My First Layoff And What I Learned

Our company recently made some organizational changes to brace ourselves for the anticipated economic impact.

What this fancy sentence means: we had to reduce our staff.

This was my first experience with a lay-off. To be honest, I was completely freaked out, nervous, unsure and a bit of a mess. While the cut wasn’t deep by traditional measures, our company is on the smaller side so the impact was larger.

Here is what I learned:

1. Remember: No matter how freaked out you are, no matter how much you think it sucks for you, it is not nearly as bad as actually being laid off. Never ever, ever say, “It’s bad for you, but think of how I feel!” Don’t ever invalidate the laid off employee with your own emotions. (Thanks to Guy Kawasaki- a timeless article I referenced frequently.)

2. Get organized. As I was preparing, everything else I was working on fell to the side or was put on hold. I do not suggest this working style.

3. Learn from the people who have done it before. One of the first calls I made was to my sister-in-law who has been involved in the lay-off process several times (she’s an HR Generalist). She was able to give me very helpful tips that I wouldn’t have found otherwise. Not just legal tips, but emotional tips, too. You'll need some support if it's your first time.

4. Call an employment lawyer. Cover your bases and such-- make sure your releases are worded correctly and that you are providing the correct documentation.

5. Provide any support you can. A valuable stop I made? The Unemployment Office. Go so your laid off employees don’t have to. Yes, in Massachusetts you have to provide the unemployment brochure-- but go above and beyond if you're able. I talked to the Operations Director at my local office and left with armfuls of information to pass on.

6. Provide more support. I made sure our laid off employees had the contact information for our recruiter and encouraged them to join LinkedIn if they hadn’t already (Thanks USNews & PunkRockHR). If your company is financially able, there are tons of outplacement services you can use.

7. Remember the remaining staff. They need time to process. If you’ve been given notice of the lay-offs, you’ve probably had many more days to process the impact. Encouraging our employees to hop on LinkedIn and leave their personal recommendations was one way to help them process. In a software company, I think this was particularly useful-- easier and more immediate than a letter. Survivor's guilt stinks-- don't be afraid to acknowledge it.

8. I cannot stress #1 enough. This doesn’t mean you should walk around constantly feeling guilty, but it does mean that you shouldn’t moan and wail about how awful it was for you. Awful is always relative.

9. Brace yourself for a little negativity. If you're a self-described Polly Positive like me, this is especially difficult. Not everyone in your company is going to see this as a step in the right direction, regardless of how much reassurance you provide. Most likely they are scared and nervous about their own jobs. Expect people to be updating their resumes. Wouldn’t you?

10. Its temporary. When the economy turns, this will hopefully be a blip in your company's history. Find the balance between constantly dwelling on it and forgetting it completely.

Creative HR

Last year, I took a two day intensive HR Admin primer with the EANE, a great group of HR professionals and lawyers. I came out of the course a bit paranoid and, if you were to ask my boss, completely freaked out.

I am going to sound totally naive to some of you now-- but there are so many laws. Laws you need to get other people (namely, managers/supervisors) to comply with. It's tricky, to say the least.

After I calmed down, I decided that I needed to impart this information to our management team. I immediately opened PowerPoint and created a quick outline of what I wanted our managers to know.

Then I immediately closed PowerPoint.

A standard PowerPoint presentation just wouldn't do. Our workplace is spurred by constant outbursts of creativity and innovation. It mostly resides in the engineering department, but I like a challenge and wanted this presentation (my first in the company) to be superb.

I assessed the situation:

1. Most of the group had, at some point in their careers, received formal human resources trainings-- videos, sessions, you name it.
2. As a general rule, no one likes HR meetings.
3. I wanted them to have a discussion about some of these laws and how they apply to our work environment without saying, "Now let's discuss these laws and how they apply to our work environment."
4. Our management team has a fantastic sense of humor.

What I had learned in my training was that the laws and regulations regarding harassment and record keeping were not as obvious as I had thought. So I put together a Jeopardy-style presentation. Here's a the cover slide:


(Since I appreciate the details, I made sure to use Alex Trebek circa 1989. My apologies to Jeopardy.)

My participants had a about a minute to discuss the answers among themselves. After I revealed the correct answer, a short discussion naturally ensued and we also reviewed the legal implications. At the end of the session, we had a larger (unplanned!) discussion about policies and consistency.

There were a few snags-- it would have been great to have the actual laws referred to on hand for folks to review-- but all in all, I felt that it was a success. I'll be doing a couple more of these presentations this year around other relevant topics for managers (interviewing, performance management). In addition to those, I'm wracking my brain for an innovative harassment presentation to give the employees.

I'm curious to hear about other ways you are making your job more creative-- whether it's open enrollment, or just day-to-day stuff.

UPDATED: Just wanted to link to this great eBook by Manager's Sandbox regarding training with presentations.

8 Tips for Applying to Work for a Software Company

(Courtesy of your friendly HR Manager, currently hiring for an Office Admin)

1. If your resume is interesting, or you are qualified, I will Google you.

2. If I Google you and find your Facebook/MySpace/Flickr/Blog, there is a 99.999% chance I will look at anything you put on the Internet. You chugging a beer in college will be hilarious for me to show my cube-mates, but it won't make me pick up the phone. (Tip: Make it private, or don't post it.)

3. If your email address includes the phrase "aol.com," there is a very, very good chance I will not look at the rest of your qualifications. Particularly when I use the phrase "comfortable with emerging technologies" in the advertisement.

4. Proficient in Microsoft Word? Your resume should reflect this a bit. You don't need to use a ton of themes, objects, or clip art (on second thought, don't use ANY of those), but something more than a grid and Times New Roman would be nice.

5. I want to know what you actually did in your last job. Your work description shouldn't be "I hated being on commission, the hours were terrible." So... you complained the whole time you worked there? Got it.

6. Tell me what you want to do with yourself, in a few sentences or less. I don't need a static cover letter. It's a software company! We're hip! You have a little leeway here. And be honest! "I just graduated from college, I need some experience and money" will do just fine.

7. Please do not take the application process as an opportunity to tell me how bad the economy is. I KNOW HOW BAD THE ECONOMY IS.

8. Don't use a silly email address. I learned this in my college orientation, and I've carried it with me ever since. If your email address is not some combination of your first name and/or last name, it better be somewhat professional. If it references a Disney movie, I will take a lot for me to move past that and actually review your resume.

The Case for a Free Work Environment

I have a friend who called me recently about his job. The problem was that his work environment had turned sour. It went from relatively open and communicative to catty and snide. His manager recently gave a depressing "the economy is going to Hell, don't be surprised if your job goes with it" chat at their staff meeting. His boss started riding him for coming in 15 minutes late in the mornings (despite the fact that he was working 40+ hours a week).

Unfortunately, this is the reality for a lot of the professional workforce. I'm only 27, but I can get all "Back in My Day-Snow-Four Miles-Uphill, etc etc" quickly these days. I had to be at work at 8:30 on the nose. My lunch was exactly 1/2 hour, no more. I couldn't work from home. I was required to drive in on snowy days (or be forced to take a vacation day).

As more and more jobs emerge in the technology field, these standards are quickly changing. To attract a younger, innovative work force, employers are becoming more lax in these old school standards. It's not just technology companies that are adopting this style, either.

What it does for employee morale is immeasurable: no one is looking over your shoulder, resentful if you came in at 9:30 instead of 8. You chose to come in earlier because it suits you. You can take a long lunch. Go for it. Play the Wii. Need to work from home? OK.

Typically this kind of freedom is reserved for the upper level employees in an organization (managers, directors). But the new model dictates that these rights are afforded to everyone.

Employees are encouraged to talk it out rather than resort to an annoying system of complaints, complaint escalation and managerial response.

The bottom line is that your work gets completed. There are consequences for failing to meet your goals. It's the We'll Trust You First model of employee culture.

The downside, of course, is the abuse of such a trusting system. There is always the employee who wants even more freedom. As a "veteran" of the old-school model, I can get annoyed: They just don't know how good they have it. Some employees would kill to play video games at lunch! You hear me?! Killlll!!!! I've had to remind myself to put Grandma Christina back in the nursing home and pay attention.

This model is basically brushing aside a lot of the crap and just getting to the point. And for the employee that can handle this system-- and not all people can-- it makes a huge difference in the overall company culture.

To PHR or not to PHR

I'll admit it: I am completely and utterly sold by the idea of having some letters behind my last name. Sure, it's not PhD or MD, but it's better than nothing. And it means I'm a professional!

But a professional what exactly? Professional HR person? It's not enough that I'm an HR Generalist (read: Generally Awesome), but to be an HR Professional-- what is that, like a hit man or something? Do I get a certificate and a trench coat?

So, my HR Professionals, with your PHRs and trench coats, tell me-- what's so great about it? What will it bring to my company and career?