Last week I got a chat from David Dalka who sent me a link to a Washington company with a very sad story. You can read it here, but before you do, you’ll either want to clutch your resume, or grab a box of Kleenex.
Can you imagine working at a startup with a few dozen other professionals, getting excited about funding and company progress, and then finding out the bosses are going to prison?
I swear to you, if you think your job is safe, IT ISN’T. Hold on for a second while I go up on my roof and shout “YOUR JOB IS NOT SAFE!!”
- The economy could tank.
- Your CEO could be doing illegal stuff.
- Someone could be jockying for your job, right now, as you are reading this email.
- Your biggest customer could end the contract (this happened to my last company, and they lost almost 1/2 of their revenue overnight).
- Your spouse or loved-one could have an out-of-state emergency and you’ll have to move and start over.
- (Fill in the blank: __________________________________________)
There are SO MANY reasons that you could get terminated. Pick one. About my title, never getting laid off if you work for the right company, I am not sure that right company exists.
I hope you are doing something as CEO of Me, Inc. You are, aren’t you? For starters you should sign up for the JibberJobber One Thing email. It’s free… and it’s something to do for your career right now.
Great advice to choose your company carefully. However, if you’re stuck with the company you’ve chosen for now, staying off the layoff list is the next best strategy. Here’s some advice on avoiding a layoff in your company. Except in drastic situations like business failure or near failure, there are criteria that are used to determine which employees are part of the layoff list. It should not be a suprise to anyone that the least valuable employees are put on the list first and the most valuable last or not at all. So…. the way to avoid being on the list in the first place is to add more visible value to the organization than anyone else, or almost anyone else. How can this be done?
1. Being a hard worker who completes more high quality work than most of your peers.
2. Understanding your company’s strategic plans and how your organization contributes to them.
3. Forming positive relationships with your peers, customers, and management. This includes supervisors and managers other than your direct supervisor because many times a layoff list is developed by all supervisors and their opinion may help your supervisor keep you off the list.
4. Collaborate with peers and customers to create better solutions and service.
5. Volunteer for extra projects to add extra value to the organization.
I have more tips, but have run-on enough for now.
Paul Lubic
https://www.practicalcareeradvice.com