Ask an HR Pro: Should I Hire a Boomerang Employee?

In the past, employees and employers alike often thought switching jobs was undesirable. This philosophy was instilled in people for multiple generations, but in recent years – and especially during the Great Resignation – this mindset has shifted. Employees are changing jobs more often than ever before, and the associated time and costs of this attrition can be challenging for employers. Enter: boomerang employees.

Boomerang employees are people who were employed at a company, left for a period of time to work somewhere else (or to go back to school, raise a family, take a sabbatical, or other personal reason), and then came back to work at the original company again. But some employers are wondering if it’s worth it to hire an employee who already left for supposed “greener pastures.” Lisa Shuster, iHire Chief People Officer, breaks down why rehiring former employees can be a good idea as well as key warning signs you should look out for.

Boomerang Employees Pros and Cons

Pros of Rehiring Former Employees

“There are multiple benefits of utilizing boomerang employees,” Shuster said. “One of the most obvious advantages is that boomerang employees are already familiar with the ins and outs of your company, their role, many of the staffers, and the overall work environment.”

When you bring back a boomerang employee, you don’t need to worry about whether or not they will wind up as a culture fit, or if their work ethic will match their resume – you already know.

Another pro: Boomerang employees are also less costly to hire and onboard than a totally new employee. The hiring process is far from cost-free; it takes a large amount of time and expense to spread the word about a new opening, examine resumes and applications, interview the top candidates, conduct background checks/references, and extend offers.

“Hiring boomerang employees may allow you to skip over some of the process and get straight to the actual hire without consuming much time at all,” Shuster added. “And, boomerang employees are productive on the job more quickly than other hires since they are already familiar with the position.”

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Cons of Rehiring Former Employees

“While the pros are great, you shouldn’t rush to hire a boomerang worker without doing your due diligence,” Shuster cautioned. “There are reasons why rehiring a former employee might not work out as well as you hoped.”

For example, their return could cause unnecessary conflict if they didn’t leave on the best of terms. You should be certain that there were no hard feelings with their team when they left. And if you conducted an exit interview, check to make sure any issues they brought up have been addressed. That segues into the next point: A boomerang worker could be considered a higher flight risk. They’ve already left once, and if nothing has changed on your end it’s likely they’ll leave again.

To mitigate these cons, have a deliberate, transparent talk with their team to ensure everything will go smoothly.

How To Keep Former Employees in Your Pipeline

As you can see, there are definite upsides to boomerang hiring if you’re able to alleviate any pain points. But how do you let former employees know when you have an opening?

“An easy way to keep alumni employees interested in your brand is to provide updates on open positions as well as how your business is achieving its goals – similarly to how you would in your monthly newsletter but in a more personalized way,” Shuster advised. “Invite them to a social media group or add them to an email list so they can remain updated.”

Make sure to reach out to them within the group and on an individual basis. Even though they don’t currently work for you, this will allow you to continue to develop a relationship with your former star employees.

“Turnover is a normal part of business and while it’s preferable to keep all your valuable staffers, it’s not always possible,” Shuster continued. “Make sure you have a talented pool of proven employees to fall back on by assembling a group of boomerang workers who would be eager to come back on board if given the opportunity!”

For more hiring tips, be sure to check out our Employer Resource Center. If you’re feeling overwhelmed with your hiring efforts and need to take some tasks off your plate, iHire’s Human Resources Services & Consulting team can help.