Mitigating the risks of staff leaving. “You say Goodbye, and I say Hello.”.
One of the conundrums of this current recession is the high levels of employment in spite of the difficult economic conditions? Survey after survey has found that employers are doing everything possible to keep hold of staff. From flexible working arrangements, to pay freezes, business owners want to avoid redundancies at all costs. They are motivated out of loyalty to their staff, the need to retain specialist skills but also to mitigate the threat of litigation or bad publicity. Although there have been some indications of an economic turnaround, this may be too late for some industries and they will have to let some of their staff go.
Once the decision has been made, a plan would need to devised and executed with certainty to avoid legal costs and be fair to the staff concerned. When this process is handled badly it can end in a PR disaster as an object of derision on social media, as HMV and UBS found to their cost. When HMV abruptly called in Deloitte as administrators in early 2013 they immediately put 4,000 jobs at risk with no notice to staff. As a response staff began tweeting about mis-management, therefore affecting the brand name which in turn affected the value of any opportunities for re-sale. Mis-handling people in these situations can have a financial consequence.
Surveys in professional and financial services confirmed that managing the exit strategy of staff was a significant risk to their business. In these situations the corporate entity needs to move swiftly and ensure that high risk cases are handled with extreme care. Managers do not necessarily have the skills, expertise or time to hand hold staff that are going through the stress of leaving a workplace and the emotional baggage that entails. As a result many HR departments spend more time coping with external court cases rather managing internal staff. The task of restructuring is an enormous drain on manager’s time and resource. Often these situations bring out personal animosity and a third party is required to take the heat and bring about a swift resolution. If staff can be given reasonable notice, a dignified exit and can evolve to win fresh roles in other businesses, they leave with less feelings of hostility against their previous employer.
One of our clients, the CEO of high profile politicized business, had to attend a farewell dinner for a key member of staff who had been potentially flagged as a key source of litigation and legal cost. They had earmarked a significant sum to pay him out. We had worked successfully with the individual, in a time critical fashion, and he had recently won a new role. The CEO commented “What have you done to him?” “He looks ten years younger. “ The staff member had a positive experience by moving on to a new venture and the money ear marked for compensation could now be used for a more worthwhile purpose.
These potential legal minefields become “walking billboards“for their previous employer, which leaves managers to get on with the next stage of revitalising their business. They turn potential “litigants into ambassadors”.
Sarah DUDNEY
www.ignitecareer.com
07793 204 220
Ignites offers HR consultancy and career transition services to well known professional services and financial services organisation. There are always risks and people risks are the most costly to resolve. We love to solve what appear to be intractable problems in your office and bring them to a cost effective solution.
