Fighting Back from Redundancy

Losing your job can be one of the most stressful and traumatic events in your life particularly if you are mid-career and had been with your employer for some time. It’s usually unexpected and its implications are often difficult to comprehend immediately. However, take heart and bounce back as it can also provide an excellent opportunity for you to break the mould and change direction to a more successful career. Here we provide advice as to how best to fight back and secure another position.

It’s not just you

The media continues to faithfully report the decline in the world economy and the resulting job losses. Seemingly no country, no sector and no profession have been left untouched and around the world thousands of executives have been made redundant in the year to date. If you are an accountant you will understand only too well the reasons. You have quite possibly been producing and analysing the numbers that have led to the decision. Essentially for many organisations with revenue in decline, a strategic review has resulted in them retreating to their core and profitable businesses where possible. Rationalisations and restructures ensue and as a result often – mass job losses occur.

Certainly in this phase such redundancies are often indiscriminate with regard to ability and with no consideration to length of service or value to the organisation. “Back Office” teams are often a target also because they are non revenue generating and in the short term a less emotive cost saving. So, the message must be – it’s not just you. It’s happening everywhere and you must use this fact as part of the healing process.

It’s okay to feel angry, upset, bitter and sad

Losing your job can be compared to the death of a close family member or friend. You will probably experience several types of emotion before you can put the experience behind you. Different people experience the loss in different ways. It can be denial, bitterness, anger, sadness or all of those things. The message is that its okay and natural to feel this way and that you must experience and pass through these emotions before you move on.

Get it out of your system

It will take you anywhere from several days to three to four weeks to overcome the shock. You can help the healing process by taking time off from thinking about work. This may mean taking take a vacation, spending time with your family, or doing some redecorating at home. Anything that switches you out of work mode. Don’t under any circumstances start to look for another job until you’ve come to terms with your redundancy as your anger and bitterness will be evident during the selection process and a definite turn off to prospective employers. If you can’t shake your loss after 4-5 weeks then you may need to seek guidance from professional counsellors to help you through this stage

If you’re still at work, be professional and ask for help

For most people redundancy is instant and without warning. For others there may be several weeks between the announcement and your final day. In many respects this can be harder as you need to retain your dignity and professionalism and harness your anger at a time when you most want to express it. Don’t burn your bridges, exit with dignity. Return company keys and equipment and resist any temptation to destroy or remove company files.

Ensure you say goodbye properly to those people who you have worked with in your team. You will want to contact them for help in the coming months.

Also ensure that you receive any financial or other assistance you are entitled to. While I’m not suggesting that you should be antagonistic in any way you should probably contact an employment lawyer to ensure that you have received all your entitlements and that your redundancy has been handled in the right way. While expensive this process can also help your healing process as it quickly focuses your mind on what has happened and what you have to do.

Communicate, with your family and your friends

Don’t hide your redundancy. Sad as it may seem there are instances of individuals continuing to dress for work and leave for the office in the mornings and return home in the evenings after a day in the park or shopping center. Being made redundant will have an enormous impact on the lives of your family so it’s important that you explain what has happened and that there may be some changes ahead. The family will rally around you and their support will help you enormously to refocus on the future. Similarly tell your closest friends although it’s probably best not to make this a general broadcast until you have a plan and can ask for specific help.

Construct a financial plan

One of your immediate issues will be financial. Whether or not have received severance pay or bonuses you should undertake a thorough review of the family budget for the year ahead. Ensure that you have received all your entitlements from the company and that your pension payments are in order. Register for any Government benefits you may be entitled to. Reduce all non-essential expenditure and assume that your new budget will need to last a full year until you are back on your feet again.

Arrange your strategy meeting, invite your stakeholders

Once you feel reconciled to what has happened it’s time to move on. Arrange a strategy day, as you need to plan a sound strategy for your future direction and success.

This can be one of the most therapeutic and inspiring days of your life. You start with a blank sheet of paper and by the end of the day you will have started to form strong ideas for the future. Invite your partner, parents and siblings and if relevant one or two close friends or former colleagues. Often inviting your referees can be a constructive move.

Run the day as you would a corporate strategy meeting with an agenda and a timetable and appoint a chairperson. Use a blackboard or whiteboard or large pieces of paper to record your thoughts .You will undergo a SWOT analysis and then develop a career plan.

Where are you now? Undertake a skills audit

The “Where are you now?” is a simple analysis or audit of your knowledge, skills and experience base and your strengths in these areas. Often we work for years with out a thorough review of our skills and strengths. It’s helpful here to read and review all your previous job descriptions, performance reviews, references, resumes and so on and also to ask others with whom you have worked. Make a list of twenty skills and strengths you have and try and list your strongest five. Often your strengths will also coincide with those that you enjoy using. The reason for undergoing this skills audit is that obviously you are going to have to sell yourself to people who don’t know you and to be able to differentiate yourself from others.

You now should have a picture of who you are and what you can do.

Where do you want to go? Construct your career plan

You are trying to plot your future career in this step. You should start with a blank piece of paper and to begin to forget your most recent experience and personal circumstances. This is an opportunity to think more laterally and decide what you would really like to do with the rest of your career. Do you want to try and change career or make a move into a different sector, or are you happy to continue on the same career path.

Sometimes it’s helpful to escape into fantasy land and ask yourself “Why not?” Obviously for most of us the reality is that we want to stick with what we know, particularly if we have responsibilities such as family well being that we can’t afford to risk through a career change.

Nevertheless, thinking through your options does help to establish some clarity and direction and helps to dissolve the emotion from your situation. Its helpful to commit your plans to paper and write down your goals and your targets both immediate and longer term.

How are you going to get there? What steps do you need to take?

The third question is “How do you get there?” It requires you to link your answers to questions one and two. How do you progress from your current situation to your career goal? This does require some knowledge of the skills and abilities required to reach your career destination. If you’re unsure seek some professional advice.

Compiling your career plan can take anything from several hours to several days and once complete I would recommend that you refer to it regularly and at least once a year. New year is always an appropriate time to take stock of your career but it could be your birthday or any other significant date. Certainly a consistent time in the year, each year, helps the process.

Be flexible and open to ideas

While you do want to focus on a specific direction and goal it also pays to be flexible and open to ideas that come your way. This can be as simple as being open to contract work even though you want a permanent role or as fundamental as a move to another city or country for the right opportunity.

Know what you’re selling and understand the marketplace – it’s super competitive out there

The chances are its been a while since you’ve been out looking for a job. Chances are that it will be a lot more difficult than it was. Firstly the economy is against you and secondly it’s always harder to convince potential employers of your worth when you’re not working.

If you are looking at a senior level, certainly at Controller/Director level, be prepared to be compete with 200-300 others for each role. You’ll find that for every 100 calls or approaches you make to potential employers or Consultants that only 3-4 will un earth anything promising or encouraging.

With this competition and these odds you need to be sure of your strengths and what you’re selling and then work out who may be interested in what you have to sell.

Plan your job search like a military campaign

It’s time to be well organised, methodical and disciplined in your approach. Finding a job is a full time job in itself and you should treat it as such. Spend regular office hours and ideally have a desk or room in your home with a phone that you can go to each day. Begin by constructing a list of employers and agencies, job boards and print media, that are most likely to be responsible for handling the role you’re looking for. This is a great place to start in your job search.

Call and try and arrange meetings, follow up leads and record every conversation you make. As you would in your regular job ensure that you meet deadlines and do everything that you can to complete this “project” successfully. It’s alien in that it’s a selling and marketing and not a finance project but since the service is you it’s the most important project you’ll work on for years.

Bounce back and beyond: realise your ambition.

Prepare a killer resume

The object of your resume is to win an interview with a prospective employer and so your resume should be designed with that in mind. It is your “advertisement” and should reflect your basic information and key skills and experience as well as clearly portraying the value you can add to the organisation. Ideally no more than 3-4 pages long, it should be well designed and styled.

It needs to pass the “five second test”. Many HR and Line managers don’t have the time to avidly read your resume – if it’s one of 200 they received they have five seconds to make an assessment on your suitability. If they can’t find what they are looking for immediately in your resume it falls in the rejected pile. So it needs to be clear and concise and written specifically with that job in mind. You don’t make up information – you just project your strengths in the area required to win an interview. It is an art form. Spend time on it. To learn more, read our resume writing guide or tips for writing an executive level resume.

Set yourself a realistic time frame

In the current economy there are fewer positions and organisations are taking longer to fill each position so it could take some time to find the right job. If you’re expecting to find one immediately then be prepared to be disappointed. You may need to organise your finances accordingly but you certainly need to organise yourself psychologically to expect this.

On average part qualified and newly/recently-qualified candidates are taking 6-8 weeks to find a role, for more senior positions its 3-6 months. Manage your own expectations and those of your family and friends. It is tough out there. Don’t berate yourself if you don’t find a role immediately – it’s not necessarily you. The market has a lot to do with it.

Who can help you and how you can help them to help you

As part of your Job search you need to know who can help you find a job and how you can help them. As mentioned above you need to construct a list of those that can help you to make the most of your job search. Read our guide to job search for more information.

You will get your next job from one of the above methods – it takes time and you need to be organised. Good luck with your search.

Be persistent in your job search

It is a tough employment environment with few vacancies and lots of competition for those vacancies. It means that you need to be extraordinarily persistent in order to hunt down opportunities to present yourself by resume or in person to companies who may be recruiting.

Research the consultants you need to speak to and then scour every newspaper and online job site for opportunities that may be relevant for you. Find out the name of the person handling the position and if necessary the name of their secretary or receptionist and make the call. Chances are that you won’t get through to the main contact first time or even fifth time but if you are polite and persistent the secretary will usually do her best to ensure that she gives you a convenient time to call and to get through. If she is less than helpful then ring outside office hours when she may not be there to protect her boss.

When you get the chance be prepared to sell yourself in a sentence or two. If the contact tells you there are others with more relevant experience ask permission to call once those interviews are out of the way. Occasionally they find that those people are not right and occasionally they may be prepared to meet you.

Whatever your stance the more people you contact and speak with the closer you are to that elusive job opportunity.

Be happy – keep your spirits up

When you start your job search you invariably do so with some confidence and enthusiasm but after several weeks without interviews or any potential interviews your confidence can ebb. It’s important to work on ways to maintain your enthusiasm and positive spirits. Potential employers look for this and if you portray a negative outlook this will flow through to your job search. You never know when you are going to get the call so try and stay happy and positive – it will be rewarded.

Take your interviews seriously – prepare to succeed

It’s likely that you’ll receive at least a days notice for your interview. Spend this time wisely and prepare for a successful interview.

You should review and research in three areas – the company the position and yourself. Look up the company’s web site and know what they do, their ownership structure and any recent issues such as takeovers or new products. Then review the position description and areas where you can add value and those areas where you may be weak.

Research your own background, your resume and strengths and weaknesses and practice your answers to likely questions. Although it may appear trite make sure you are happy with your appearance and that you will present as professionally as you can.

Finally, know where you are going and whom you are going to see and plan to ensure that you will be there in plenty of time. Use our interview guide for more guidance with interviews.

Perform like a champion at interview

Being well prepared will give you a boost at interview. You’ll be more confident about your ability to perform.

Be confident and positive and answer the questions succinctly. When you get the chance ask good questions about the challenges attached to the position, who it reports to, the key performance indicators, the reason for the vacancy and anything else that came out of your research. At the end of the interview always thank your interviewer and reaffirm your interest in the role even if you don’t think it’s for you. Your view may change on reflection later in the day.

A special mention for your referees

Before you attend the interview talk with your referees. They are your advisors and may know the company or be able to add some special advice. You will also want to alert them to the possibility of being contacted and need them to know the company and position you are being interviewed for so that they can be prepared to answer on your behalf.

Follow-up every interview

At the end of your interview ask the interviewer for his/her card and a potential time frame for their decision. Ensure that you follow up after the interview with a thank you letter or email and then a day or so after the deadline and follow up with a call to enquire about your progress.

Be flexible but firm in your negotiations

Sometimes but certainly not always organisations will try and negotiate a lower salary if you are unemployed on the basis that they think you will be more prepared to accept a lower salary.

If you get an offer and it’s below your realistic expectations try and understand the reasons why. Ideally meet with the agent or company contact face to face as you want to know if the salary is relevant to the job and you’re overqualified for the job or alternatively if they do want to pay a lower rate for the job. Explain your strong interest in the job but that you were hoping for a salary that reflected your skills and experience and the value you can add to the company.

If you’re unsuccessful, seek feedback

It’s important to understand the reasons why as this can help you in your next application or interview. Most interviewers are reluctant to be detailed in their feedback but if you explain that it’s purely to help you in your next application you may be able to elicit some constructive advice.

When you’re successful thank everyone who played his or her part

You will get a job – when you do just take the time to inform everyone that needs to know and certainly thank those that helped you along the way. Your referees, friends and consultants that have given you help and advice. It’s a nice touch and brings to a happy conclusion to a difficult period in your life. Above all that they will be genuinely pleased for you.