Moving to a new location is one of the most stressful things you can go through. When you choose to relocate your business, this stress becomes that of your employees. You need to do what you can to support them during the relocation.
Once you’ve relocated, it is likely that you’ll need to take on more staff. Often, there will be gaps for local applicants. To keep track of everyone during the whole hiring process, use a CRM recruitment package, such as that offered by Job Adder. This will make it easy to identify leads and deals, as well as keep records of any possible future candidates for roles in your company.
Keeping track of your staff and ensuring their wellbeing is vital in any move. In this post, you’ll find five things you can do to support your existing staff for the move.
1. Communicate accurately and regularly
People do not like surprises. Your employees will definitely not like to have something like a relocation of their workplace thrown at them. Make sure that you keep everyone informed about the move at all times.
You should tell your employees as early as possible that you are relocating your business. Rumors are dangerous and too little information can be potentially destructive. You must aim to keep your employees reassured that things won’t change too much too quickly.
Establish a channel and pattern of communication and use them to keep your company updated. Make sure you set the date for the move as soon as possible and set it out for your staff. This will give them enough time to prepare themselves for the move and to make the necessary arrangements.
Remember that communication is a two-way process. Don’t just keep your staff informed. This is a stressful time for them, so make sure you listen to them. They must know that you are open to hearing their problems and ideas, and to receiving feedback from them.
2. Manage the move
If a family decides to move house, it is a long and stressful process. There are so many decisions to be made and literally so much to do that it also becomes time-consuming. If a family has a move that is necessary because a business is being relocated, it can be even more demanding for the whole family.
Imagine the relief they will feel if the pressure of the logistics of the move is taken away from them. Make it your responsibility to arrange and manage the move for each of your employees. This will leave families free to focus on arranging things within their lives, and also to look for a new home.
Do everything you can to make the move as positive as possible for your employees. If there are any glitches in any aspect, be prepared and step in to solve it before a real problem develops.
3. Prepare your staff for the move
You should do everything you can to prepare your staff for the move.
There may be a few reasons for relocating your business. Perhaps this may include changes you can make to the processes of the business itself. Prepare your employees for their possible new or enhanced roles by training them in the necessary skills.
Make sure your employees know as much as possible about the new location. This includes the new office premises and the area it’s located in. Show your employees pictures and plans of the layout of the new premises. You can be as specific as letting them see pictures of their offices, or other workspaces.
Then, give your employees as much information as possible about the area to which the business is moving. It is likely to be in or near a town or city. Gather material, including images and videos, to present to them as a package, so they will get a picture of the area and what they may expect.
4. Support your employees’ families
Help your employees’ spouses or partners find a job. If necessary, find and pay for job-seeking services. You should also assist the family with looking for schooling and childcare for their children.
The easiest way to do this is to recruit someone in the new location to research schools. They should put together an information package that can be circulated amongst your employees.
You can have similar research done into essential services that a family may need, including doctors, dentists and other healthcare professionals.
Offer your employees time off after the move and before they begin work. This will allow the family to relax and spend time together before embarking on the new adventure, with all the excitement and stresses that may go with it.
5. Offer your employees relocation packages
You can make the whole move to a new place easier for your employees by offering them relocation packages. Any arrangement you make should make the move as smooth as possible, for you and for them.
The package should include covering the costs of the move, including insurance for everything. A crucial part of this is recruiting a professional moving firm to pack, move and unpack the contents of each employee’s home.
Some employees are likely to need to store furniture and other belongings, at least until they are settled into a new home. The package should cover these costs. It should also pay for the costs of temporary accommodation for the whole family.
The package should also cover all extra costs associated with selling an existing home and buying a new one. This includes the realtor’s commission and all transfer costs.
We hope you found this blog post on 5 Ways to Support Employees During a Business Relocation useful. Be sure to check out our post on Business Relocation Checklist for more great tips!
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