Boomerangs, no, not the Australian throwing tool, are making a comeback (no pun intended.) A ‘boomerang employee’ is one that leaves the company they work for but then, at a later date, decides to return to work for the company once again.
Boomerang employment is a growing trend in part thanks to technology and the great resignation. Nowadays, sites such as LinkedIn and services such as WhatsApp enable employees to stay connected with their former colleagues and employers.
This ease of connection is becoming a useful tool for hiring managers amidst the great resignation and the talent crunch. As record numbers of workers quit their job, hiring managers are turning to their ex-employees and asking them to make a comeback to their former workplace.
Workplace Trends’ Corporate Culture and Boomerang Employee Study discovered that 15% of the workforce have boomeranged back to their former employers with up to four in ten employees saying they would consider treading the halls of their former employer once again. At the same time, over three-quarters of HR professionals said they are more accepting of hiring boomerang employees than in the past and 40% of HR said they had hired half of their former employees who re-applied for a job with them.
As workers quit to take time off to recharge and reprioritise their work and personal lives, hiring managers are now seeing an uptick in former employees reaching back out now that they are in a place to begin working again and have come to realise that their former jobs were not so bad after all.
Hiring a former employee has numerous benefits including a less time consuming more cost-effective onboarding process, fitting into the company culture, familiarity with the job duties and company expectations as well as bringing in new skills, experiences and connections that they gained since departing the company. In today’s tight labour market, it is no wonder that hiring managers want to hedge their bets in safe, proven havens.
However, on the downside, if the employee left on less-than-favourable terms, there is the potential for the former employee to bring ‘bad juju’ back into the office. Furthermore, if the management style, company culture or policies have undergone a dramatic shift, the boomerang may need more time to effectively acclimate than you think. Finally, regardless of their past performance, they may not be the best fit for their new role or perform to the same level as before.
As with any prospective employee, it is necessary to fairly and accurately assess each candidate based on the criteria of the role and the needs of the business. HR should recognise that company loyalty does not necessarily end when employees move on to new opportunities and could consider the benefits that boomerang employees could bring to their business.
Paul Arkwright
Publisher
