What are the Business Values and Benefits of Outplacement Services to Employers?

Organizations can experience many benefits from employing outplacement counselling services for employees that are experiencing layoffs or who are departing the company. Outplacement is a service that is increasingly being included in severance packages, as it protects the company, saves the company money, and helps to attract and retain top talent. Read more below on how outplacement services can help your company.

Protects the company’s brand and reputation

For an organization, your brand is everything. A well-established brand can bring in more business resulting in greater profits for the organization, it can help with attracting and retaining top talent, and it can result in a better interaction with consumers. Increasingly employees are looking to work for an employer that cares about its employees and their well-being, especially during downsizing. Many individuals are looking for employers that have values aligned with their own values.

Outplacement counselling services can help distinguish your company from other companies when competing for top talent in the marketplace. A potential employee may be more likely to choose your company over another company when they learn about the supports you have provided previous employees with, demonstrating care and concern. Since COVID has impacted many workplaces and resulted in a great number of layoffs, many employees now and in the future may be looking for employers that have handled these layoffs well and have provided support to the employees that were impacted by layoffs. Unemployment is at a high due to the impact of COVID and there will be many individuals looking for new work with employers they feel they can trust and depend on to act in their best interests when faced with a difficult situation.

Supportive counselling for employees facing a layoff

Layoffs are a stressful time for both the organization and for the departing employee. By retaining an outplacement counselling service, you can rest easy knowing that your employee will be supported in the ways they need to find a new job and manage stress through this transition. It is in the company’s best interests to make the transition out of the company as smooth as possible for affected employees, as these employees have the potential to create negative situations for the company if they are unhappy with the way the situation is handled. An unhappy employee may post negative reviews of the company on GlassDoor or social media accounts, which presents the company in a negative light to the general public, and also affects the likelihood of attracting or retaining talented employees in the future.

Increases engagement, loyalty, and productivity in current employees

Layoffs can create an atmosphere of unease and tension in the workplace, which can in turn affect the productivity and morale of the employees still working there. Layoffs often result in employees feeling that their work may be unappreciated or that there is no point in working hard as they fear being laid off themselves. As your current employees observe how departing employees are treated well by the company, their morale may be boosted and they will become more productive. In addition, employee loyalty is somewhat rare these days with employees changing companies every few years.

A company that takes care of its employees even during layoffs is a company that is likely to retain its top employees, as they are viewed as an organization that cares about its employees. Employees are likely to have increased engagement if they view the layoffs as a business decision rather than a personal one and they believe the company they work has values that include treating its employees well.

Attracts top talent as new employees

Outplacement counselling positions you as a forward-thinking progressive employer, which is something qualified potential employees will be looking for. In this day and age, most individuals change companies many times over the course of their careers. Attracting top talent means competing with other companies and positioning yourself as the best with a lot to offer your employees. It is not enough to provide a decent salary and benefits, as many companies are now going beyond that and offering perks that were not previously offered. In addition, the younger generation of workers is more focused on finding companies that are aligned with their values and that show care for their workers. Providing outplacement counselling services demonstrates that you are an employer that cares about its employees, even when they are no longer working with the company.

Decreases costs to the business

Offering outplacement services to departing employees has a financial benefit to organizations. Many organizations will offer a severance package to departing employees, which comes at a cost to the company. These packages vary from employee to employee and often there is an increased cost when the employee is at a more senior level or has been with the company for a longer period of time. The severance package may include continuing the employee’s salary for a period of time, continuing benefits, or other components.

Outplacement counselling can help your departing employee to find a new job quicker, which means less time that they are reliant on the severance package provided by the organization. The sooner your exiting employee finds a job, the sooner your organization stops paying towards the severance package, which can often mean a huge savings for the company. In addition to these savings, offering outplacement counselling can often help employers avoid legal headaches and lawsuits down the road, as the company will be able to demonstrate that they have supported the departing employee through the transition. By scrapping unprofitable positions, the company frees up resources to be better utilized in other areas of the business.

How our Connect Head & Heart approach helps your employees

Career transition can be a very stressful time in the best of situations. In a time where an employee is being laid off, it can create additional stress and anxiety for the employee. We incorporate HeartMath, a program using evidence-based mindfulness techniques, into our career coaching programs to help individuals build emotional resiliency to manage this stressful period. Our Connect Head & Heart approach allows individuals to get deeply connected to their values and passions, so they can find work that is meaningful, satisfying, and aligned with their values.

Utilizing the Connect Head & Heart approach, individuals can gain clarity faster in their career direction and in building a career strategy that allows them to land a job they will be happy with. We believe it is important to build emotional resiliency, which can help your employee to navigate the job search process with ease. Our approach supports individuals with building the confidence they need to sell themselves to future employers. With our Connect Head & Heart approach, you can be sure that your employee will receive employment counselling that helps them navigate this difficult transition with expert advice while increasing their positive emotions and confidence in themselves.