There are many reasons to invest in outplacement. The most obvious is as a duty of care to those leaving the business, ensuring they’re provided with the tools and information they need to make their transition as smooth as possible, and to approach a very difficult job market with confidence.
Whilst you may not be able to control the opportunities available to your former employees, you can ensure they’re equipped with a winning CV, knowledge of the hidden job market, online networking techniques and an understanding of their transferable skills.
"I considered myself to be a pretty savvy job seeker and didn’t think I needed help, but the market has changed so much! Right Management taught me new techniques that were key in helping me land a great job. I can’t believe how much I have learned."
It’s also important to remember that each employee will have different career goals – so support must take into account options such as self-employment, consultancy, higher education or retirement. Depending on the industry sector your business operates in, exiting employees may be looking at moving their skills across to a similar company, or they could be tasked with upskilling or reskilling before they're ready to re-enter the job market.
Whilst outplacement is undoubtedly the right thing to do for your people, it’s also key for maintaining employer brand. In today’s digital world of social media and employer review sites such as Glassdoor, businesses must remember that former employees are critics and customers too. Offering outplacement services means that those in transition get professional help in identifying and preparing for their next career move. This ensures exiting employees land on their feet faster, and remaining employees view the changes positively and remain engaged and committed to their work.
Businesses must also consider the concept of boomerang workers, with the very real possibility that former employees represent a rich talent pool for the future. With talent shortages at a record high, competition for skilled workers is fierce - so it’s vital that those employees leaving the business do so feeling supported and cared for, should you have a requirement for their skills again in years to come.
"Outplacement gives you an opportunity to thoroughly explore yourself, enjoy all your skills, your assets and your experience, and put it into some rational order that can help you explore your next opportunity in life."
Whilst compensation will be a key consideration for those being impacted by a layoff, it’s simply not enough to provide exiting employees with a financial package and send them on their way.
Our research tells us that one-to-one coaching provides the greatest benefit to candidates undergoing outplacement programs – offering a confidential, impartial opportunity for individuals to explore their options with a qualified career coach.
94% of employees say coaching is their number 1 driver of satisfaction.
With a recognition that the world of work has undergone a significant shift, the focus for many outplacement discussions will be on upskilling or reskilling: helping individuals to identify potential opportunities outside of their sector or expertise, and highlighting areas for development. They can then be signposted to training that will help them gain those skills and boost employability.
At the peak of the financial crisis, restructuring saw thousands of financial services employees laid off, in some cases so spontaneously that they were left with no additional skills support and no job prospects. Consequently, the reputation of the financial services sector took a serious hit and banks were left with a workforce where morale, productivity and loyalty were at an all-time low.
As well as skills, consider how you can support the mental and emotional wellbeing of your employees. Outplacement can also encompass resilience and change management training, providing techniques to deal with the stress and uncertainty of a layoff or reduction in force.
Communication is key for any change project, especially where this involves restructuring. How you restructure your organization and prepare it for growth is directly impacted by how you treat departing employees.
Feedback from candidates highlights that poor communication has a negative impact on morale during times of change, often making the difference between a successful and unsuccessful initiative.
Providing clarity from the outset is vitally important to help individuals understand how they will be affected and what the changes may mean for them, as well as avoiding mixed messages travelling across the company.
Whilst it may be tempting to shy away from delivering difficult messages, answering questions such as ‘What does this mean for me?’, ‘What are my next steps?’ and ‘Where can I go for more information?’ will ensure that employees don’t feel overlooked or ignored during difficult times. Having invested in an outplacement package, it’s also essential to communicate the benefits to both individuals and line managers, who may be managing referrals.
Organizations with effective change and communication programs are 3.5 times more likely to outperform their peers. (Towers Watson)
Communication must be delivered consistently across the entire organization; we often hear that messaging becomes blocked or diluted as it’s filtered down through leadership channels, leading to mistrust or disengagement. It isn’t just about informing those who are at risk of redundancy, but also communicating effectively to those who are staying, to customers and to stakeholders.
Finally, it's important to remember that communication shouldn’t just be an area of focus during a specific change program: an ongoing internal communication strategy should be business as usual, ensuring employees feel valued and informed about all aspects of the organization, with the ability to connect their individual role with business success (or failure).
Familiarity with the message and supporting information, in specific relation to the individual
Being unequivocal, clear and consistent - be the professional representative of the organization
Anticipating questions, concerns and reactions
Listening and observing, with sensitivity and empathy
Acknowledging and ‘careful responding’
Checking understanding and repeating
Summarizing - to avoid ambiguity or hopes for changes to the decision
Time management - ensure you schedule sufficient time in your day
Organizations often focus on those exiting the business, yet make little investment in those who have retained roles, despite the difficulties and increased expectations that may be placed on these individuals to maintain business as usual with a reduced workforce.
Developing an engagement strategy that covers all groups, especially those that will be tasked with moving the organization forwards, is key. This could take the shape of team building, upskilling or simply a regular communication to demonstrate care from the top down. It’s critical that individuals understand the role they play and the value they bring in helping shape and steer the new world.
Arguably, the most critical factor in the success of any organizational change is how people are led. Given this, effective leadership is vital in ensuring a consistent and clear message is delivered across the company.
It is often expected that leaders naturally possess the skills to cope during uncertain and difficult times. Employees look to their leaders for guidance and support, yet often they too are struggling with the change placed upon them. Consider providing training to help leaders and managers communicate messages effectively and consistently, enabling remaining employees to move forward feeling respected and valued.
In an ever-fluctuating world of work, truly impactful outplacement must take a two-pronged approach. The 'Tuning Fork' of outplacement picks up on the frequencies of an increasingly demanding market.
Two essential prongs point to the progress and future of outplacement. Perhaps counterintuitively, these prongs sit at opposite ends of the scale: data-driven intelligence and an emotional intelligence, focussed on wellbeing.
Combined, these elements meet the challenges and opportunities of today and tomorrow:
Data-driven intelligence provides global job market insights and data on where the jobs are, using AI and mapping technology to match skills to roles.
Emotional intelligence ensures a personalized, human experience – focused on individual wellbeing, supporting employees to make the choices that are right for them.
"Breakthrough moments with candidates don’t come just from data. Thebreakthroughs come in the conversations and coaching that consultants have with individuals, helping candidates to flip their mindset reach their career potential."
If outplacement is to maintain its effectiveness in managing change and transition in a quick paced and increasingly global market, more comprehensive insights are needed to ensure employers and employees are able to make well informed decisions.
The role and scale of data analysis is growing, and the expertise to turn statistics into insights is increasingly key. Businesses are now looking for far more metrics: for outcomes and data that help to qualify the support they are offering to their employees.
In the future, as the quality and quantity of data continues to grow, AI and predictive analytics will have a greater role to play and outplacement providers should ensure they are at the forefront of these advancements.
But, as Right Management’s Amy Smyth points out, ‘Breakthrough moments with candidates don’t come just from data. The breakthroughs come in the conversations and coaching that consultants have with individuals, helping candidates to flip their mindset reach their career potential.’
With an ever-growing focus on wellbeing, experiencing a layoff at a time of uncertainty is likely to leave many feeling vulnerable, and supporting the mental health of employees is a key driver for many businesses in providing outplacement support.
HR executives want to ensure their employees feel valued throughout their entire career with a business, meaning that leavers depart with a positive view of the organization. As an HR leader in the telecommunications sector explains, ‘We truly value taking our people through their journey, and making it a positive journey, right through to exit.’
Our data shows that those going through outplacement programs get the most welfare support in direct one-to-one coaching, providing them with a unique opportunity to have honest conversations about where they are, and where they want to be: helping them to understand how they can take the next step on a career path that's right for them. It is notable that one of the most cited benefits of outplacement by HR leaders is that it builds confidence in employees.
With a drive towards digitally-enabled services, outplacement has become more flexible and more accessible - and the ability to access support on-demand has been welcomed by organizations and candidates alike. But technology without human intervention is not enough.
One-to-one coaching is consistently the highest driver of satisfaction with outplacement candidates, receiving global satisfaction scores of 99%, and ensuring employees receive a personalized, 1:1 service is key.
Choosing the right provider has never been more critical. With an ever-changing job market, now more than ever you need a provider that offers flexibility, choice and results, giving individuals the skills and resources to make critical decisions about their futures. Consider the following elements of support as you select a provider.
Flexibility – does your provider offer onsite, virtual and group options to suit your work-force? Can programs be deferred as required, and are they available immediately for those who need them?
Individual focus – with high volume outplacement comes a risk of the ‘sheep dip’ effect. An outplacement program that’s designed to fit all needs is likely to suit none. How does your provider tailor support to suit individual challenges? Understand what the participant journey looks like, and whether you’d be happy to undertake it yourself. If delivered virtually, do your employees also have the option to receive help via the phone, or to access support at the weekend?
World of work expertise – you need to be assured that your outplacement provider has the job market knowledge and connections to help your people land a new role as easily as possible. As skills requirements change rapidly, consider whether the support includes a focus on transferable skills and identifying alternative sectors or job roles.
Ease of access – you need to ensure that accessing support is as easy as possible for your exiting employees. With remote delivery now essential in the current climate, look at the structure of how programs are delivered – is content broken up into bite-sized chunks or are candidates expected to spend hours attending virtual workshops? Is the technology used reliable and compliant? Can participants pick and choose from a series of topics to suit their career goals?
Scalability – it’s impossible to know how your requirement for outplacement support may flex over the coming months – so choosing a provider that offers the option to scale up or down at short notice is key. If your organization is international, can support be delivered consistently to all employees, regardless of geographical location?
Once you've selected a provider, encourage employees to engage with outplacement as early as possible in the process so that they get added benefit, and have time to consider and assess their options.
