Sometimes the grass that looks greener on the other isn’t that green after all. In today’s world, many employees are leaving their place of work only to return a few months or years later. This phenomenon is now adequately called the Great Boomerang.
Due to the pandemic and the Great Resignation, more and more people have switched up their workplace seeking better opportunities. Fortunately, many landed in jobs they find fulfilling. Others, however, may be regretting their decision to leave in the first place. This makes sense as the pandemic brought along a lot of change and led to people questioning their day-to-day lives.
As a company leader or HR representative, you may be seeing this phenomenon at your own place of work. Although you may question a former employee sending in their resume once again, don’t dismiss it. Depending on your business, the Great Boomerang can actually be advantageous to your growing company. Keep reading to learn how you and your business can take advantage of the Great Boomerang and prosper from it.
1. Consider the Cost-Benefit Benefit
Hiring new employees is exciting, but it’s also resource draining. There is a lot of time and energy that goes into the hiring process, everything from recruitment to negotiations. That said, hiring a former employee can reduce the amount of resources used. If it’s a recent employee, many individuals still at the company can vouch for them and their skills. This direct relationship can be so beneficial in terms of hiring someone that you know will get the job done.
Additionally, hiring for more specific roles in fields of engineering and technology can be time consuming. When looking for such roles, you may consider using a technology recruiting partner for instance. Platforms can help bridge the gap that many recruiters may not be able to find via traditional prospecting tools. In addition, you may just find that some of the employees recommended to you were former employees themselves.
Lastly, think about the onboarding process. Boomerang employees won’t need as much time to be onboarded as completely new employees. Even if some things have changed, like new software and new team structures, the majority is likely the same. This can be beneficial if the team is in desperate need to hire and is looking for someone who can transition quickly.
2. Emphasize Your Company Values
Your company likely lost many talented individuals during the pandemic. For one reason or another, employees left to tackle a new challenge or to take a pause from working altogether. As these individuals — and others just coming into the job market — look for work, it’s important to market your company values.
Being in the forefront of people’s minds is key, as is establishing what your brand stands for. Your company likely went through some of its own changes recently, perhaps offering new flexibility in terms of work from home policies or going completely remote. There may be some other perks with your company as well, such as new compensation packages or health care benefits. Any and all of these new policies are worth marketing.
Getting the word out there about your company can be as simple as creating regular blog posts about your brand. These posts can be published either on your own site or on LinkedIn. Also, take advantage of writing for publications that may get a broader readership such as Forbes or Business Insider. These tactics are great to entice former employees to take a second look at perhaps coming back to their original place of work.
3. Use it as a Marketing Tactic
Hiring boomerang employees is a good sign for your company’s culture overall. It means an employee liked their time there and probably only left due to unforeseen circumstances. Having someone return also means they liked the people they worked with, many of which may still be there.
These are all signs to use as part of your marketing tactics for new recruits. Letting them know the average longevity of employment as well as the likelihood to return are positive attributes. Be sure to mention these on job posts or perhaps write an entire blog post about it for your company site. You may even consider having a boomerang employee featured on your company’s social media. Their personal explanation of why they returned and why they’re excited about rejoining the team is a positive perspective to share.
Finally, a boomerang employee can share why they left in the first place. This insider knowledge can help the HR team develop strategies to keep employees from leaving. Perhaps, the individual received a better offer elsewhere or maybe they liked not having to commute five days a week. Whatever the reason, you and your team can take this knowledge and keep current employees from potentially leaving too soon. Hiring a former employee can be good for external recruitment and internal longevity.
Takeaways
There are likely mixed emotions when an employee leaves and then returns to a company. Overall, however, it should be a positive experience for the employee as well as the team. Be sure to treat them as a new employee. Helping them transition back through onboarding and check-ins can be advantageous as can inviting them to share about their experience widely. There’s no sign of the Great Boomerang disappearing, so taking advantage of it can be valuable for everyone involved.
