Everything old is new again. Retro fashions have come back and are in style. Old rock bands are reuniting (again) for a tour. And companies are rehiring old employees. Yes, the phenomenon of boomerang employees is real and more common than ever. According to a recent survey, 76 percent of HR professionals said they are more willing to hire a boomerang employee now than in the past.
Those hiring managers could be on to something. Can you imagine if Apple hadn’t welcomed Steve Jobs back after he left? Rehiring might seem risky, but it can have many benefits as well. Hey, there’s a reason why those classic rock bands, and acts like New Kids on the Block, keep selling out reunion tours. People like familiarity and they appreciate a peer who has something familiar and reliable to bring to the corporate stage.
In the same way, boomerang employees could very well prove to be even better for you in their second-act performance than they were the first time around. Here’s why:
They already know your business.
You don’t have to worry about whether candidates will fit in with the office culture or if they’ll understand the structure of the organization — they’ve already been there and done all of that. A rehire basically eliminates the need for a complicated onboarding process. Both HR professionals (33 percent) and managers (38 percent) said in a Workplace Trends survey that familiarity with the organization’s culture is the biggest benefit to hiring…