Blog Post

Surviving Redundancy - Outplacement for All

#careers Feb 16, 2021
<span>Photo by <a href=Hennie Stander on unsplash.com" />

In the last quarter available, the UK alone hit a record 370,000 redundancies (Aug-Oct 2020) and the trajectory is not good - December 7th saw over 10,000 made redundant in one terrible "Black Monday". Outplacement companies are reporting being busier than ever as more and more employees are laid off, and this is a worldwide phenomenon. 

People need help like never before, and whilst outplacement helps many it is not available to all, nor does it necessarily cover all elements of personal career management at such a difficult time. It is also expensive, with charges ranging from $1,000 - $50,000 per employee.    

Covid19 has done a very good job of hastening the end of any notion of "career for life" amongst older workers, as many who climbed the ladder in the hope that somehow they would be insulated from the cold waters outside have been given an abrupt dunking. People at all ages will need a new mindset - to see themselves as one-person businesses, marketing their skills, perhaps to multiple audiences at once, in order to earn a living and enjoy a good career. They will have to collaborate more on projects with strangers, build rapport quickly and "get out there" to find work. These new rules will not disappear with Covid19, they are here to stay. 

Defy Expectations has built an online course called Career Discoveries, aiming to provide a virtual, full life-cycle career coaching resource to either complement existing outplacement programmes or add to it. Priced very competitively at £100 per person for a year's unlimited access, it includes over 30 hours of video content, plus exercises, tip sheets, interview technique, example CVs and LinkedIn profiles. It is designed to take people on a journey from discovery to achieving the career they want, or to jump in where they have the greatest need. Our sincere hope is that at such a price it can be widely adopted in organisations and access the many thousands of people who don't get access to outplacement services. It is aimed at graduate-level workers at all stages of their career, from those starting out to those facing mid-career change.  It will be an invaluable asset to those struggling in such difficult times.

 James Parsons

James is a Founding Partner of Defy Expectations and brings over 10 years' experience in both career and leadership coaching. He works with business leaders, entrepreneurs, founders and third sector CEOs on performance and leadership issues, and individuals on career management, as well as designing career management courses for organisations. 

www.defyexpectations.co.uk