Mobility
The mobility rate, or the percentage of people who relocate for a job, has risen the last few years bringing good news to employers. Previously, the mobility rate had been decreasing steadily, hitting an all-time low during the most recent recession. According to a study conducted by Challenger Grey & Christmas, the number of new hires who relocated jumped 35% in 2013. About 13% of people who got a new job in 2013 ended up moving house, up from 9.8% in 2012.
The housing and job markets can be notorious barriers to relocation yet through my network, I have discovered that personal barriers are the most common. Even with confidence levels rising in the job market, those with children become vested in their communities and are reluctant to change. Further, the nature of contracts with employers has changed over the years. Increasingly, employees are not willing to upset their personal lives for a company. Companies are considered less and less of a long-term commitment by employees.
Today, I find that people with 25+ years of experience, who have already raised their children, are the ones most willing and likely to relocate. When I began my career 25 years ago, it was a different story. Back then, my overall sense was that people with less than 10 years of experience were more likely to relocate than they are in the present day.
Top Talent and Millennials- Work/Life Balance
In comparison to past generations, millennials are not as likely to relocate for a position. Yet of particular interest to me are the motivators of when they do, often prompted by the need for work/life balance, or a desire to move to an urban setting.
It is in the best interest of millennials to relocate early and advance early. That way, they will have flexibility in the latter part of their careers when nearing retirement- they will have control over their destiny.
In a world that demands lean and efficient operation, and with baby boomers entering retirement, companies must rebuild their talent/bench strength. Companies must develop strategies in order to attract and retain millennials, enticing them to relocate to their organization for career advancement.
Companies must consider the following items when developing such strategies:
- How do you assess for people interested in relocating? It’s essential that companies incorporate openness to relocation into their screening process.
- How do you develop a balance between work and personal lives while meeting company performance objectives? Millennials value work-life balance. Organizations that are successful in solving the work-life balance equation for employees are going to be ones that win in attracting and retaining employees.
- How do you create freedom in how work is implemented while still rewarding and promoting employees who deserve to be recognized?
- How do you engage the workforce in order to build loyalty and credibility so that employees want to relocate and take on new challenges?
- How are you communicating your company story in order to attract top talent?
(Of note – According to John Challenger, CEO of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, the jobs that have the most relocation potential are either technical roles like engineers and researchers or senior level positions.)