In Business
Redundancy Management - Career Development Outplacement
By Kenneth Buchholtz, Chartered FCIPD, MBS
Jul 6, 2010 - 11:11:19 AM

In these challenging times a lot of companies have to let staff members go in order to secure their survival. This is both difficult for the employee and the company. The employee has to find a new career and the company has to face up to the fact that business is not going as planned. They have to let good staff members go which gives a lot of employers the feeling of guilt and failure.

One of the supports a company can give a departing employee is a programme of Career Development and Outplacement. What is Career Development Outplacement? Career Development Outplacement is to assist terminated employees by evaluating their current skills, providing constructive systematic job search skill support and teaching them where to find a new position.

Research results indicate that individuals receiving formal outplacement training have higher job search effectiveness and are more optimistic regarding recovery from job loss than those without.
 
The ability to deal with transition in the world of work is perhaps one of the most prevalent challenges that workers face today. Change is a reality and because of the economic reality employees, managers and executives must deal with having multiple careers during their lifetime. Staying with the same company for 35 years is no longer an option because companies are cutting back. The skill of finding new employment opportunities has become an essential survival skill in the current economic climate.

Employees have to ensure their employability for the future. Important reasons why organisations should use Career Development Outplacement are for improving their company image in the community and maintaining morale in their beleaguered organisation.

To start with a Career Development Outplacement programme the participants need to be aware that losing a job is similar to a bereavement process and if this isn’t dealt with on an upfront way a participant could remain too long in this process which would seriously harm his chance of success. The stages of a bereavement process are denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance.

The next stage in the Career Development Outplacement process is personal development in which participants are helped to explore their life and work – their abilities and shortcomings; their dreams and limitations; their values, wants, needs, interests, traits and very importantly their accomplishments and achievements. These are the essential inputs in developing the cornerstones of a new career.

Next is the job search in which the participant develops a CV which is attention grabbing, engaging and convinces the prospect employer to take action. The CV should entice the reader and should persuade the prospective employer to hire them.

Furthermore, the participants need to be introduced to the essential life skills of Networking. Networking is the process of making contacts and connections with other persons who can help us or influence others who can help us by providing career information or job opportunities. Surveys report that on any given day 85% of the available jobs are not advertised. The ability to network is an essential life skill to ensure the successful development of any career.

Developing interview skills is another important area of finding a new job opportunity. Interview skills are key to getting that new job. The participants are guided through on how to prepare and conduct interviews with potential employers. Participants are made aware of the appropriate dress and how to prepare to make a positive impression at the interview. Mock interviews are a useful strategy in teaching interview skills.

The last element of the Career Development Outplacement process is planning. Planning is central in the job search. The participants gather a lot of information about different opportunities and have to make decisions about where they want to go and how they are going to get there and to explore the various options available to them. Furthermore they need to plan the newly available time in such a way that it creates new chances for them instead of stopping them from develop themselves.

  
If you want to talk to Kenneth Buchholtz, Chartered FCIPD, MBS, about Human Resources issues then give him a call at 065 7071933.