UK 
United States
JC Townend
Chief Executive Officer
Cash is King…except when it comes to outplacement. Perhaps you’re thinking that it’s not surprising that a company selling outplacement programmes would say this, but it’s because we support thousands of people with outplacement that we know the cash equivalent is of limited use. Here’s why:
Impact of outplacement - Whether you’re looking to protect your employer brand, sustain morale for existing and departing employees or just because you think it’s the right thing to do, these benefits are only derived if the impacted employee is given the support, tools and expertise they need to be able to secure their future career.
The importance of speed - People using our programmes find new jobs on average 65% faster than if they searched on their own. Being in limbo for longer increases the chance of them developing and expressing negative feelings about your organisation.
Memory of cash fades as quickly as it’s spent - Employees that have been out of job search mode for a while often struggle to navigate their way through the new world of algorithm-based job boards, applicant tracking systems and immersive assessments and remain unhappily unemployed, long after the cash has gone. Many forget it was their choice not to take up the offer of outplacement support and their anger and frustration towards your company grows and is shared amongst their networks, damaging your brand.
But it’s not all about reducing risk. There are organisational benefits of offering outplacement support that cash equivalents simply do not deliver:
The Centre for Organisational Research shows that when comparing businesses using outplacement services with those which did not, productivity increases were twice as common and profit stability or improvement was 50% more likely.
Research by Aberdeen Group shows organisations with outplacement initiatives are 81% more likely to shorten the time taken to fill key positions and 50% more likely to reduce the cost per hire too.
For all of these reasons, it’s clear why 71% of UK employers report that they do not offer cash in lieu of outplacement.
Luisa Parrott
Head of HR - London Executive Offices (LEO)
If you have ever been in a situation where your role has been made redundant, for the person concerned it can be a very worrying time. A caring employer should look at the value that this employee has contributed to the company’s successes and invest in supporting them with their career transition via outplacement support. It can be reassuring for a departing employee to know that they have added value and that their time and contribution will be missed. There is a famous saying ‘you don’t miss what you don’t know’ and this is the case with outplacement support – you only know its value once it has been implemented.
Kirstin Furber
Chief People Office - Clearscore
The ethos of supporting - when a change happens with redundancies - means helping that person in terms of the next step of their career. So, having outplacement in terms of exploring their future place of work, the transferable skills that they have and where they can go forward is all helpful. I think in the world of speed, we sometimes don’t stop to consider the skills or experiences that we’ve had and how can we take that forward. Outplacement allows people to explore these options and supports them in making the right decisions on what to do next. If the company can afford it and, again that depends on many circumstances, it is good benefit for them to offer to employees.
Ian Diment
Group HR Director - A F Blakemore & Son
For me [outplacement support] is part of our obligation as a responsible employer. Employees will recognise that a company has invested in an external resource and although it could be done within the HR functions, to have professional outplacement support is a winning formula for us. We have sourced an outplacement provider and they offer a bespoke programme that is done on an individual basis because they recognise that employees have got individual needs. I also think there is a slight danger with giving cash to all of the employees who have been offered outplacement support to because they might have spent it elsewhere, so it might not be meeting the purpose that the money was set aside for.
