The first components in Relocate Global’s new online mobility toolkit, which provides information, practical advice and support for HR, global mobility managers and global teams operating overseas, are now available to download. 

 The content of the Principles of Relocation Policy Design and Review factsheet – part of the Relocation Policy Design and Review Toolkit – includes:

• Why you need a relocation policy
• Relocation policy objectives
• Influences on policy approaches
• Strategy, structure and culture
• Administration
• Useful contacts
• Further reading

To keep up to date with best practice, and to gain strategic insight and operational know-how, download your free copy today. 

SAMPLE CONTENT

Why you need a relocation policy

Policy design/review must align with talent management strategy. A documented policy ensures consistency of treatment, rather than relying on oral agreements and negotiations with individual employees. In turn, this ensures equity.The policy should provide allowances and benefits that are tailored to the type of transfer – for example:

• Individual relocation to meet a skills gap, project or development need
• A recruitment to fill a vacancy
• A group relocation
• International mobility

A written policy provides transparency and therefore can be used to manage expectations. It forms the basis of communication with employees and their families and aids administration.A well-thought-out policy should ensure cost control and aim to provide tax efficiency as far as is practicable.Policy design/review needs to keep abreast of current developments – the UK’s exit from the EU (Brexit), for example – to ensure information is current, reliable and valid.

Strategy, structure and culture

A strategic approach to the design and implementation of relocation policy is critical if the organisation is to achieve its objectives through the mobility of personnel and ensure continuing competitive advantage.

Organisational strategy

Any policy design or review must be aligned with organisational strategy. In essence, the intentions of the organisation concerning the direction it wants to go in, and the approach it wants to take to managing its human resource talent, must be reflected within it. Current economic conditions necessitate meticulous attention to strategy. Policies must be reviewed regularly, and any alterations made must support strategic change and be flexible enough to accommodate future changes in the economy. The policy should reflect the organisation’s unique strategic guiding principles, whether strategy is planned or emerges in response to a rapidly changing environment.Take competitiveness as an example. In terms of mobility, organisations may want (or need) to be competitive in terms of mobility with others in their industry group (for example, to attract, relocate and retain specialists) and/or be competitive within a particular region (for example, to relocate employees into a tight labour market or a newly industrialising economy). This demands that the necessary mobility strategies, and the policy options that will service them, be carefully thought through.

Structure and culture

The structure of the organisation will also affect the design and content of policy. While a segmented policy will enable tailoring of provision to support the specific purpose or type of transfer, within this approach organisations with hierarchical structures may use a design that remunerates according to grade and/or salary. Organisations with flatter structures may offer allowances and benefits that reflect a single-status approach.Each organisation has its own culture, which is reflected in the language used from day to day and the way in which it approaches managing people. Policy design/review must value diversity while creating a sense of unified mission.Since each organisation’s strategy, structure and culture are unique, its policies should be, too. Relocating employees, whether this takes place in the home country or internationally, is no exception. Copying another organisation’s policy in the mistaken belief that ‘one size fits all’ is likely to result in disaster, at both strategic and operational level.The policy must attract, place, retain and develop employees with the knowledge, skills and attitudes required for the global business environment – and never more so than in today’s Brexit landscape.

For a full list of Global Mobility Toolkit components, and to download your free resources, visit our Global Mobility Toolkit Resource Centre page.

For information on sponsorship opportunities, call Fiona Murchie, managing editor, on +44 (0)1892 891334, or email toolkit@relocatemagazine.comA range of aligned products and resources will be available from the new Relocate Global e-commerce store, coming later this year.