Risk Vs. Reward: Your Successful Corporate Relocation Checklist

When growth is an essential part of your business strategy, you need to identify the best pathway to achieve your goals. That could be infusing your team with new talent, opening in a new location or expanding your output for clients. For many of our clients, all three of these are at the top of their to-do list and they want to do it in destinations across the Middle East and particularly in the UAE and Saudi Arabia. When you do want to broaden your services, team and/or reach, you need to be able to depend on a corporate relocation process that will maxmise your chances of exceeding your strategic objectives.

The Risks of Poor Corporate Relocation

Having a presence in places like the UAE and Saudi Arabia could do wonders for your revenue projections. Whether you are starting up a business, opening a new office or adding to your team, the potential is exponential. But that success could be tempered if your corporate relocation isn’t done correctly. The investment you make in the new location and new staff is only worthwhile if it results in higher profits; an inefficient process that fails to help assignees acclimatise effectively could result in poor retention. Losing employees in crucial periods of growth could end up costing you almost as much as the expansion should be bringing in.

So how can you ensure your corporate relocation journey is as effective as possible, for your incoming employees and your bottom line?

Corporate Relocation Checklist

• Local Knowledge. It might be almost impossible to overstate how essential good local knowledge is when it comes to corporate relocation. Extensive experience in the location should be the first thing you look for in a relocation partner. The more they know about a specific place, the better placed they are to assist you and your employees. When a team operates ‘on the ground’ they know how to facilitate a smooth process, from visa acquisition to dependent sponsorship.
• Industry Experience. This pretty much goes hand-in-hand with location familiarity and you should expect the highest levels of both when dealing with a corporate relocation services provider. Make sure to look out for how long they have been in operation and the reviews they get from clients.
• Cultural Training. This can be the linchpin when it comes to the successful integration of assignees to their team, their company and their new home. When talent is your priority, you could be recruiting new team members from anywhere in the world and they could have a very limited knowledge of the new environment that they will be calling home. It is very important to offer cultural training as part of their relocation process so that they can be made aware of the customs, traditions and atmosphere and know what to expect. It will also help to prevent professional setbacks and communication breakdowns.
• Lifestyle Orientation. The productivity and performance of your team is always going to be impacted by lifestyle factors. That is why when you recruit new team members to your destination or relocate existing ones to a new one, you need to work with a company that will take this into account. The corporate relocation process needs to be tailored to the assignee and include the elements that matter most to them, whether that is housing and schooling or an introduction to the best restaurants and coffee shops in town.
• Comprehensive Support. This needs to be offered to both the assignees and to you as the client. The right corporate relocation partner will offer a range of tailored information to the assignee at every step along the way as well as follow ups once they are in-situ to help with the settling-in process. They will provide guidance on required registrations, documentation attestation and navigating government sites and portals. There should also be a dedicated Account Manager for you, who can provide regular updates, milestone markers and summary reports.

If you would like to speak to one of our expert team regarding your corporate relocation or employee relocation needs in the UAE, Saudi Arabia or across the Middle East, please get in touch today on info@eerme.com or +971 (0)4 421 1819.