Meeting Short Term Accommodations Challenges in Europe
What’s behind the shortage of Corporate Housing in Europe?
The business world began to move again once Covid-19 travel restrictions were eased. Corporations are deploying their talent across borders, companies are hiring, conferences are underway and face-to-face meetings are happening, especially in well-established city centers and industry hubs. Dublin, Berlin, Munich, London, and Amsterdam top the list of business travel destinations with a related surge in accommodations needs.
The start of a post-covid recovery has been painfully disrupted by the war in Ukraine, as cities and countries across Europe have turned their attention to the humanitarian need to house 4+ million people. Additionally, employers have an urgent need to move both foreign nationals and local employees by the thousands out of Russia and Ukraine. The vast majority of these moves so far have been into Poland, and have extended as well to Ireland, the UK and Germany, where supply remains very limited. In the midst of this uncertainty, guests are extending their stays, further constraining the inventory and limiting a supplier’s visibility into future availability.
How are local Corporate Housing operators responding?
Serviced apartment providers are responding vigorously, although they face difficult supply challenges. Availability in the most highly-sought locations is very tight. After two-years of limited activity, both inventory and staffing need to be rebuilt. Suppliers are also anticipating needs for later in the summer, as their clients return to offices, and expand their requests for local housing support. To keep up with the volume, housing operators have been sourcing options 24-hours a day as well as adding and furnishing units. A key challenge is matching business-traveler expectations in locations with limited supply, when governments and aid agencies are also securing as much property as possible to manage through the humanitarian crisis.
What’s the solution for business travel and relocations in these markets?
We recommend three Ps: Planning, Patience and Partnership. To help with smooth sourcing, companies should organize their requests as specifically as possible. For example, rather than ask broadly for “rooms in Warsaw,” be specific in asking for “2-bedroom apartments in or near Warsaw for ten families who are arriving mid-month and staying for 60 days.” The more specific the plan, the greater the likelihood some type of option can be creatively sourced to meet the real needs of the guest. We also advise that there are a finite number of suppliers in each market and they are often responding to the same request multiple times. The more we plan together, the more efficient and productive the search will be.
Even with pressing, immediate demands, operators must manage their inventory risk carefully, in addition to adding to staff to support new guests. This requires time, financial investment, and employee training. Clients, guests, solutions administrators and suppliers will benefit from being patient with each other through the process. Everyone in the ecosystem is equally enthused about the return to work, relocation and travel, while also wanting to be supportive however possible to relieve the human impact of events in Eastern Europe. It’s important that all stakeholders: employers, employees, relocation and travel management companies, and suppliers work together with best available options - sometimes even creative and alternative options - until this latest curve flattens.
Dwellworks Living: Global Solutions for Corporate Accommodations
Dwellworks Living is committed to providing our clients and their employees with the best possible corporate housing and serviced accommodations experience. With a global network of property partners, a tri-regional team of customer experience and supply chain professionals, and a wide range of services for global mobility and travel customers, Dwellworks Living can provide the perfect corporate housing solution for any need or budget.
Dwellworks Living is the global corporate housing solution of Dwellworks, an award-winning, business-to-business provider of global mobility and business travel services. As a global leader in corporate housing and serviced accommodations solutions, Dwellworks Living is uniquely positioned to meet the temporary living needs of businesses and their employees who are relocating or traveling on short-, medium- or extended-stays. With 60,000 high-quality professionally managed properties in over 125 countries worldwide, Dwellworks Living is the preferred housing solutions partner of many Fortune 1000 and leading relocation management companies.
Dwellworks Living's corporate housing and serviced accommodations solutions are designed to help businesses attract and retain top talent, support employee productivity, and ensure a smooth and successful relocation or business travel experience. In addition to our core global accommodations management services, Dwellworks Living, through our worldwide network of local experts, is uniquely capable of offering our clients expanded and related services, such as area orientations, group move assistance, destination services and intercultural training.
Whether you have corporate housing needs for an individual employee or a large team, Dwellworks Living can provide the serviced accommodations solutions you need anywhere in the world to ensure a safe and successful stay. Please contact us to learn more or visit our Properties page to begin your search for global corporate housing accommodations.