Why the Value of Outplacement is Always Higher than Cash

Increased financial redundancy pay out or career transition? If your business is considering downsizing, what will offer those affected by redundancy the best possible support?

The current uncertain economic conditions is causing many businesses to review their resources and how these align to their business performance. 

Those conditions will bring many organisations to the precipice of the question posed above: if your organisation has to manage a downsizing, will you give them the opportunity to work with a career transition firm or offer them an increased financial pay out and let them manage their next career steps on their own?

Both options are the hallmarks of caring organisations that want to give their people the best possible chances of finding another job. But increasingly, we’re seeing that the two options are simply not created equal.

If your organisation is weighing these two options, here are some important things you should know before making a final decision.

What does the career options for employees look like?

Career transition is a GPS for displaced individuals. Career transition has always served as a trusted partner to help displaced individuals navigate the sometimes opaque paths to new and better jobs. That has never been truer than now. The recent candidate lead market has seen many professionals move to better paid jobs but this has also seen the raise of the boomerang employees as many realise that the grass is not always greener and more money does not equal a better job. As the economy cools, the ease of changing jobs may also become harder and those at risk of redundancy may need help to assess the options open to them.

Finding a new job is a skill unto itself. Although some people are naturals when it comes to searching for a new job, for others, it is a strange and awkward experience. Some of the people being displaced right now may not have had to apply for a job in years. Career transition not only supports the development of basic job-search skills, but it is also a master class in strategies to help displaced individuals cut through the clutter of online job boards and get to the front of the line for the best available jobs. Finding a new job today is a huge task; a proactive career transition firm can help individuals connect to job openings, many of which never make it to the online job boards. In this very difficult and complex job market, CT is the right tool for the job.

Find a new job faster

Speed is of the essence. Career transition is the quickest path to a new job. It has long been known in the career transition industry that the longer someone is out of work, the harder it gets to find that next new and better job. Career transition consistently helps its candidates get jobs faster – up to 65 percent faster than those who try to find a new job on their own.

Career transition is a gateway to a broad range of career development strategies. There was a time when Career transition was focused on learning CV writing and interviewing techniques. Now, however, that simple and traditional approach is gone. Career transition is now shorthand for reskilling, upskilling, and redeployment opportunities. Those made redundant are given an opportunity to re-imagine their careers, and career transition helps them identify the best strategies to realise their career dreams.

Brand reputation

Cash does not protect the employer brand as much as career transition. One of the reasons why an employer offers support to displaced individuals is to protect their brand as a top employer. If you treat your people badly in a downsizing, it can prompt top talent to leave your organisation and may make it harder to recruit top talent in the future. Research shows that best-in-class companies are 2.5 times more likely to use career transition. They know the warm feeling that comes with a cash payment fades quickly once displaced individuals realise the job of finding their next job is much bigger and more complex than first thought.

The lure of the cash payment will no doubt endure, particularly in a labour market where so many organisations are under pressure to cut costs and reduce headcounts. But if the goal of a cash payment is to truly help a displaced worker land on their feet at a job that is as good or better than the one they just lost, then the choice is pretty clear.