JOSEPH FICK 

Joseph Fick, CRP® DSC, Realtor®
Advisor to CEO, Pivtapp.com
805.338.5705 cell
The Malibu Life Team of Compass Real Estate
Broker-Associate
Certified Relocation Professional®
DRE #01334004

 

LYNN GREENBERG  Lynn Greenberg

co-founder

CEO of Pivt

+1 914 844 0575  lynn@pivtapp.com

Joseph Fick 

  •  Joe is working as an advisor to Pivt when he’s not doing his main job as a Broker-Associate Realtor with The Malibu Life Team in CA. His teammate on The Malibu Life Team at Compass real estate is none other than Madison Hildebrand of Bravo’s Million Dollar Listing, Los Angeles fame.
  •  Joe cut his teeth years ago in relocation moving professional baseball players around the country while working at Morgan Stanley. He now heads up relocation functions for The Malibu Life Team at Compass and also works as a Destination Consultant with Porchlight Destination and Rental Services.
  •  Joe has a deep background in real estate ecosystems from his working knowledge as a Financial Advisor at Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo Private Mortgage Banking.
  •  You can read his story in Mobility Magazine Feb 2019 issue about how he decided to get his CRP from Worldwide ERCand how it’s helped him service his clients.
  • Joe lives in CA with his wife Sarah, his 3.5 yr old son Parker, and his 7 yr old daughter Daisy-Glo. Joe also coaches youth soccer, basketball and baseball.

Lynn is the Co-Founder and CEO of Pivt, the social mobility app designed to reduce churn and improve the well-being of relocated and transient employees.

Pivt was started out of Lynn’s experience relocating to London to work for Bloomberg and not having the tools to make her new city feel like home.

Prior to Pivt, Lynn worked at Bloomberg LP in London and then as a Senior Associate at Autonomy Ventures, where she procured deal-flow, managed teams, and drove value creation for portfolio companies.

She currently serves as the VP of Panels for the New York Venture Community (NYVC), and mentors/advises at Women in Business at Yeshiva University, Astia Angels (curated, global community of experts committed to the success of world class women-led, high-growth startups), and London & Partners (The Mayor of London’s International Business Program providing a bespoke mentoring scheme, delivered by leading entrepreneurs and business leaders for startups looking to expand in the US).

Lynn is a frequent panelist, startup judge, and speaker, including at: SXSW, NYU Stern Business School $300K Startup Challenge, Columbia University Business School, Brandeis University Business School (From the Dorm Room to the Board Room), Franklin & Marshall College, Syracuse University Innovation Competition, NY Venture Summit, and the University of Oxford.

Lynn has been featured in publications such as: Forbes, The London Evening Standard, Digital Trends, Alleywatch, Minnotank, Vivacity Global Magazine, Convene, and Startup Magazine. She has been published in: Thrive Global, ERC WorldWide Mobility Magazine (cover article), and Entrepreneur Podcast Network.

it’s a necessity

By Lynn Greenberg

+1 914 844 0575 or lynn@pivtapp.com 

 (published originally in MOBILITY)

Millennials Want to Live Abroad  

A PwC study of new graduates indicates that by next year, millennials will make up 50 percent of the global workforce, and to them, development and work-life balance are more important than financial reward. In fact, the same study notes that 71 percent of millen­nials expect and want to do an overseas assignment during their career. This is great news for employers looking for global growth, but successful mobility requires planning and support systems. According to an April 2018 article by Fluency Corp., a study by BGRS reports that, while mobility is incredibly attractive to millennials in the workplace, relocation assignments have a 54 percent failure rate. With competition for top talent as fierce as ever, organi­zations need to find better ways to make assignments successful.

According to Achim Mossmann, principal of global mobility services at KPMG, one of the core ways companies can improve success of assignments is “by eliminating the number of touch points and by providing information to employees at the push of a button. There needs to be an application that integrates all of the necessary information for stakeholders and relocated employees onto one platform, such as a web portal and apps.”

Especially for millennials, who are used to having everything easily accessible at their fin­gertips, enhancements such as this will make the pro­cess significantly more effective for everyone involved.

Social Well-Being

A top reason why employees return early from assignment is missing their personal support network of family and friends and difficulty making new friends. This is especially true among millennials.

According to a report done by IMPACT Group, 41 percent of millennials worry about making new friends on assignment. When you are adjusting to new experiences, it is friends you need the most, which is why supporting employee well-being is much more than a “nice to do”— it’s a core, compet­itive business need.

Acclimation concerns such as where to live, finding resources, and fitting into the new office are also high on the list.

According to Andrew Walker, GMS-T, director of global mobility and total rewards at EY, “The often cited No. 1 reason for failure within the employee mobility industry is the assignee’s inability to adapt—or more specifically, the family’s inability to adapt—to the host location.

If the family unit, whatever its size, doesn’t settle into a groove at home in the new location, it becomes that much harder for the relocated employee to be successful at work. This is often why an early return occurs.”

Giving relo­cated employees a trusted network of other relocated employees to get advice from before and during the move can alleviate a lot of the stress, as well as improve the social and acclimation process.

The Most Vulnerable Time  

Contrary to popular belief, the most stressful time for relocated employees and their families is often right before the move. Once a relocated employee accepts an assignment, companies offer their employees an average of four weeks to move and report to their new job. This is not a lot of time for employees to pick up their lives, make new arrangements, and move. These mobile employees are seeking trusted and curated advice on their new city—not recom­mendations from strangers on Google or TripAdvisor. Questions such as where they should live, where to enroll their kids in school, and which pub shows their favorite sports team are just the tip of the iceberg and should not be underestimated.

Chad Sterling, CRP, GMS, CEO of Altair Global, states, “Our studies and focus groups indicate the largest stressors and productivity declines during an assignment occur when finding suitable housing and settling into a new community. Cutting resources in these areas can be devastating to a rock-star new employee, only adding to frustration and stress.”

Giving the mobile employees a trusted network of other mobile employees from whom to get advice before and during the move can alleviate some of the stress and improve the acclimation process.

Family?

International mobility creates extraordinary opportunities for the employee but can also create challenges for that employee’s spouse or partner, who can be burdened with anxiety over challenges ranging from learning a new language and adjusting to a new culture to building a new life from scratch. While assignees have the stability of their work­place, partners are often forced to find a new job when they arrive and/or take care of the logistics of acclimating the family.

An EY study asked assignees, “What are the most common reasons for a failed assignment?” The No. 1 reason was the unhappiness of the family. Joanne Yee, regional mobility manager, APAC and EMEA, at Bayer, states in this study, “In today’s modern world, support for the partner of the assignee is essential if the assignment is to be successful. It shouldn’t be underestimated—the challenges from both an individual and family perspective that the partner of an assignee also has to overcome in adjusting to life in a new country. If the family is happy, then the assignee will be, too.”  Because relationships are an essential factor in settling into a new environment, and the spouse’s dissatisfaction negatively affects the employee, companies should invest heavily in the spouse’s well-being.

Technology 

An effective technology strategy to engage and retain workers is critical to the business’s bottom line. EY’s Walker says, “I see global mobility heading squarely in a digital direction. While some excellent applications and systems are on the market, we still have a longer way to go to deliver an intuitive, consumer-grade technology experience for our stakeholders, whether they be business leaders needing to make informed mobility decisions, mobility program operators, or the assignees looking for more holistic support available in the palm of their hand.” As the world is becoming more technologically savvy, innovative technology is expected in the work­place. Millennials, especially, who are used to social networking, blogs, wikis, and curated information based on geolocation, will work best when similar technologies are integrated internally.

These tools will allow this generation to connect and collabo­rate with colleagues in ways that are most natural to them, leading to enhanced efficiency within the organization. This carries over significantly into the mobility space, as using technology to reduce churn and improve the well-being of relocated and mobile employees will be pivotal for companies to adopt and promote.  Giving relocated and mobile employ­ees technology to source trusted recommendations on their new city and find the people they know and should know—even before they go—will be a necessity for ensuring success of assignments. This cutting-edge technology is making its way into the industry primarily through third parties.

“Creating the right support for new, multigener­ational, and multilevel employees will increasingly demand investment in technology, in resources, and in truly innovative thinking,” says Robert Martini, vice president, strategic innovation, at BGRS. “Increasingly, blending organic investment with strategic partnering may best position companies to deliver the flexible solutions that truly advance com­pany talent goals and employee experience.” M

 (published originally in MOBILITY)

Relocation Skills + Expertise 


Book Smart to Street Smarts

My education in relocation began when I started helping my brothers move around the country to play pro baseball. I saw firsthand the amount of work and time involved in relocating–often at the drop of a hat– to different cities without team assistance. Even for professional athletes who know it can happen at any time the logistics were troublesome.

From leasing problems to utility service issues, to credit gremlins, a specific type of bedding, and everything in between; the expedited process was cumbersome, stressful and distracting from field activities.

I worked hard to provide players with personal concierge service involving everything from banking services, to travel arrangements, settle-in-services and homefinding, which allowed them to focus on their field activities and get better sleep–which can translate to millions of dollars in contract performance metrics.


Get Transformative

2016 was a transformative year in my career path as I transitioned to a relocation real estate agent in a luxury footprint. After years working as a community banker and mortgage broker, I got a message from one of America’s most famous real estate agents, Madison Hildebrand of Million Dollar Listing. L. A. fame, inviting me to be a part of his team. Two hours later, I accepted a Broker Associate position with his team at The Malibu Life.

At that moment, I knew I had to find a way to deepen my relocation expertise, step up my concierge service levels, and differentiate myself from others in the business.

Even with my background as a banker/broker and my experience moving athletes around the country, I felt like something was missing at the luxury level. I knew that half the purchase deals in America were relocation-related moves and made it part of my business plan. So, I studied hard and passed the Worldwide ERC® Certified Relocation Professional (CRP)® exam.

OK, what now?

Where were all the calls from the supply chains and relocation directors?

When my expectations of suddenly being inundated with opportunities from supply chain networks and relocation directors after the CRP® class list was published didn’t quite turn out that way, I texted Bob Rosing, President and CEO of Dwellworks, who graciously arranged an interview. I was well on my way to deepening skills as a better agent all around when I started my training as a Destination Service Consultant (DSC).


Why Become a Destination Service Consultant  (DSC)?  Empathy and Knowledge

Relocation is fast-paced at the DSC level; when the bell rings, you must be ready to execute homefinding, lease agreements, area orientations, and other settle-in-services such as utilities, DMV registration, and other governmental administrative arrangements. Programs are different; expectation levels vary across assignments, and employees are expecting expertise at street level. The pressure is on to complete these important tasks in the “ time and spend” allocated by the RMC and the program.

So why become a DSC?

The answer is: it made me a better real estate agent by setting me apart as an expert in concierge services and deliverables. It has deepened both my agent knowledge and my transferee empathy.

I see and hear at the street level the concerns of job candidates or transferees and their families, and I work hard to provide next-level service by being informative and making their time with me a positive and comforting experience- which I know can improve the chances of a transferee taking an assignment here. 


Showtime

The challenges of the actual service consultation at the street level are handled by the DSC, which takes planning, the ability to adapt on the fly, quick establishment of genuine rapport, and the ability to meet and exceed expectation levels for all parties concerned.

For example, DSC’s must be about to negotiate a rental property for an international transferee on the spot, or in real-time over the phone.

They must articulate with conviction the story behind the employees move, present them as a solid risk and responsible renter versus the competition, and explain how the company bringing them here is depending on them for productivity.

Too many landlords and property managers only see an application on an internet portal. My job is to personalize, promote and produce results- fast! 

Don’t think it’s necessary?

Just ask a landlord if their most desirable tenant is someone whom neither of us has met, has no US bank- verifiable funds, no US-based credit history; and no Social Security number, driver’s license or rental history- and comes with pets! Next application, please!

This is where the DSC sets the stage and is the face and voice of all the moving parts involved in the supply chain.

The DSC expertise can win a lease, and positively influence a transferee taking an assignment– especially in areas that are high priced, low supply, or “must have” school districts.

These skills transfer seamlessly into my world as a Realtor® and allow me to bring an extra layer of service and understanding to those I represent.


Closing Scene

In this age of real estate services disruption and the demand for better ecosystem services for our customers, I see the DSC’s skills as essential. Retail buyers and sellers do not have RMC vendor service providers overlooking their less- than- seamless experience.

I now move up the service chain and closer to the end of the transaction with deliverables and executable experience, quickly offering unique levels of DSC- trained skills and expertise that other agents may not have, saving clients time, money, effort, and moving frustrations.