Choosing a Mover: Making a Complex Process Simpler
by Kelly Clarno, Barrett Moving & Storage., an ASPR Bronze Corporate Sponsor
ASPR Newsletter, VOL. 8, NO. 3, Fall 2001
It’s now an often-repeated statement: Moving is the third most stressful life event, after death of a loved one and divorce.
So, how can you – as a recruiter or employer – make moving simpler and less stressful for your physicians and employees?
First, it’s useful to consider what makes moving so stressful. The move itself is complex. There are many steps involved, and most of them are interconnected to other decisions. For example, home sale and home purchase, including closing dates, will be determining factors in setting dates for packing, loading and delivery of the household goods. Until one set of dates falls into place the next, corresponding dates must wait.
Many decisions have to be made. Transferees must think about what to keep, ship, give away, or discard. At the same time they are making crucial decisions key issues such as whether to buy or construct a home in the new community, which schools are the best fit for children, and job decisions for the spouse. For children, there are enormous disruptions in family life – everything from friends, activities, sports, and pets to possible separations from extended family members and familiar, comfortable surroundings. Even when everyone involved is excited about the move, the number and scope of decisions to be made is enormous. When there are mixed feelings, every decision is made just that much harder.
The Employee Relocation Council cites the inability of the family to adjust to the transfer as the key reason that employee transfers fail, when they do.
Of course, you as an employer, want to make sure that the household goods move is seen as a benefit you are offering your new or transferring employee as a part of the employment package. What can you do, in partnership with your moving company, to achieve that goal?
Make the choice of the mover less stressful
When you make the decision about the mover most qualified to relocate your employees, you take one stressful decision out of the mix. By qualifying your moving company you not only set the standards for all your transfers, but you assure your employee that you have their best interests in mind, and have chosen your mover because they meet your standards.
If you are unsure about how transferees feel, survey current employees to see if they consider a pre-qualified mover a benefit to them. Customers who have conducted such as satisfaction survey report that transferees were pleased to have the decision made for them – they felt more confident and less worried about making the right decision.
Let your transferees know that you have used objective criteria to select movers who meet your standards. Resources to meet peak demands are important to you as an employer and to the transferee: Will the mover be there when they say and will they have the materials and room to handle my shipment? Other criteria you can use to assure your transferees you have made the best decision on their behalf:
P Our mover provides professionally trained packers, loaders, and van operators.
P There is a clearly-defined claims process in place, with in-house claims settlement. They have an active program of loss and claims prevention.
P Their van operators are experienced and professional. They can back up this claim with statistics about claims rates, on-time loading and delivery, customer satisfaction survey results, and with the evidence of awards.
P Our mover adheres to best industry practices for claims prevention, residence protection, and safety.
P Our mover provides an on-time guarantee with clearly-defined penalties if the shipment should be delayed.
P Our mover uses a proven work flow and communications process that assures that follow-through will occur at every step of the move and you will be kept up to date throughout the move process. A personal move coordinator is assigned to each move.
P Our mover has educational and resource materials to help you through the move process.
P Our mover provides communications at every step, and uses the latest technology.
Work with your mover to provide valuable resources to your transferees
Your mover can provide you with valuable tools to assist you and your employees as they move. These can range from written materials to easily-accessible information on your moving policy to personal assistance with unusual details of a move.
Of course, you also want to know that you have made the best decision for your health organization. Consider that choosing your mover based on objective criteria eliminates the need for each transferee to make an individual buying decision which might be based on much more subjective information. Typically, establishing a relationship with a mover assures you of lower costs and of service benefits like customized delivery spreads, consistent implementation of your policies, and priority for your shipments during the busy season. You are further assured that your mover will provide you with the strengths you need for smooth operation of your hiring efforts: nationwide and international coverage, service guarantees, quality of van line association, and the personal involvement of an account executive who sees the mover’s job as an extension of your services. v