That phrase is spoken (or sung) often in December, but now that the holiday season is coming to a close, it still is the “Most Wonderful Time of the Year” to evaluate your recruiting and relocation program, to see how you did in 2008 and where you want to be in 2009.  Even in this time of an uncertain economy, employers still hire and candidates still job-hunt.  Candidates may now more than ever be willing to relocate across the country for the right job. 

Whether it is a hectic or slow time of year for you, take the opportunity now to evaluate your program and answer the following questions:  Are you ready to help make the move be as easy and relaxing as possible for your candidate?  Are you able to support the entire family to help them with the transition and allow your candidate to focus completely on getting to work?  Do you have a policy in place to handle unexpected expenses?   

These questions are all simply and cost-effectively answered by partnering with a relocation management company such as Inspired Relocation Solutions.  Let our solutions be your New Year’s Resolution! 

We had a great weekend in Austin, Texas at the 44th Annual Conference and Exposition of ASHHRA(American Society of Healthcare Human Resources Administration of the American Hospital Association).  Once again, Inspired Relocation Solutions was the only relocation management company represented as an exhibitor and we were proud to be there.

In this difficult economy, now more than ever, Human Resources Administrators need that special something to seal the deal with their great candidate and retain them for many years to come.  Your candidates need someone to “hold their hand” while struggling to sell their house in a down market or purchase a new one in an unfamiliar market.  You need someone like Inspired Relocation to sweeten your relocation package.  Using a relocation management company such as Inspired will help ease the transition for your candidates as well as free up your time.  

You Recruit.  We Relocate.  They Relax. 

Inspired is the only national relocation company who understands the budget constraints of Healthcare and Not-For-Profit organizations.  You will find our management packages incremental according to your needs.  It is recruiting relocation you can afford. 

We recently exhibited at the NAHCR (National Association for Health Care Recruitment) Image Conference in Orlando, Florida and had the opportunity to speak to many of you dealing with recruiting and relocation in the health care field.  Thanks to those who stopped by our booth and picked up information.  One of the things I found interesting is that many health care recruiters are discovering the definite need for using a relocation management company like Inspired Relocation Solutions.   

For those of you who are not familiar with using a relocation management company, quite simply, we exist to serve you and to ease the transition of your employees in moving them and their families.  Using a relocation company not only takes away the stress from you, it allows your employee to arrive ready to work on day one without the worries of moving.

Inspired Relocation Solutions is the complete management company that understands the health care industry and can be an added enhancement to your recruiting and relocation package.   

Packing in layers, like dressing in layers, is often the best move.

An easy process that we have found extremely helpful is to pack and ship a “just-a-week” box.  This box should contain anything non-breakable and essential to tide you over for a week or so before your boxes are unpacked.  this is especially important with small children and pets.  It will save you many a late night trips to the store.  It also allows families to have a nice selection of “optional” clothing without having to pay extra and attempt to over pack suitcases in traveling to the new destination.

For those rare occasions when the moving van is delayed for any reason, it is always a good feeling to know you are prepared with your “just-a-week” package and not in a bind waiting for your household goods to arrive.  Relocating is still moving, but proper planning and the synchronization of activities makes it an enjoyable adventure.  Seal the deal with an Inspired Relocation.

When you talk to someone about their moving experience, nine times out of ten, it wasn’t perfect or even pleasant.  Planning makes perfect.  Whether you are moving across the country or across town, all aspects of a move need to be coordinated in order to ensure a smooth transition.

My years of experience have shown that there is no such thing as too much neighborhood research.  “Familiarization tours” are helpful and help employees feel confident in their neighborhood choice.  I strongly encourage employees however, to look into temporary housing or renting for at least a month before you buy.  At minimum, employees should go through an independent assessment before selecting a home.  Sophisticated assessments should be free to clients’ employees and bring out needs and issues that can be resolved even though the employee was not initially aware of the challenge.

Inspired Relocation Solutions provides our proprietary home needs assessment to all clients’ employees.  This process enables families to prioritize needs and enables them to work with a real estate professional that is knowledgeable in the areas the family has chosen to view.  This prevents the family from being talked into an area because the real estate agent is more familiar with a particular area or has listed homes there.  The home assessment assists the family in making a good long term decision and assists in assuring employee satisfaction and longevity.

One aspect that can come from the assessment is whether temporary housing is appropriate.  Relocation organizations such as Inspired are fully prepared to handle the slight delay in moving to a new home while ensuring that it is the appropriate final destination.  This adds significantly to the family and the employee’s satisfaction in making a move. 

Recruiting executives endure many headaches related to relocating candidates.  I recently heard of an incident in which a candidate received a moving quote from a carrier, only to move in their mother-in-laws household goods after the fact, nearly doubling the weight and cost of the load.  Another incident involved a candidate who was moving from a rural area and decided that because the company was paying for his relocation, he would go ahead and move his farm equipment with him, thus making the move twice as expensive as moving the CEO!

The only way of avoiding such catastrophes and politics of relocating employees is to have a clear and concise Relocation Policy that is properly implemented.  Whether you write the policy yourself, or hire a third party, such as Inspired Relocation Solutions, it needs to have clear guidelines to eliminate confusion about what is allowed.  This will provide consistency as well as saving time and money.  Your employees will thank you.