Relocation might just be your most valuable talent management asset

Bringing new talent into your organization often leads to an infusion of new ideas and lots of excitement. A great hire can even raise your overall level of engagement, which is why hiring and onboarding are such huge priorities for many companies right now. Unfortunately, new data from ECI Partners reveals that companies are grappling with a huge talent skill gap, with many calling this their biggest hiring challenge. HR managers also stated that a lack of industry experience and salary expectations were the next biggest challenges in hiring. 4 out of 5 HR managers believe that recruitment is a very important part of achieving their leadership team’s growth objectives over the next 12 months. This is also a big reason why so many companies are fighting to improve and develop intern and apprenticeship programs.

Companies are trying lots of different tactics to overcome their hiring challenges (increasing salary bands, investing in new technologies, adding more work flexibility, looking outside their typical talent pool, etc.). However, internal movement (i.e. relocating an existing employee) can also be looked at when you are not finding the right talent out there for an opening. The reality is that replacing employees is expensive. For midrange positions, the cost to replace an employee is around 20% of their annual salary. When it comes to replacing people in executive positions, costs may reach up to 213% of their average salary. Add to that the estimate that a typical mid-level manager needs 6.2 months to become fully productive. This article from What Fix breaks down these new hire onboarding process and costs. 

So when do you consider the relocation of existing talent?

Relocating existing employees could be a better solution than hiring someone new. While relocation is not cheap, the cost can often be lower than the sum of expenses related to hiring someone new. Internal movement (lateral or advancement) can allow for upskilling and cross-skilling and lets employees test out the waters in different departments. It can support retention and enhance engagement too! According to Talent Management magazine, "Organizations must be supported in rallying teams during a crisis, reducing burnout, and improving work and leadership skills." The opportunity to relocate and work in a different area of your company might be the key to retaining and motivating Millennial and Gen Z employees, who are hardworking and driven but more prone to move jobs. As opposed to seeing employees "quiet quitting", a new job focus in a new location could solve multiple issues. It's certainly a better option than starting over with someone completely new. 

In a very recent post (When the going gets tough, the tough get...relocating?), we talked in greater detail about the prediction that relocation support will play into this increased focus on helping companies to adapt quickly to restructuring and redeploying the right talent to the right place. The post elaborated on some of the findings from Lever's 2022 Internal Mobility and Employee Retention Report. It's worth the read heading into the last quarter of the year!