CAREERS NOW 02-17-08

Rethinking a Return To Your Old Job

DEAR JOYCE: I quit a previous job nine months ago to take an even better one with stock options. I probably should have done more due diligence because the new job disappeared when the undercapitalized start-up company ran out of money. After looking for a new job since the first of the year, I've found nothing I want. My fiancé thinks I should try to go back to my previous company. Agree? - P.P.

When the economy is cooking, I'd recommend moving on to an entirely new adventure. But in today's murky job environment, take an open-minded look at the possibility of a second time around at the old shop.

Employees who leave a company and then come back after working elsewhere have become common enough to command their own buzzword - "boomerangs" - according to the head of MRINetwork, one of the world's largest search and recruitment organizations.

Why are boomerangs becoming more common? Risk reduction. The economic uncertainty on the horizon is causing managers to take a more conservative approach to hiring, says Michael Jalbert, president of MRINetwork. "They are looking for candidates who already know the team they will be working with, the corporate culture and who aren't going to take months to get up to speed. They are HR's sure thing."

So despite previous "no-rehire" policies that companies have enforced in the past concerning the voluntarily departed, it looks as though many have shifted to the perspective that taking back a known quantity is less risky than hiring new faces.

"Gone are the days when quitting automatically meant becoming persona non grata," Jalbert observes, adding "Often a good employee who leaves a company acquires additional skills, develops new contacts and learns first hand about the competition."

How wide is the width of welcoming arms to a returnee? You may be surprised at the bear hug you get, assuming you didn't torch bridges when leaving. As Jalbert says, "They always remember how you behaved at the end, and it will color their memory of your job performance."

How do you say you'd like to return to the fold? Call someone you respect at the company and ask for advice. That person may decide to act as your advocate with managers in the company who can pipe you aboard. Back-up plan: Contact your old boss or HR rep and say "I so liked working with my old team and took such pride in the quality of work we turned out that we should talk, don't you think?" Humble pie won't get you rehired. In a friendly and confident manner, be ready to discuss your future contributions.

DEAR JOYCE: Are staffing companies - the firms that deal in temporary and contract employment - still good places to look for jobs in today's downturn? I'm holding on -barely. - E.D.

Yes, according to a report in a leading recruiting industry publication, Workforce Management.

In the report, American Staffing Association vice president Steve Berchem says that although staffing employment historically has taken a severe hit during the three to six months before a recession is officially declared, it isn't happening right now: "The industry has generally been flat for the last year."

The most recent recession, in 2001, was a body blow for staffing employment when 800,000 staffing jobs were lost from the peak in 2000. Some observers believe that even if a full-blown recession is declared, the staffing industry will be saved from a tailspin because baby boomers are reaching retirement age and employers, needing to get their work done, will turn to staffing companies to avoid adding to head count.

On the other hand, many retirees are bypassing staffing agencies to accept contract or part-time work at their old jobs after discovering that their financial cupboards are not as well stocked as they'd anticipated.

Staffing firms may be your speediest road to a paycheck. And working short-term can buy time to search through other portals, including joining new cultural, social and faith-based groups to expand your contact assets, and continuing to read newspapers, trade journals and Web sites to spot job listings and new business openings or expansions.

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