Tips for successful relocation to Grenoble
June 2nd, 2010 | Published in Features, Info & Advice, Work & Study
Hoping to relocate to France?
Sylvie Leroux is account manager at ETC Logos, a company specialising in relocating foreign employees to the Grenoble area. Here are some of her top tips for successful relocation.
That’s it, your management has made the decision!
THEY need YOU in Grenoble, to exchange your skills with the French team …
You might have a sense of mixed feelings and certainly a whole load of questions left unanswered by your company (at home or in France).
Well, here are a few basic tips …
First, you need to decide wether you want to be helped or not. You can get a relocation agent, someone who knows the town, the area; a local company being better than an international group. They will advise you on the right place to live according to your criteria and they know the right people, which might be just as important as having the right documents. They have good contacts with real estate agents, bank managers or French administration staff and with a phone call, they can settle any problem which would be trivial at home but can become huge when abroad.
“We, at ETC Logos, have been working in Grenoble for more than 15 years and we’ve got a very good network,” says Isabelle Callard, Relocation Manager. ‘”When I came back from the USA in 1986, I started with the concept of relocation, people didn’t really know what it meant, today, it’s easier as we are well recognised in this field.”
Second, be patient! Immigration process: 3–4 months; house search: 2–4 weeks; getting a plumber to come and fix a leak: from 2 hours to up to five days!
The concept of time and priorities is different all over the world and France tends to be very slow on some issues.
Again, the person who deals with your relocation will follow up these issues and make things easier for you. You can get down to work and they’ll think about calling the plumber one more time!
A third piece of advice I would give is that you need to be prepared to face a different culture.
Although we’re living in a global village, the concept of culture is engrained deeply in each one of us, often without us being aware of it.
France is in Europe, France is a developed country, France is part of the G20, but France and French people have their own social and working habits which you’ll need to get used to. Grenoble even has its own culture, being a very cosmopolitan, expensive and provincial town.
The relocation agent can understand those differences and try to work with you on them by providing cross-cultural seminars.
But beware, a number of people call themselves consultants in relocation or relocation agencies … so make sure you or your company selects one that has a comprehensive range of services, starting from the immigration process before the move to getting someone who will accompany you during your stay and assist you when the assignment is over.
These people will be the ones you put all your trust in: they will get you to sign official documents in French – of which you may not speak a word – for your house, your immigration file, your bank account.
Now you can still decide to do it all by yourself, but remember that it might be the recipe for a disastrous relocation.
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