relocation program

By Michael Krasman

There is a war for talent going on and attracting and retaining talent has never been more difficult. One way to guarantee a larger pool of candidates, and open the door for more accepted offers, is to consider looking for candidates outside of your city and the surrounding area.

Of course, to make these offers more attractive, organizations would have to consider offering relocation benefits during their recruiting process—something that has generally been considered too complex or expensive to implement at small companies.

However, when it comes to building out a relocation program, (and like anything else in matters of business) it is always better to be proactive than reactive.

Putting a relocation policy in place before you need one means you’re paying attention to the potential company growth and employee experience.

Whether you’re a new and growing business or a lean, mean team, putting a relocation policy in place before you need one means you’re paying attention to the potential company growth and employee experience. In fact, without one, you could be hurting your own chances of success, especially when it comes to recruiting and retaining new talent.

Why Relocation Programs are Important

If you’re having difficulty hiring a candidate, a relocation program may not be the secret sauce you need to seal the deal. However, it can open more doors, and even help convince a candidate to accept a job offer. For some industries, there can be a need for highly specialized skillsets. However, some mega-cities are sucking up talent from all over the place, leaving the skills gap much wider in some areas than others.

And for HR this is fundamental. Because companies that are not in these areas will have a much harder time finding talent. After all, they can’t compete with the large company brand reputation or high starting salary.

A relocation program allows you to expand your search, so you can find the right fit with the right skills for your company. Not only will you be able to draw from a larger, deeper talent pool, but it will also be easier to seal the deal with the recruit. Solid relocation assistance can be the only thing standing between a “yes” and a reluctant “no.”

Recruiting Young Talent

There is also a segment of the workforce that, without a relocation program in place, could be discounting your company altogether: recent college grads. This population of the workforce may need some extra help when it comes to finding and relocating for a job. After all, due to their newness to the market (and crippling student debt), they’ll likely struggle to find the means to finance the large endeavor. If you have a program in place to help these new grads, you may be better equipped to fill your workforce with the younger generation. Plus, when providing relocation as a benefit, these young candidates will have a better view of your employer brand and will be more likely to spread the word, painting your company as an employer of choice.

Making it Work

It’s entirely possible for you to run a successful relocation program, even if you’re strapped for time, money and resources. In fact, one of the best ways to make employee relocation more affordable is to consider partnering with an employee relocation software company. When software is at the front and center of relocation, it’s easier to track, administer and control relocation costs.

Michael Krasman is a serial entrepreneur who has co-founded five high-growth businesses over his fifteen-year career. He is currently the CEO and Co-founder of UrbanBound, a cloud-based Relocation Management Software company that is reshaping the way employers offer and administer relocation benefits to their employees. 

Relocation program stock photo by gpointstudio/Shutterstock