Outsourcing isn’t exactly a new idea. For years, companies have contracted with outside firms to perform such functions as payroll, security, data processing and a myriad of other services.
Now, HR professionals are beginning to see the benefit of extending the outsourcing function to include outsourced relocation assistance to manage the newly recruited talent that are relocating from interstate or overseas.
Although outsourcing a function to a third-party supplier isn’t always the right solution, say some business analysts, HR professionals are finding that they can improve efficiency, save money, help focus energy and resources or improve the quality of services through contracting with a relocation agent to manage the relocation process for their staff.
Within the relocation area alone, a large portion of companies offering relocation services use an external relocation firm for at least part of their corporate mobility needs. And let’s be honest, how many of your HR staff are experts in property management and the local real-estate market.
The need to outsource the relocation process is now also being driven by companies wanting to work “smarter” not “harder”.
Why outsource the relocation process?
HR staff are refocusing on what their core businesses and their core strategies are. They are starting to ask themselves:
What is my core business?
Is providing relocation assistance my core business focus? As HR department’s workloads increase, do they really have time to manage a staff member’s relocation as well? You have to ask the question, is managing a staff members relocation, really the best use of my (or my staffs) time?
Could I get more value from outsourcing to a relocation agent who probably could do it better and cheaper?
Outsourcing can cut costs and improve quality. Taking key HR staff away from doing their job has an impact on the bottom line with regards to their level of productivity which they can achieve. Refocusing their time and energy so they can focus on “core business tasks” often ensures cost savings benefits. Companies can often get an outsourced relocation expert to do it better and more cheaply than they can do internally.
Often, companies need to watch their budgets to find areas to trim costs. Adding another task to there every expanding list of jobs is not going to achieve this goal.
Will outsourcing the relocation process leave me more time for higher-level strategic planning?
Outsourcing can save time and help focus energy and resources. Companies want to spend their discretionary management time and energy on the business of their business.
I hear this all the time from HR professionals – time is the main reason that employers want to outsource the relocation process. Performing in house relocations was too time-consuming and staff often lacked the industry knowledge to provide all the assistance new staff required.
How much time should I be spending on administrative tasks such as relocating staff?
HR Outsourcing the Relocation Function Improves Efficiency
Management is always looking for ways to improve systems and enhance the way in which business processes run. Allowing staff to concentrate on their key job responsibility improves efficiency immediately. Outsourcing to a relocation agent provides them with instance, local and expert market knowledge on the real-estate market in there city.
Therefore, with HR outsourcing the relocation function, the quality of work delivered both internally by the HR staff member and externally for the staff member being relocated, can be achieved. The staff member in question deals with one dedicated professional whose sole job is to manage their relocation. The HR staff member can then refocus their time and energy on managing their HR department or delivering key HR functions instead of trying to manage relocation as well.