Written by Pamela Skillings

The layoff process is awkward and uncomfortable for everybody. Yes, it’s probably most excruciating for those who have to pack up their files and turn in their key cards. But it’s no picnic for the managers breaking the bad news or the “spared” coworkers skulking around in the background.

And many times, clueless or insensitive remarks or behavior can make the situation much worse.  I know this from personal experience (hence my new self-proclaimed nickname, “The Downsized Diva”). I was laid off twice, forced to deliver bad layoff news to others repeatedly, and managed to cling to my job through more layoff purges than I can count. I have also heard dozens of layoff horror stories from my clients, friends, and colleagues.

All of this horrible experience has helped me to identify some layoff etiquette tips that can make the whole ugly situation a little bit less painful for everybody.

For The Laid-Off

Okay, so you are understandably upset and angry.  You probably don’t care about etiquette or making life easier for your boss or co-workers right now.  However, if you’re able to remain calm and polite (just until you get out of the building…then you can drink tequila and curse your boss’ ancestors freely), you can make the best of a bad situation.

• Don’t make it personal. Don’t take the layoff personally and don’t hurl personal insults at the boss delivering the bad news. Your manager probably isn’t happy about laying you off and, in the long run, you’ll benefit more from his glowing recommendation than that brief moment of satisfaction from telling him off.
  

• Politely ask for what you want. If you can keep the layoff discussion reasonably civil, you stand a much better chance of getting what you want from your boss. She may not have the power to negotiate on the terms of the severance agreement, but she can provide a recommendation, job leads, or just some extra time to pack up your belongings and access your computer files.

• Don’t badmouth the company or your boss. Save your trash talk for your close friends and family. Let your managers and colleagues see you as a class act and a true professional (even if you’re silently wishing them bodily harm). They will be much more likely to think of you when a job lead or opportunity comes up.
  

For The Manager Laying Off

• Break the news in a considerate way. If you can, deliver the bad news one-on-one before your employee has to hear about their impending unemployment from the office gossip. Even worse: Learning that you’ve been downsized when your key card or computer password mysteriously stops working. Wimpy managers put off the layoff discussion because they know it will be unpleasant. Think about how you would want to be treated in the same situation and act accordingly (within the rules set by your HR department, of course).

• Show respect. You are not a superior human being just because you happen to be sitting on the powerful side of the desk in this layoff conversation. In some cases, you may be downsizing someone more competent and qualified than you are.  Either way, your employee deserves respect and compassion during this very difficult conversation.

• Don’t expect any sympathy. This isn’t about you. The person you’re laying off is not going to shed any tears about the stress you’re feeling right now, so don’t even think about asking for pity (and yes, this happens a lot).

For The Colleagues Who Escaped the Layoff Axe

• Be sympathetic, but not too sympathetic. Do express your regrets and offer encouraging words. Don’t act like your colleague’s world is ending. Everyone appreciates a little empathy, but most people don’t want (or need) your pity.

• Offer your help and support. For departing colleagues that you like and respect, make it clear that you can be counted upon for contacts, advice, and a sympathetic ear. Go out of your way to forward  appropriate job leads whenever you see them.

• Stay in touch. Don’t wait around for your favorite ex-colleagues to call you and ask for help. Email to check in regularly. Do NOT start every conversation with, “So, have you found a new job yet?” That just creates added pressure and leads to awkward conversations. Eventually, your former friends will start avoiding you simply to avoid that question.
• Throw a great goodbye party. Take your downsized pal out for a night of fun and be sure to pick up the tab. Invite the rest of the department or make it a party of two (let your ex-colleague decide which is most appropriate).

Other thoughts on layoff etiquette? Examples of bad layoff behavior? I want to read them.

Written by Pamela Skillings

It’s performance review season again! That means it’s time to sit down with your boss to review your 2008 accomplishments and find out if you’re going to take home more moolah in 2009.

This year, you may be feeling even more cynical about your performance review prospects than usual. You know how bosses always blame piddly raises and uninspiring bonuses on budget constraints (”If it were up to me, I’d give you a huge bonus!”)? Well, this year they will almost definitely be telling the truth.

But recent studies show that most companies are still planning to give raises in 2009 — approximately 3.5%  on average.  The bad news is that companies are also planning to lay workers off and raise employee contributions for health care.

So this year, your performance review represents more than just an opportunity to justify that 3.5% raise. It’s your chance to document your value to the company, strengthen your internal brand, and improve your chances of staying employed in 2009 (if that’s the sort of thing you’re into).

Yes, your performance review is really a marketing campaign. While good performance is no guarantee of keeping your job, you’re far likelier to keep those paychecks coming (and even make more money) if you can demonstrate how much the company and your manager would suffer without you around.

So whether you’re looking for a salary bump, a sweet bonus, or just a little extra insurance against a pink slip in 2009; here are some helpful tips for making your performance review pay off in the cold, hard world of late-2008 Corporate America. read more…

Written by Pamela Skillings

I am so happy that new episodes of The Office are back. I sat down to watch on Thursday night even though my other favorite shows are piling up on the old Tivo (sorry, America’s Toughest Jobs, I’ve been busy but I still love you).

It was a great episode. Unlike some fans, I’m not obsessed with the Jim/Pam romance thing (even though I think John Krasinski and Jenna Fischer are awesome). The highlights for me were 1) the humble return of Temp Ryan and his subsequent groveling to Kelly and her tapeworm; 2) another glimpse of Dwight with his rumpled, half-dressed, post-workplace-nookie glow; and 3) an update on my man Toby and his sad escape attempt from Corporate America. It was so nice to have them all back.

The warm, fuzzy feelings got me thinking that Dunder Mifflin Scranton might not be such a terrible place to work. Yes, the boss is totally incompetent and inappropriate and discriminates on the basis of race, gender, sexual orientation, and irrational dislike. Yes, employees spend their working lives devoted to the manufacture and sale of office paper. But a career at Dunder Mifflin can have its advantages too:

1) Flex-time — At Dunder Mifflin, it’s no problem to take time away from the office to maintain that elusive work/life balance. Pam is apparently on a sabbatical to study design in New York. Jim takes very long lunches for romantic rendezvous. Dwight and Angela take frequent bomp-chicka-wow-wow breaks in the supply room. Phyllis took time out of her work day for a long workout (even if it wasn’t intentional).

2) Every employee is special — The Dunder Mifflin party planning committee makes sure that every employee’s birthday is celebrated with cake (or fruit if they’re too fat) and conference room camaraderie. When an employee is feeling sad and weak from hunger, she is encouraged to stand on a chair and hear positive commentary about her butt and wardrobe choices. And if an HR rep believes than an employee is a little bit extra “special,” she will go out of her way to support him.

3) You get to live in Scranton — What could be better than living in close proximity to both the Anthracite Museum (with its awesome ride) and the Steamtown Mall? Here I must reveal that I have spent a lot of time in Scranton, PA over the course of my life. I grew up in a town that is approximately an hour away from Scranton and so small that we had to drive to Scranton for such cosmopolitan fun as shopping at a mall or getting served at a “club.” I still have fond Scranton memories of drinking underage and shopping at Claire’s Boutique.

4) It’s better than a Costa Rican hospital — Poor Toby. He summoned up the courage to quit his job and move to Costa Rica and ended up trapped in a full-body cast. Let his experience be a cautionary tale for all of us. When escaping from Corporate America, always remember safety first!

Written by Pamela Skillings

Financial services headhunters are going to be VERY busy this week as resumes start flying in response to the news that Lehman Brothers is teetering on the verge of bankruptcy and Merrill Lynch is about to be acquired by Bank of America.

A Reuters article this morning quotes employment experts who predict that recent developments could lead to a loss of up to 50,000 more jobs in the financial services sector. “The golden years of compensation in the financial services industry are over, and it doesn’t help with the Bear Stearns people still looking for work,” said Michael Karp, chief executive at executive search and consulting firm Options Group in New York.

The Lehman and Merrill headlines are just the latest reminders that there is no such thing as job security anymore (as if we needed or wanted another reminder). Even the most seemingly-stable job at the biggest company can disappear.

The experts are advising downsized financial services professionals to look for opportunities on the buy side, at smaller firms, and in overseas markets like Russia and the Middle East. And if you were in financial services primarily for the money or the “stability,” now might be a good time to start investigating alternate career paths.

It’s a stressful time for those working in financial services. I know what it’s like from personal experience. I have worked through countless layoffs, mergers, acquisitions, and reorganizations in the finance sector (and I only got laid off twice). I once even clung to my job while a 200-year-old global investment bank crashed and burned because of a rogue trader. I can tell you that the turmoil will eventually pass.

But below are links to some previous posts that might be useful for anyone currently feeling stressed out by the threat of impending layoffs:

• How to Prepare for a Layoff
• How to Get Started in Freelancing or Consulting — A Guide for the Recently Laid Off
• 7 Reasons to Change Careers Now (Never Mind the Recession)
• How to Keep Your Job During a Recession
• 10 Ways to Stay Sane in a Stressful Job

Written by Pamela Skillings

Who says losing your job has to be a bad experience? I don’t mean to be glib about it because I know personally that getting laid off or let go can be a very unpleasant surprise. However, I also know many people who have turned job losses into positive career changes and/or  profitable new business ventures.

I recently shared my views on this subject with a CNN.com reporter for the article Make Getting Fired Work for You. My bit is near the end (under the subhead ‘It’s OK to be happy about it").

The article also provide some other interesting insights. One tip is to thoroughly analyze why the job loss happened. While I agree that it’s generally useful to reflect on what you can learn from an experience,  I also think it’s important to make a distinction between getting fired and getting laid off. If you’ve been let go for performance issues, then it certainly makes sense to think about how you can avoid making the same mistakes in the future. However, when it comes to trying to understand the reasons for getting downsized, you can drive yourself crazy trying to figure out what you did to "deserve" it. In most cases, it absolutely was not you, it was them. You’d be better off using your analytical skills and your valuable time to figure out your next career move.

Written by Pamela Skillings

Flowers and jewelry make nice Mother’s Day presents, but a recent survey from CareerBuilder uncovered what working mothers really long for: more quality time with their families. In fact, many would be willing to trade a higher salary for a more flexible schedule.

The survey, which  reached out to 880 women who are employed full-time with children under the age of 18 living at home, discovered that:

• 43% of working moms said they would take a pay cut if it meant they could spend more time with their kids
• 34% said they would be willing to give up 10% or more of their salaries

You know that work/life balance issues have gotten serious when people are willing to give up a good chunk of their paychecks for some relief. According to the survey:

• 34% of working moms said they spend less than three hours per day with their children

• 24% said work had negatively impacted the relationships they have with their children
• 27% had missed two or more significant events in their child’s life in the last year
• 17% reported they had missed three or more
• 16% of working moms reported bringing work home at least three days a week

For many of these working mothers, a little bit more flexibility would make a whole lot of difference. The good news is that CareerBuilder.com has also found that more and more companies are recognizing the importance of offering options like telecommuting and flexible work schedules. 

If you’re struggling to balance the demands of work and parenthood, keep in mind that there may be ways to negotiate a more flexible schedule at the office. Even if your company doesn’t advertise the availability of these work arrangements, you may be able to work something out with your manager. The key is to approach it as a business conversation and look for compromises that will give you more flexibility for family demands without leaving your company in the lurch.

And if your current company doesn’t see the value of supporting work/life balance, there are other companies out there that do. To find them, start by checking out the Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For (in particular, see the companies ranked highest for work/life balance, telecommuting and other benefits) and the Working Mother Top Companies rankings.

Written by Pamela Skillings

It’s a beautiful day in New York City. I just returned from reconnecting over lunch with one of my favorite former bosses, who left the world of big corporate to become Chief Marketing Officer for an up-and-coming smaller company. We had a great time catching up and comparing notes about life outside the cubicle farm.

Then, on my way to the subway, I passed the sign in the photo. First of all, A+ for clever marketing. This particular flower and plant shop  is located in midtown Manhattan in a sea of office towers and just steps from  the Grand Central Terminal commuter hub.  I would bet that more than a few harried office workers paused when they saw that sign and picked up a pretty posy to brighten up their cube. I almost went in and bought something and I actually like my job.

Looking for other ways  to brighten up your work day? Check out the interesting and educational online diversions  below:

• Alltop — Visit Alltop to find the best blogs on your favorite topics. This directory is the latest brainchild of entrepreneurship guru Guy Kawasaki and is guaranteed to keep you entertained for hours. I discovered the site after my blog was added to the Careers section and have since been exploring lots of cool new blogs about career topics and other fun stuff like movies, wine, and excessive cuteness.

• Why Most People End Up Hating Their Jobs — Pinny Cohen has an interesting post about how specialization can cause job dissatisfaction. 

• GigZig — GigZig is one of my favorite online career planning tools. It’s a great way to see all of the different future career options that are possible from where you are now. Enter your current job title and see all of the different future careers that might await you (based on info submitted by the thousands of people who have completed PayScale surveys). Or type in your dream job and see the different paths others have taken to get there.

Written by Pamela Skillings

There’s an interesting article on Yahoo! (by way of AllBusiness.com) titled  5 Ways to Keep Your Job During a Recession.

There are a lot of articles like this one popping up, so it’s pretty clear that people are feeling job security anxiety these days. And this piece features some good advice. It’s always a good idea to boost your visibility (in positive ways only, of course) and marketability. Another tip that wasn’t mentioned — focus on maintaining a strong relationship with your boss (and, ideally, your boss’s boss) and make sure he/she knows about all of the valuable things that you do. Make sure that decision makers are aware of the value that you provide to the company.

However, I think the most valuable advice comes in the conclusion of the article: "And, because there’s no guarantee that you will retain your job in a recession, no matter how hard you try, it doesn’t hurt to be prepared. On your own time, update your resume. Also, make sure that you are still networking with old bosses, coworkers, and business contacts. Don’t wait until you are laid off to keep your contacts and resume fresh. You will get better results if you are prepared ahead of time."

Amen. The bottom line  is that there is no way to control whether you’ll keep your job during a recession or even during a strong economy. Today, all corporations go through layoffs and it’s hard to predict when or how they are going to happen. It’s not only companies in underperforming sectors that lay people off. You can waste a lot of time and energy worrying about layoffs that would be better spent preparing to minimize any negative fallout if it does happen.

I don’t mean to be a Debbie Downer, but I think people should keep in mind that strong performance is no guarantee that you’ll stick around. I have seen many valuable employees get laid off and many slackers survive job cuts. I have wasted many hours gossiping about layoff rumors, speculating about the safety of my job, and ostentatiously "adding value" in every meeting to show how indispensable I was. All of that while I could have been working on my resume.

The truth is that layoff decisions are often made for reasons that have nothing to do with performance. Sometimes an entire department is laid off or just the people who make the highest salaries in a certain group.

That’s why you can’t ever take it personally. Future employers know that getting laid off is no reflection on your value as an employee or a person. In fact, most job candidates at this point can probably boast at least one lay-off on their resumes.

So yes, you should keep performing well. This is no time to slack off. But stop gossiping, worrying, and biting your nails. Instead, use your spare time to step up your passive job search efforts and start looking for your next position. Even if you don’t end up needing a new job, it’s always a good idea to keep your options open.

Written by Pamela Skillings

Decades ago, our grandparents would have had easy answers to that question. They would have pointed at a field harvested, a box of widgets manufactured, or at least a pile of papers processed. For knowledge workers in the Information Age, it is much harder to identify the tangible results of a day in the office.

Almost everything that we do is virtual. We debate in meetings, answer emails, fight through bureaucracy, and type away on our computers. The result for many is frustration and decreased job satisfaction. A great article by Jared Sandberg in The Wall Street Journal analyzes the effect of intangible work results on employee satisfaction and makes some great points.

I was struck by the quotes from successful knowledge workers who said that they envy people with lower-paying and less prestigious jobs that offer immediate and tangible feelings of accomplishment. One insurance broker even cited his envy of  Mr. Fred Flinstone, who always seemed so satisfied to slide down that dinosaur’s tail when the whistle blew at the end of a work day at the quarry.

The article also speculated that these feelings of frustration may be partially responsible for the boom in weekend do-it-yourselfers. A management consultant confessed that she took up needlework to get the feelings of control and accomplishment that she was missing at work.

I can definitely relate to the sentiments quoted in the article. I used to leave the office at the end of the day exhausted, but feeling like I had just spent hours running on a hamster wheel. Not every day, but far too often.

I don’t think this feeling is inevitable in the Information Age, though I do think it’s hard to avoid in many bureaucratic corporate environments. Sandberg suggests that setting meaningful short-term work goals can help people feel more satisfied. Making to-do lists can also help. It’s an undeniably great feeling to cross an item off the list. Cutting back on meetings and unnecessary red tape can also make you more productive.

Working for myself, I still spend a lot of time on my computer, but I also feel a strong sense of accomplishment almost every day. The drawback of working for myself is that I never get to slide down the dinosaur’s tail when the bell rings at the end of the day. I often work late into the night, but I have autonomy over where, when, and how I work. For me, that has significantly boosted my job satisfaction even when my daily work results are hard to define.

What’s your take on the impact of sense of accomplishment on your job satisfaction?

Written by Pamela Skillings

Delta Airlines is offering voluntary severance packages to thousands of employees, according to a recent AP story. Higher fuel prices and a weak economy have prompted the move, which aims to cut 2,000 front-line, administrative and management jobs.

Employees who accept the offers will receive severance payments as well as travel privileges and additional benefits to help them with managing their career transitions.

While the announcement of job cuts is rarely good news for a company, the offer of voluntary severance packages can be a fantastic opportunity for those who are contemplating a career change or a complete escape from Corporate America. Most voluntary severance packages come with at least a couple of months of salary and benefits and often other perks to sweeten the deal.

Several of the corporate escape artists that I interviewed were able to jump start their new careers or businesses because of voluntary severance packages. I remember a time when I fervently prayed that I would be laid off with severance. There may be some risk involved in "taking a package" in an uncertain economy, but it may also be too good an opportunity to pass up.

If you’re tempted by a severance package offer, take the time to sit down and do the math:

• With severance payments and any savings you’ve socked away, how long will you be able to pay your bills without additional income?
• How long is it likely to take for you to find a new job or get a new income source up and running (like your own business or a freelance career)?
• Is your job likely to be at risk if you DON’T take a package? If it seems likely that there will be additional non-voluntary job cuts at your firm and that your job could be vulnerable, you may be better off leaving now (assuming that it’s financially viable). Voluntary severance packages are often sweeter deals than the standard packages offered to downsized employees.

If you’d like to leave, but have concerns about finances or benefits, it may help to consult a financial advisor and get some expert guidance. If you are struggling with other issues — like whether you really want to leave or what you’re going to do next — a career counselor can help you to evaluate your options and do any necessary research.

In any case, it’s important to look at the potential opportunities represented by a voluntary severance offer After all, it would take you months to save up enough money to equal a generous severance payout. That cash can provide a nice safety net while you get a new business up and running, look for a new job, or navigate a career change.