. NEI has 100 per cent client and 98 per cent customer satisfaction rates, and a ten-year average client retention rate of more than 99 per cent.
Its passion for customer service was recognised by the
Relocate Awards judges, who said, “Impressive client satisfaction reflects the polished nature of the services offered by this winning firm. It is also evident that underneath this lie warm relationships, facilitating a highly efficient and very effective service.”
Adding value for clients and assignees
NEI’s entry gave several examples of how it had benefited clients. These included saving one company $1.6 million over two years through policy enhancements and process improvements, and helping another to save $1 million on its relocation budget in just one year through tax-policy methodology changes.
The entry also showed NEI’s responsiveness to assignees and their families, which included checking on them and reporting to their employer for Duty of Care.
“When news of the European terror attack broke,” Michelle Moore explains, “we quickly identified all assignees and established their status. During the explosion at Tianjin, China’s port, we immediately identified and contacted all affected assignees before authorities ordered evacuations.”
As business becomes increasingly global, the range of assignment destinations grows, and with it the complexities of cultural diversity. NEI’s entry showed how its programmes and systems could help companies and their assignees to meet these challenges.
In one case, South Korean assignees were hesitant about moving to China. NEI designed short-term and extended business-trip policies, promoted group-move education with spouses and families, offered language and cultural training, and advocated for assignee exception requests for Kimchi refrigerators and language support. This led to a high move success rate.
Summing up, the judges said, “NEI Global Relocation stands out as a winner through combining a focus on the big picture, including global responsiveness and significant cost efficiencies, with its attention to detail at the local level, ensuring that all assignees and their families receive every attention needed in periods of fast-moving change."
NEI’s team were thrilled with their win. “It is an honour to receive such high recognition from
Relocate and its esteemed judges,” says Randy Wilson. “Being recognised as 2017’s Best Relocation Management Company not only adds to NEI’s credibility as a global relocation and assignment management company, it further increases our visibility in the relocation and global mobility industry. Thank you so much!”
Following this year's innovation-themed gala dinner, the Relocate team is already hard at work to ensure we build on the success of the Relocate Awards 2017 and make next year’s even bigger and better.
Watch the video highlights of the Gala Dinner and Awards presentation here
© 2017. This article first appeared in the Summer 2017 edition of Relocate magazine, published by Profile Locations, Spray Hill, Hastings Road, Lamberhurst, Kent TN3 8JB. All rights reserved. This publication (or any part thereof) may not be reproduced in any form without the prior written permission of Profile Locations. Profile Locations accepts no liability for the accuracy of the contents or any opinions expressed herein.
