Redundancy is becoming increasingly common as organisations go through major changes such as outsourcing, downsizing, restructuring, or re-engineering. So if you have been, or are about to be, made redundant you are certainly not alone. This article suggests steps you can take to not only survive it, but also come out of the other end thinking it’s the best thing that ever happened to you.
1. First, allow yourself some space. However common it may be, redundancy can trigger a range of reactions and emotional responses. You may be feeling relieved after months of uncertainty. Or you may feel under-valued and let down by an organisation that you have given years of your working life to. You might see this as the opportunity you needed to review and perhaps change your career. Or you might see it as a major setback to your plans. However you see it, it is a major change in your life so give yourself some emotional space and be prepared to feel out of control for a while.
2. Make sure you are getting all the support that you should get from your employer. Understanding the redundancy process can be helpful in making sure you understand what you are entitled to and what you should expect from your employer.
3. Consider whether you would benefit from professional career support. Some organisations will offer an outplacement service as part of a redundancy package. Outplacement support can cover job-hunting advice and time off to help you find a new job. It is worth checking with your employer whether they will offer this, and if possible negotiating outplacement support as part of your redundancy package.
4. Focus on a couple of important first steps. Taking some action, however small, can help the process of finding a new job seem less overwhelming.
5. Review your career to date. How have you been thinking and feeling about your career lately? Do you think you’ve still got more to go at in your current occupation, or have you been feeling bored or stale? What are your achievements? What skills have you developed? What have you enjoyed doing (and what have you not enjoyed)? What must you have in your next job (and what must you avoid at all costs)? Your career coach can help you to review your career and work out what you have to offer and what you want in your next role.
6. Research your career options. Do you want to find work in a similar occupation, or would you like a career change? If you would like a change, do you want to change sector (the industry you work in), occupation (what you do), or both? Changing either one or the other can be easier than changing both at the same time. If you change sector, you still have your occupational experience to offer a new employer. Likewise, if you change occupation but stay in the same sector, you have your knowledge of that sector to offer. If your current occupation and/or sector are currently in decline, it may increase your options if you are prepared to consider a change. You might also consider changes in type of employment e.g. self-employment, working part-time or jobshare, portfolio working, interim or consulting work. Or you may wish to do some voluntary work for a while, or even ease yourself into retirement or active leisure. Your career coach can help you to research and identify your options.
7. Make some decisions. It can be too easy to get lost in a huge range of options and make very little progress towards any of them. Narrow down your options to two or three that you feel most confident about. You can evaluate your options based on factors such as fit with your skills and experience, how well it matches your career goals, and estimated size of market (i.e. how many vacancies there are likely to be). Your career coach can help you to structure your decision making and narrow down your options.
8. Explore job seeking strategies including speculative approaches and networking to help you access the hidden job market. Take the opportunity to review your CV. There are many tools on the internet that can help you, for example this CV guide. Brush up on your interview skills, practising where possible with someone you know. Your career coach can give you a mock interview which can help you to build your confidence, particularly if you haven’t had an interview for a long time.
9. Put together a plan of action and monitor your progress every week. Good action planning involves setting clear goals that define exactly where you want to be (and by when). It also involves breaking those goals down into manageable steps. A goal can seem very daunting (e.g. becoming a lawyer by the time I’m 36) but the first steps towards that will be less so (e.g. do some internet research to find out what the qualifying routes are). Your career coach can help you to set and review your goals and manageable steps, and they will be there on the end of the phone at your next appointment to find out how you got on. They hold you to what you say you are going to do, and they are interested in your progress. This can make the whole process of finding a new role seem more exciting and less lonely.
10. Stay positive. Remember, this is an opportunity for you to find work that you will love doing, that uses your unique combination of skills and experience. You also offer a solution to a problem that an organisation somewhere has. The more organisations you approach, the more likely you are to find that organisation. Focus on your strengths and what you have to offer, and keep making progress on your plan of action. Everyone I know who has done this has ended up happier in their new role than they had been before their redundancy. So, follow these steps and look forward to the day that you will look back and say ‘actually, that was the best thing that could have happened to me.’