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Who says you can’t go home again? Certainly not employers. In a Robert Half survey, 98 percent of human resources managers said they would consider rehiring a former employee who left the company on good terms.
“Boomerang employees” can offer a number of benefits. For example, they already understand the company, and their learning curve likely won’t be as steep. You’re also familiar with their skills, personality and culture fit, minimizing your chances of making a costly hiring mistake.
As valuable as former employees can be as potential recruits, you still can’t shortchange the hiring process. Here are questions to ask yourself when considering them as job candidates, along with tips for integrating them back into the office.
When to rehire
Of course, you wouldn’t rehire former workers who left on bad terms. But it’s not always the right move to ask past top performers to come back, either.
Here are a few things to think about when former employees want to return:
- Why did the person resign from your company? If the employee left to take a higher-level position elsewhere, then rehiring her for an even more senior role could be a smart move — she’ll likely have valuable new skills and experience to bring to the job. The same is true if the employee stepped down to further her education or attain a new certification. Also, if you reluctantly let someone go during downsizing, consider a rehire during a boom period.
However, if the employee resigned over dissatisfaction with an aspect of the job — salary, benefits, management, coworkers or company culture, for example — that has not changed, it’s probably not wise to rehire her. There’s a good chance she’ll quickly become dissatisfied again.
- Do you need someone to step in right away — and stay for the long-term? Rehiring former employees can be useful when you have a time-sensitive assignment or need to replace a departing worker as soon as possible. They’re a known entity and won’t require the same amount of time to acclimate to your corporate culture as other candidates.
Before extending an offer, though, determine if your personnel need is an ongoing one. If it’s not, consider bringing in a project professional, which could be the former employee, to access on-demand subject matter expertise or immediately address a staffing shortage.
- What does your current team say? When considering a rehire, reach out to employees who worked closely with the person the first time around. They may have insights into the person’s skills and fit for the workplace environment you weren’t aware of.Be careful not to downplay issues your staff members bring to your attention just because the former employee has needed skills. If they raise concerns that could be overcome, address those in the interview and reference checks.
How to approach rehiring
Even though boomerang employees can be great additions to your staff, there are right and wrong ways to rehire someone. Keep these do’s and don’ts in mind:
- DO meet with other candidates. Even if you think the former worker is the ideal person for the open position, it never hurts to interview additional applicants. There might be one who’s a better fit for the job, or one who’d make a good candidate for another open position at your company.
- DON’T skip the formal interview. People change. A former employee may have new professional goals or constraints that prevent him from fulfilling certain job duties, such as traveling or working the occasional late night.Also, if a boomerang employee has been gone a long time, his skills may not be as sharp. Use the interview and reference-check processes to dig deeper, especially if the person is applying for a role that’s different from the one he held in the past.
- DO clarify expectations. A returning employee may have preconceptions about the role she’s applying for, based on what it was like previously. If the job duties have evolved or new skills are required, explain that.
- DON’T forget about other options. There are many types of work arrangements. If you don’t have a full-time position for the former employee, consider bringing him in for an interim position.
- DO keep the door open. Even if you decide against rehiring a former employee, or the person declines the job offer, stay in touch. You never know when circumstances — or minds — will change.
As with any job candidate, it’s important to weigh the risks and benefits when contemplating a rehire. The opportunity to bring back a former star employee might be welcome, but don’t neglect your due diligence.
Tim Hird is the executive director of Robert Half Management Resources.