The Armstrong Company

Bruce W. Waller

Bruce Waller serves as the Vice President of Corporate Relocation for The Armstrong Company in Dallas, Texas. He has been helping HR professionals arrange employee relocation and transportation services across the US and around the world for more than 25 years.

As a volunteer leader, Bruce is a former President of DallasHR, the 3^rd largest SHRM Chapter in the US and currently serves Texas SHRM as the Assistant State Director. Bruce is the author of several books including: “Find Your Lane”, recognized by BOOK AUTHORITY one of the best “career change” books of all time, “Life in the Leadership Lane and his newly released book “Drive With Purpose” will be released February 2024.

In 2023, Bruce received UniGroup’s highest sales leadership honor as the recipient of the Sales Stewardship Award and has been recognized as a Top 100 “Most Admired” Global Mobility Professionals. Bruce received the Texas SHRM Volunteer Leader of the Year in 2021 and served as a SHRM influencer at the National Conference in 2022.

The CEO just shared with the CHRO and CTO that the organization plans to hire key executives to join next month, and some of the candidates may require relocation. Quick, call our relocation department. Oh wait, that’s us! 

Over the years, we have seen many changes in relocation. Benefit options have expanded, mortgage and tax laws have changed, and companies have created technology platforms to help with data analytics. However, the one thing that hasn’t changed is the importance of the relocation experience for the candidate and family relocating. HR, Talent Acquisition, and Mobility professionals are tasked today with a myriad of challenges, from reduced pricing to immigration support and environmental pressures. But mostly to provide candidates with a successful relocation experience. 

We all want success when it comes to relocating talent. A successful home sale, a successful household goods move, a successful house hunting trip, a successful program, a successful job… success! However, we also want significance in our careers, and when we have this, our careers feel different. You see, significance is about helping others and what a career that would be! 

So, where do we start? 

1. Define what success looks like, then define what significance could be,

2. Discuss with your business partners and stakeholders for alignment,

3. Set the expectations and collaborate with relocation partners for execution.

The environment has changed since the arrival of COVID-19. In 2019, there were over 40 million families moving across the US, with 25% being corporate relocations in the US and abroad. Today, we have seen a significant drop. According to the US Census Bureau, there were close to 27 million relocations in 2022 and 7.5 million being corporate relocations. That’s over 25% reduction in the last 5 years and more if you take a deeper dive into the movement of household goods. Remote work has slowed down the need to relocate candidates, which is a cost-saving for organizations. However, it also presents the challenges of team members not being able to work together on-site. In 2023, another demanding element was added to the environment within increased interest rates, making reluctance to relocate a real challenge for any organization. 

"Change will continue to evolve as we move ahead into the future, and so will the way we operate through technology apps, self-service portals, chatbots, and more"

So, what options do we have to drive more significance for candidates relocating? 

1. Offer a lump sum. This policy provides the candidate with money for the relocation. The company can choose to gross up or not since this is considered taxable income. It’s an easy option to administer, and there are no variable costs, but the family suffers with no help in coordination. Success – Yes, Significance, Some.

2. Another Lump Sum option could be to provide a“Managed Cap”.This policy offers the candidate money “up to” an amount (a cap) to spend on relocation expenses. However, the relocation is coordinated by a mobility consultant through a self-serve technology “marketplace” portal that allows employees to choose services to order. This policy is trending up and will continue into the future. Success, Yes, Significance More. 

3. Core-Flex or Traditional Relocation Services. This policy provides candidates with almost any relocation services needed, depending on their level. Technology will help with data analytics to help manage efficiently and cost-effectively. Success, Yes, Significance, Yes.

So where is relocation going? It’s going where our talent is going. It’s going anywhere and everywhere.

I love the book “Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson, and this excerpt really says a lot about the change ahead… “As Hem saw his friend getting into his running gear, he said, “You’re not really going out into the maze again, are you? Why don’t you wait here with me until they put the cheese back? Because you just don’t get it, Hem said. “I didn’t want to see it either, but now I realize they’ll never put yesterday’s cheese back. It’s time to find New Cheese.”

Change will continue to evolve as we move ahead into the future, and so will the way we operate through technology apps, self-service portals, chatbots, and more. Technology helps us create data analytics to better serve our candidates who are relocating and create a better employee relocation experience. However, when we change our focus from success to significance, the journey will open our eyes to see more empathy and listen more about candidates' needs, and our hearts will be open to serving them even more. This is the lane of significance. Come join me – it will elevate your career like no other.