Rjob found out when you should come back and how to do it properly.
Here I am! Unexpectedly?
The rationale behind a voluntary resignation is more or less obvious. Evolution of career interests, desired position, good income, promise of breath-taking prospects – all these things make us think of finding a new employer. But why then would some turn themselves in to the old boss and ask to change things back?“The most common situation is when an employee is lured away with a high salary. However, afterwards, the specialist learns about a number of terms that he is not comfortable with. For instance, a company is not willing to shift his hours to an earlier time so that he could have enough time to pick up his kid from the kindergarten. Or this is about a dedicated specialist who is used to working with clearly defined tasks. But the new employer’s staff is unable to determine the rules of the game, and the employee is forced to work as a task-setter in addition to his job duties, says Zulfia Yupashevskaya, Head of HR Services, BDO Unicon Outsourcing. It happens that people deliberately take a break for studies, and at times, they quit to try themselves in a new capacity to come back later.”
There are quite enough reasons to come back. The key is to properly explain the situation to the former boss who may either give you a second chance or answer with a plump “no”.
Alla Zaripova, Director for Business Development, Iceberg Analytic, managed to convince her boss to take her back.
“The re-employment decision was made at the management’s level, and therefore, I faced no problems with the HR Office. The colleagues’ attitude towards my come-back was positive, as we had a friendly team and no one would question my professional reputation. I saw no changes for worse after coming back,” Alla Zaripova recalls.
Based on her experience, the expert recommends that you tell your old boss frankly why the new job proved unsuitable for you.
In most cases, the management benefits from come-backs, as the other employees realise that the company they are with is quite competitive and it makes no sense looking for anything better out there.
Boss’ and Colleagues’ Attitude
Far-sighted directors shall re-employ a specialist as they understand that after spending time on the other side, this specialist will hardly want to change jobs again.
“I don’t think that a leaving employee is guilty of anything. We all have the right to try something new: to learn, to take a more interesting position with another company, to master some new domains. If a certain specialist did not succeed at a new company for any reason, we welcome him back and know that his commitment has grown stronger. He had a “bit on the side” and made sure that it’s better here. If he had left to get extra knowledge and now wants to come back – it’s great, we need such people even more,” Zulfia Yupashevskaya emphasises.
According to Valeria Yevdokimova, HR-Analytics Project Manager, Banki.ru, one of the critical facts is that the employer will be more welcoming of an employee who is able to substantiate the reasons for his departure focusing on the positive aspects: the appetite for gaining experience or trying himself in a new status. But you should definitely abstain from criticising your former superiors and complaining of their downsides.
However, not all the bosses have a welcoming attitude towards the employees coming back. Some would even interpret a voluntary resignation as treason. Particularly, if an employee defects to competitors. Nonetheless, Roman Alekhin, a founder of Orto-Doctor Group, holds an opposite opinion, saying that such employees should be taken back, as they may bring in new skills and information.
“I once re-employed an employee who was dismissed for going on a binge and not showing up for a month. This person is still with my company, which I am very happy about, Roman Alekhin reflects on his experience. Defecting to competitors is quite a different matter. I don’t consider re-employment of such people as something out of the common. The thing is that to a number of my employees, my company is their first job, they have nothing to compare with. At times, they move over to other companies thinking that life is better there. And quite often they become disappointed and ask me to take them back. If I do need the employee’s competences, I will re-employ him”.
Important remark: the management will only approve re-employment of a specialist if he had left gracefully and had not damaged the company.
Resigning Properly
Don’t burn your bridges behind you and don’t muddy the water that you may have to drink. The way you resign affects your chances of coming back when the need arises.
Memorise a few important rules:
- Don’t lash out at your colleagues and your boss, even if you think they deserve it.
- Don’t criticise the management when socialising with your colleagues informally – some of them may later tell on you.
- Prior to your resignation, wrap up the things you’ve started, and help your colleagues that will take over your duties with advice.
- Give your phone number and email to your colleagues and your boss in case they may have questions and want to contact you.
“If the corporate culture accepts it, bring a cake, organise a farewell party, and wish everyone success in their future endeavours,” the expert recommends.
These simple little things will help you to preserve good professional relations, which is quite useful, even if you are not planning to come back.
Taking and Coming Back
It is important to any executive to know the real motivation of the employee asking to be re-employed. Has he really learnt the lesson and wants to come back to work productively or is he merely intending to sit it out and then wave goodbye to everybody.Roman Alekhin shares the method he uses to test his subordinates: “An employee will be re-employed, only if he tells his story in our corporate portal newsfeed, explaining the rationale behind his resignation and describes his experience with the other companies, compares our company to competitors and tells us why he wants to come back. When I see that this employee is not intending to come back in order to sit it out while looking for a new job, I will take the decision to re-employ him.”
Valeria Yevdokimova believes that an employee coming back will have to win the colleagues’ and management’s trust back.
“In order to do that, you need to work flat out, bring in something new, apply the experience you gained while working for the other company. It is crucial that the people around you understand the rationale behind your step, and therefore, I recommend that you support it with arguments and put things the way they are, for instance: “Yes, I did stay with another company and I realised that I am more valued as an employee here, that I feel my importance, and have the opportunity to bring in my personality here. On the contrary, in a large corporation, I feel like a small screw that no one pays attention to,” the expert recommends.
But remember that there is always a risk that your re-employment may involve a lower salary compared to what you used to have, as the position you resigned from might have already been taken by someone else.
“And at times, it’s quite the opposite – the employee coming back might be offered a totally new interesting position that was introduced while he was away. For example, a couple years ago, a highly qualified and valuable payroll specialist resigned from our company. He came back about a year ago, but was offered a different position – quality assurance manager with the same department,” Zulfia Yupashevskaya assures.
To Come Back or Not to Come Back? It all depends on a specific situation and your career priorities. If you do choose to step twice into the same river, please, follow our experts’ advice and take the risk!
Source:
Subscribe to our publications
We write only about the most important. You will be the first to know about economic events that affect your business, how to reduce costs, optimize the company's operations and make the right management decisions without immersion in operational processes.
Subscribed
