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Relocation is one of the most demanding transitions an employee can experience. New roles, new cultures, unfamiliar systems, and personal upheaval all at once. The first weeks matter more than most organizations realize – and employee well-being should be a priority.
As explored in Article 1, the environment directly affects wellbeing by shaping everyday life: noise levels, air quality, routines, and decision load. However, focusing on environmental factors alone is not enough. A broader ESG perspective also considers social and governance dimensions. Alongside emissions and energy use, this includes social aspects such as employee wellbeing, health and safety, access to services, and the ability to function sustainably in everyday life – all of which are essential for employee wellbeing during a relocation. For HR and Global Mobility teams, the question is no longer why this matters. The impact on assignees, business outcomes, and ESG commitments is already clear. The more relevant question is how to translate environmental, social, and governance considerations into practical support that helps assignees settle faster, reduce stress, and perform at their best.
The beginning of the assignment
The start of an assignment is often the most stressful phase, but also the most exciting. Everything is new. This is when stress levels peak, habits form, and first impressions of the host location take hold. When wellbeing and sustainability are considered together, this period becomes an opportunity rather than a risk. To do this, both sustainability and well-being must be prioritized in the relocation process, and not treated as a one-off initiative at move-in. For this, it is necessary to view relocation holistically, as a full journey, not just the logistics of getting someone from A to B.
The most effective HR and Global Mobility teams do not rely on individual motivation to drive the right behaviors. Instead, they design systems and governance structures where choices that support wellbeing, consistency, and responsible decision-making are built in by default.
For example by:
When sustainability and well-being is built into governance frameworks from the start, it supports daily work instead of complicating it.
So how to actually do it?
Effective onboarding does not overwhelm assignees with information. It reduces uncertainty around the basics of everyday life. From a social sustainability perspective, this means minimizing decision fatigue and stress. From an environmental perspective, it means enabling lower-impact choices. From a governance perspective, it means clarity, consistency, and predictable processes.
1 Before the relocation
2 Organized from day 1
3 During the relocation
The financial aspect matters too, of course. Failed international assignments can cost organizations up to USD 1.25 million when factoring in relocation costs, productivity loss, and replacement expenses (1). Preventing even one failure creates significant ROI.
This is where ESG-aligned relocation moves from nice to have to strategic. When assignees start their assignment in environments and systems designed to reduce stress, support daily functioning, and encourage sustainable choices, they are more likely to settle successfully and perform at their best.
A wellbeing-first, ESG-aligned start delivers returns that are difficult to quantify but highly tangible:
Sustainability-led onboarding works because it supports how people actually live, not just how assignments are administered.
When environmental, social, and governance considerations are embedded into relocation from day one, people feel supported, systems function better, and outcomes improve. when applied thoughtfully, is not a cost: it is a stabilizer. For assignees, it makes a new place feel manageable. For organizations, it increases the likelihood that global mobility investments succeed.
In the end, the planet benefits – but so does your people, your performance, and your brand.
[1] KPMG / Relocate Magazine. The True Cost of a Failed International Assignment (May 2024). relocatemagazine.com
1 Picture by Freepik on Freepik
2 Picture by The Yuri Arcurs Collection on Freepik
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