Our Winning Solutions for Intern Housing: A Large Employer Case Study
Dwellworks Living MarketingRetail employers, leading banks, financial services providers, accounting firms, technology innovators, and consulting practices all compete to attract top talent to their intern programs. To be competitive in attracting the over 4 million college students who participate in intern programs each year, employers must present both compelling learning experiences and appealing benefits, such as market-rate compensation, access to local amenities, and good quality housing.
In early 2024, Dwellworks Living was again asked by the world’s largest combined online and brick and mortar retailer to provide housing solutions for hundreds of their summer interns. The relocation management company managing the intern program for this retailer, a Fortune 10 global employer, knew our reputation for service and project management as a destination services and corporate housing partner and reached out with this request based on our history of exceptional project management and customer experience performance.
The assignment was to support 150 interns in 3 core markets: The San Francisco Bay Area, New York City, and Dallas and to provide hotel housing for an additional 130 interns headed to 87 different cities for field location assignments. In 2024, we expanded upon the solutions and support offered in our original 2022 engagement to achieve even more successful outcomes with our client and their intern population.
Finding Housing, Delivering 24-7 Support
In building a housing plan for the employer’s interns, an accommodation solution had to include both immediate sourcing and approval of furnished apartments as well as ongoing support from check-in to check-out. Key project steps included:
BUILDING THE HOUSING PORTFOLIO:
- Identifying the company's housing priorities (i.e. density, ease of commute, and value)
- Scheduling weekly planning calls to discuss milestones reached and brainstorm solutions to any roadblocks
- Building in flexibility to respond to changing circumstances (i.e. adjusting move-in dates as needed)
- Offering creative options in sourcing housing solutions where needed
ENSURING CONTINUOUS SUPPORT AND ENGAGEMENT:
- Deliver useful, current, and relevant communications to interns, in their preferred formats, on a regular basis - from initial contact to final check out
- Schedule a briefing prior to intern move-in to introduce the living space and address immediate questions
- Host a kickoff orientation at the employer's global headquarters
- Create an electronic/automated check-in process, supplemented by next day personal follow ups and meet and greets
- Anticipate the intern's stress in adapting to a new city in a short amount of time by offering local content such as neighborhood overviews, useful resources, and favorite attractions and events
- Provide interns with a single point of contact to resolve all questions and support needs while onsite
- Determine a housing single point of contact for the intern program management team to streamline communications and ensure prioritized action
How Did Dwellworks Living Meet the Client's Expectations for their Intern Housing Program?
The client’s priorities were:
- Managing an ideal intern experience and supporting duty of care
- Creating density, so that interns could be housed together to foster offsite community
- Staying within budget
- Being creative, flexible, and responsive
WHAT WE DELIVERED:
We put our combined expertise in temporary living and destination services to work to source housing options and negotiate volume-based pricing from trusted operators who understand our culture and our mission.
Our coordination meant that the company’s Intern Project Manager and our Relocation Management Company (RMC) partner could focus on supporting the program overall, rather than identifying and managing hundreds of hotels and accommodations providers they did not know and had no infrastructure to source, support, and coordinate.
Dwellworks Living provided wraparound service that started with an on-site orientation at the client’s headquarters and continued through to friendly personalized introductions from their Dwellworks Living Team to every intern.
Our team created 7 total custom webpages (one for each property, a program overview page, and one for a specific intern type), presenting the property features as well as check-in procedures, a detailed local community overview, and curated recommendations from our on-the-ground team, presented in our Xplore app at no additional cost to the intern or employer. These digital assets were reinforced at an in-person welcome reception at each property along with a dedicated 24-7 service response team to address any intern’s concern.
“We were blown away by the Dwellworks Living team’s willingness to fly to our client’s headquarters and the support they provided for their interns. It was above and beyond what we would normally see from a partner, and I am so glad that the client got to experience that level of partnership with our service partner teams. Your team is phenomenal!
THE BOTTOM LINE:
The company had the greatest need in the Silicon Valley, where the average daily rates of furnished apartments meeting their criteria were as high as $350/night, if available at all. We identified accommodations portfolio partners who could guarantee the density requirement and meet the client’s service expectations. The employer approved the properties presented by Dwellworks Living based on our market research and the one-for-one match between client expectations and portfolio property deliverables.
The hotel stays for another 130 other interns were distributed across dozens of markets. Our coordinated booking capabilities enabled us to source hotel accommodations for a total of 9,230 nights at a savings of 11.5% per night versus the national average market price for hotel stays. The savings to the client in our hotel program alone versus ‘rack rates’ alone were over $200,000.
"I want to highlight the robust processes that Dwellworks Living has in place. They clearly communicated and executed a well-designed workflow for employee/unit assignment and support. Ingrained in their process is reciprocal trust. We appreciate the huge trust that they continue to give us which inevitably provides us with the valuable opportunity to shine and grow with confidence as a company. Dwellworks Living clearly values us as their boots on the ground as we all execute on a day-to-day basis and present a cohesive and impeccable corporate housing unit and experience to our guests". - SF Bay Area Property Portfolio Partner
What's the Magic Behind A Successful Intern Program?
Successful intern programs achieve two objectives:
1. Meet the requirements of the employer in securing talent for their program and future employment pipeline
2. Meet the requirements of the interns so they accept the employer's offer and become an advocate of the company
Meeting these objectives is where the magic happens - through the coordination of resources and support that most employers do not have within their organizations, but which they need to meet their talent development goals. For every expectation, Dwellworks Living had a response and solution. Every intern was housed, and the client appreciated the noise free program management.
Global Experts in Housing Solutions for Interns and other Corporate Travel Groups
Whether you have corporate housing needs for interns, a project team, or employees on rotational assignments, Dwellworks Living provides serviced accommodations solutions for short, medium, and long-term stays. With a global portfolio of 80,000 properties and partners in over 125 countries, a tri-regional service team of customer experience professionals, and a wide range of services for global mobility and travel clients, we help businesses attract and retain top talent, support employee productivity, and ensure a smooth and successful relocation or business travel experience anywhere in the world. Dwellworks Living is the preferred housing solutions partner of multiple Fortune 1000 employers and leading Relocation Management Companies.
For more information on solutions for intern housing and global corporate housing program management, contact our sales team here.
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.