Dwelling Places

In Hawaii, the word "noelani" loosely translates to "mists of heaven." That phrase captures John Larew's experience during a long-term engagement in Honolulu that concluded happily this spring.
The Boston-based Larew, a principal in Mercer Management Consulting's travel and transportation group, began his island assignment by negotiating Honolulu's hazy corporate housing market. Local zoning laws, designed to prevent tourist accommodations from dodging lodging taxes by masquerading as corporate apartments, made it difficult for Larew to gain the cost efficiency and convenience benefits he sought in an alternative to a hotel. Yet, a few months into the project, Larew found himself elated with the area's lack of corporate housing when a visit from his pregnant wife delivered a much greater appreciation for traditional lodging conveniences.
The cost vs. convenience trade-off marks a central consideration for consultants weighing their housing options on long-term projects at client sites, particularly since the economic downturn took hold. "The least preferable option is a hotel controlled by my client," says a practice manager with a technology firm. "They try to cut costs by putting you in these hotels. Now that we're in an employer's market again, you're more often staying at the Days Inn where somebody was murdered last week."
On the other hand, corporate apartments, which just a few years ago translated to upstairs bedrooms at iffy mom-and-pop outfits, have become safer and sounder as they multiply in and around global business centers. The latest offerings provide homier, more cost-effective, more practical, and often more well-appointed alternatives to hotels. Still, the cost/benefit breakdown between apartments and hotels is not always clear-cut, and there are other key questions — How does the housing situation affect performance and the project team dynamic? Should consultants room together? How can I get my client to put me in a Belgian castle? — that should be addressed before deciding where to hang your hat.
"I attended the Employee Relocation Council (ERC) conference in Orlando in May," notes Dennis Taylor, senior consultant with Runzheimer International, a management consulting firm in Rochester, WI, specializing in transportation, travel, and living costs. "The largest influx of booths at the event was occupied by corporate apartment service providers. There are oodles of them out there now."