Hartford Business Journal

HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | JUNE 1, 2026 19 LOS ANGELES MEXICALI MONTERREY CHICAGO MINNEAPOLIS DALLAS ATLANTA NYC/PHILA TORONTO SEATTLE EDMONTON RENO COLUMBUS 26_002769_Hartford_Business_Journal_JUN Mod: April 9, 2026 9:18 AM Print: 04/23/26 page 1 v2.5 π SHIPPING SUPPLY SPECIALISTS THE FASTEST SERVICE IN NORTH AMERICA MIAMI ORDER BY 6 PM FOR SAME DAY SHIPPING 1-800-295-5510 uline.com back in person, Tebbe said. "You can't always get that outcome through Zoom meetings, and you need the person there interacting with the local company division population," he said. Cartus has worked with compa- nies requiring employees to return full time, including helping workers relocate closer to corporate offices after previously being allowed to move elsewhere, Tebbe said. Michael Jackson, vice president of public policy and research at the Worldwide Employee Relocation Council, said executive relocations have remained a priority even as companies become more cost-con- scious and refine relocation policies in response to rising shipping, housing and immigration costs. More than 500,000 employees relocate annually through formal corporate mobility programs, he said. Executive relocations account for about 16.3% of those moves, but companies remain willing to pay for them because leadership vacancies can be costly. "The business loss associated with a delayed project, or not having a key leader in place when you need them, could far outweigh the cost of the move itself," Jackson said. Cartus said a competitive advan- tage is its parent company, Compass International Holdings, which gives it access to residential brokerage brands that can help relocating executives buy or sell homes as part of a move. Competitors in the corporate relocation space include Altair Global, SIRVA Worldwide Relocation & Moving Services, and Graebel Companies Inc. Working from home Ironically, Cartus itself has embraced a remote-first model, even as many of its clients increasingly seek to bring top executives back in person. Cartus' shift came in response to the pandemic and predated Tebbe's appointment as CEO in July 2023, he said. Long associated with a major Danbury headquarters campus that once housed about 1,700 employees, Cartus in late 2022 vacated that property for a smaller office in the city that can accommodate several hundred workers for meetings and collaboration. Tebbe himself works remotely from the Atlanta area, but said Connecticut remains a significant employment base for the company. "Cartus actually still has hundreds of employees in the broader Connecticut area," Tebbe said. Still, he said many Cartus clients do not share that remote-first approach and are willing to pay top dollar to get their executives where they want them. "Because something works for Cartus doesn't mean that it's going to work for ExxonMobil or Nike or Star- bucks or any of these other compa- nies," he said. By Greg Bordonaro and Michael Juliano gbordonaro@hartfordbusiness.com W hen companies try to recruit senior executives to Connecticut, the decision often hinges on far more than compensation, according to Matt Tebbe, president and CEO of Danbury-based corporate relocation company Cartus Corp. "A lot of times, it's least about the transferee who's moving for the job," Tebbe said. "It's much more about the partner, the trailing spouse. It's about the kids. It's about the pets." He recalled relocating his own family to Australia earlier in his career, a move that came with concerns about schools, his wife leaving her job, and adjusting to daily life in a new country. "It's those little things that you really want to help get right," he said. Tebbe, who grew up in Redding and now leads Cartus while working remotely from the Atlanta area, said Connecticut offers a mix of lifestyle advantages and affordability challenges that can influence executive relocation decisions. Among the selling points, he said, are proximity to New York City, strong schools and Connecticut's shoreline and suburban lifestyle. "Connecticut, being on the water there, kind of that I-95 corridor … it's a beautiful state. It's a relaxed state," he said. But Connecticut also faces obstacles common to many Northeast markets, including high housing costs and property taxes. Additionally, some smaller cities and towns in Connecticut do not necessarily offer the same level of infrastructure as a major metropolitan area like New York City. Still, Tebbe said relocation decisions often come down to the overall package being offered and whether a move works for an executive's family. "If you're asking somebody to move for the company, that's a big ask to take on," he said. "… You want to make sure that you're giving them the benefits that are commensurate with that ask." What can make — or break — an executive move to CT

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