Rehiring 'boomerang employees' can benefit employers and workers

Today’s economy and changing work environment have many employers thinking outside the box in their search for talented workers. So-called “boomerang employees” who previously worked for a company are an increasingly viable option.

“Gone are the days when boomerang employees carried the stigma of disloyalty,” according to a new Visier Insights Report. “In times of grave talent shortages, rehires are on the rise and considered an untapped source of talent for organizations. Our data suggests that today’s boomerang employees typically return to their previous employers after around one year away reenergized, armed with new skills and ready to renegotiate their terms.”

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Rehiring previous employees who left voluntarily can benefit for both parties. The hiring process of boomerang employees can be more cost effective. Companies can save in recruitment costs, shorter onboarding and training times, and at the same time, benefit from the employee’s newly gained external knowledge and existing institutional knowledge. For employees who spend time away and return to a known employer with a promotion and pay increase, working in a familiar work environment can be both comforting and motivating.

The report, based on an analysis of 15 million employee records, finds five key trends.

1. About one-third of external hires are boomerang employees. Twenty-nine percent of newly hired employees in both in full- and part-time permanent positions were rehires in 2020, compared to 27% in 2021 and 28% in the first four months of 2022.
2. The critical timeframe for rehiring is 13 months. The likelihood of returning decreases sharply after a worker has been away for 16 months.
3. Managers are more likely to be rehired. Four in 10 rehired managers were individual contributors at time of their resignation and returned to their previous company in a managerial role.
4. More than one-fourth of boomerang employees were high performers when they left. The majority of rehires were performing at mid-level at the time of their resignation, and more than one-quarter of boomerang employees were rated as high performers when they left the organization.
5. Boomerang employees on average earn 25% more when they return. The average pay increase for rehires so far in 2022 has been 28%.

The report offers several tips for businesses that are considering rehiring former employees:

• Tap into the alumni network in the first 12 months of employee exits.
• Destigmatize rehires during recruitment and career conversations.
• Provide talented stayers “boomerang-like” opportunities for learning and growth.
• Strengthen managers’ muscle for positive on- and off-boarding experiences.
• Encourage strong social networking skills in all employees.

It also is important to build a company culture to which former employees want to return.

“If people do boomerang, it says something about the company they left and boomerang back to, because I really still did believe in the company and the vision and all those good things and the people that were there,” a rehire in training and development says.