Relocation, relocation, relocation

First, the position we’re looking to fill is vital to the business. If it wasn’t, we wouldn’t be spending the time and money to get the right person there. Second, the employee is someone in whom we’ve already invested significant time and resources. They typically are either promising managers or established leaders, and we are banking on them to succeed not just in this assignment, but well beyond. And third, this is likely a key career move for the employee. It’s their time to shine. It’s also a difficult time personally, especially if family is involved.

No one wins unless the relocation works, and works well. The move – and subsequent transition – is as key as the assignment itself. The first few months are crucial for long-term success.

At Procter & Gamble, our relocation services are a vital part of our business. We are a global company, with 140,000 employees working in 160 countries. Every year, we move more than 3500 employees. Many of these moves are international reassignments and involve higher-level managers. Just like other leading companies, we bank a great deal on every relocation taking place.

But how do you manage such a complex process – involving everything from visas, language classes, pet quarantines and school selections – in a way that allows the employee to reach peak performance as soon as possible? Then, how do you ensure that you provide the desired world-class service that will continue to support your key employees, especially those who have been sent to far-flung locations around the world?

In benchmarking, P&G’s relocation processes and expatriate remuneration packages have consistently ranked highly among leading companies. Internal feedback in recent years, however, began suggesting several areas for improvement. So we worked with IBM (our HR outsourcing partner), studying our existing systems, working with vendors and talking to other companies. Then we devoted another intensive several months to making key changes in our suppliers, and in the customer service training we provide to the IBM relocation experts who interact daily with our employees.

The result was a strategic effort to ensure that every facet of the process was as ‘high touch’ as possible. We called it In-Touch Relocation.

We had, in recent years – and along with many companies – moved toward a more self-help process whereby the employee steered much of the work. We increased our online services and technical automation. And while we continued offering support, employees were asked to coordinate a large part of their move.

But this was proving counter productive. At P&G, we want these top-ranking employees to focus on growing the business by marketing the best brands at the best value; coordinating various suppliers and ensuring deadlines are met – not on relocation procedures.

Our aim now is less time on the process; more time on the business; more successful employees and managers. We added more personnel; launched new tools that were streamlined and automated; revised existing automated support; and expanded our expectations of on-site relocation teams. We also reviewed our expatriate remuneration package. Getting them there was one thing, but were we doing all we could to ensure that they’d want to stay? Was their package competitive and attractive enough to make these relocation assignments desirable for targeted employees?

We did all of this with cost in mind. None of us can afford door-to-door concierge service for every employee. The real win is to find the balance between budgets and personal care. In our case, we have offset the increases in cost by savings made in supplier changes and service optimization.

Already, we are seeing results in terms of positive feedback from our expatriates, their families and their managers. Some, who have relocated with P&G four or five times in their careers, have thanked us for making the last move smoother. Others simply said that they felt they were in good hands. We anticipate even stronger feedback as the changes become standard. Importantly, the overall perception of this service, even among those who did not relocate (but one day expect they will) has increased substantially.

Many of the areas we looked at and continue to work on are the very same ‘trouble spots’ that each of you is facing:

• Technological efficiency versus personal interaction.
• Reducing stress levels for employees and managers.
• Managing immigration issues and local employment laws.
• Tracking results.

HR Management has assembled a roundtable of relocation service providers who, in the next few pages, will address these key topics. Their goal? To share tips and insights to help us and our employees during future relocations. As someone who both oversees P&G’s relocation process and has personally been through the system (four times!), I can attest to the link between high-quality relocations and assignment success. The smoother the transition, the greater the employee’s initial contribution – and the stronger are the business results.