How to Hire After Layoffs
Tech layoffs are making the news daily.
At the time of reporting, more than 108,000 employees have been laid off from tech companies in 2023, according to Layoffs.fyi. Some companies took fast, impersonal approaches such as firing via email and locking people out of their work, leaving former staff shaken and upset.
While the people we spoke with agreed that there is a need to protect stakeholders and the business from potential theft and bad actors during layoffs, it shouldn't come at the expense of basic decency. “An effective and humane communication plan is always a pillar of trying to make sure that you’re doing it in a way people can respect,” said Julieus Thomas, senior human resources generalist at Hazel Technologies, Inc.
As with any business and economic cycle, the market will swing back and the companies that recently went through layoffs will likely be looking to hire again. Some companies might even need to fill roles at the same time as layoffs, just in different areas of the business.
As hiring picks up again, candidates who feel uncertain about the employer brand are likely to ask some questions the company should be prepared to answer.
Lay the Groundwork With Clear Communications
During layoffs, Thomas advised to explain why a reduction in force is happening and be as transparent as possible. He noted seeing companies use corporate jargon in an effort to soften the blow, but “people aren’t dumb. They know corporate jargon when they hear it. It never lands well.”
If there is a perception that a company views its staff as just numbers, that can affect the business, Thomas said. “Once that conversation begins, your customers start to lose faith,” take their business elsewhere, and lead to future additional layoffs, he added.
By working to control the narrative around the company and its layoffs, the organization can mitigate negative stories, Thomas said.
The people who survived the layoffs will question why they survived, said Peter Cappelli, George W. Taylor professor of management and director for the Center of Human Resources at The Wharton School. If they don’t understand why their positions weren’t eliminated, they will likely live in fear of future layoffs and start looking for another job. Getting ahead of these questions can go a long way.
Additionally, both internal staff and future hires are likely to question “are these layoffs the end of the cuts or the beginning?” Cappelli added.
There are many people internally who could own the narratives around the layoffs and company stability, but “everything is more credible when it comes from the top,” Cappelli said.
Related Article: Companies Are Not Families
How to Hire Again
When it does come time to hire for a previously eliminated role, legal questions are the first to address.
Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) suggests to wait at least six months since the layoff. If “the former employee finds out the new hire or replacement is younger than him or herself (age 40 or under), of a different race, religion, gender, less qualified, etc. it may cast doubt on the legitimacy of the position elimination in the first place,” and open the organization up to accusations of unlawful termination, the organization advised.
One solution could be to rehire a previously laid off employee. John Sullivan, professor at San Francisco State University and corporate speaker and advisor, advised that some of the former staff will want to come back. These workers are called “boomerang talent.”
One method for finding boomerang talent that Sullivan shared involves a talent community of former employees. Every month, the organization can send a newsletter to keep former staff informed. As the organization improves its finances and appears more stable, it grows more attractive to work for again.
Sullivan added that the organization can survey its best employees to ask them for ideas of perks to entice boomerang talent, highlighting those in the newsletter. “After a few months of newsletters, they might come back.”
Learning Opportunities
One major hurdle for hiring post-layoff is that many organizations let go of their recruiters as part of the layoffs, Sullivan said. Then when it comes time to hire again, institutional knowledge is gone. “There literally are no recruiters. They can’t brag about the brand because they don’t know it.”
Sullivan advised to start early to identify a strategic course and begin training recruiters so they’re prepared for the next wave of hiring.
Related Article: Boomerang Employees: Why Employees Are Coming BackPromote Your Brand via Messages of Stability
In the end, hiring is “just like sales. You counter their arguments, you add a few wows,” and highlight the benefits, Sullivan added.
Messaging those selling points must start with a plan for remaining competitive, Thomas said. Describe the vision for the future of the organization, share any plans that the organization can, and reassure the potential future hires that the organization has the financial stability it needs to avoid future additional layoffs.
“If you don’t have a stable plan for the future or if there are too many factors that you can’t control, I’m not feeling super secure joining that organization,” Thomas said.
In fact, HR and administrative service Insperity recommended that following a layoff, leaders should thoroughly review their business, especially regarding the current economic landscape, pre-crisis business strategies, leadership, culture, organizational structure and a SWOT analysis. Next, make a business roadmap for the next 12 to 18 months, getting ahead of staffing needs as the business picks back up.
Whether the hiring process is done via an internal hiring manager or an external recruiting firm, it’s important that the organization equip them with the talking points they need to reassure the candidate.
Thomas noted that in order to avoid introducing doubt, interviewers shouldn’t mention the layoff unless the interviewee brings it up themselves, Thomas said.
Bringing that security one step further, Thomas said that he explains how a new hire can make an immediate impact on the business, bringing value to the company to avoid being part of any future layoffs, too.
“If people know they can bring value and you’re very clear about that, then it’s totally up to them to show up and perform, and they’ll be OK,” Thomas said.
About the Author
Lauren Dixon is a Chicago-based freelance writer, editor and copy editor with nearly a decade of experience writing about talent management and leadership. Her work has appeared in Reworked, Chief Learning Officer and LoganSquarist, to name a few.
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