Having to leave an organization you enjoy working for is never a great feeling but being on the receiving end of McKinsey’s 9-month pay leave offer does help to soften the blow. Marking a tough time in the consulting industry, McKinsey’s staff exit offer details how employees can continue to look for alternate sources of employment while still being able to support themselves and use the company’s resources to transition in their careers. The company has not revealed how many employees have been offered the option to leave but sources indicate triple-digit numbers, so hundreds of their employees could turn up on the job market soon.
After reducing the headcount at the company by 1,400 employees last year, the company has still seen evidence of areas where they might be overstaffed and the news comes as a result of them downsizing their human resources yet again.
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McKinsey’s 9 Months Pay Leave Offer Is a Generous One Considering the Current State of the Market
As of writing this, the company has not publicly offered any details on why the company is making the move and which segment of the staff will be the most significantly affected by McKinsey’s voluntary departure scheme. An article by The Times was among the first to break the news and it indicates that the offer could be directed more heavily towards employees in the UK. After a hiring boom that took place in the last few years, organizations appear stuck with more workers than work for them to do, which could be one of the reasons behind the job cuts and McKinsey’s 9-month pay leave offer.
The news is not unexpected—earlier in February, the company’s regular performance reviews had ended with about 3,000 employees seeing “concern” warnings regarding their performances. As is typical for the company, these employees had three months to improve their performance to match the organization’s expectations. The number seems quite high from an outsider’s perspective but considering the 45,000-strong workforce, it doesn’t make up as much of its staff as you’d think. The company also told ET HRWorld, “Our proportion of concerns ratings is consistent with our historical range. It is not an unprecedented year. The performance evaluation process we have today also remains consistent with years past.”
We’re not sure if it’s the same section of the company that is now receiving McKinsey’s compensation for leaving but it is unlikely. Poor performance at the organization would be cause for more immediate termination rather than this extended opportunity to continue receiving their salary. McKinsey’s current offer will be directed towards well-performing employees open to considering alternate employment opportunities.
Understanding the McKinsey Staff Exit Offer Details
Those who receive McKinsey’s 9-month pay leave offer will be able to use their time to look for alternate sources of employment for the next step in their careers. The employees will receive full pay during these nine months to ensure they are still supported while they make the move. McKinsey’s career training program and coaching will be available to these outgoing employees for their personal use as well.
“We routinely refine our approach to development and performance to ensure we continue to meet these goals, and we continue to recruit and hire robustly. These actions are part of our ongoing effort to ensure our performance management and development approach is as effective as possible, and to do so in a caring and supportive way.”
—McKinsey spokesperson to FOX Business
Regardless of whether they find employment or not, however, those who accept this offer will have to move out of the company in the next nine months and cannot opt to retain their roles later. In most cases, employees moving out from the big firm should be considered a valuable asset to other companies that are hiring, so the proffered support should be enough to see them through.
Major Takeaways from McKinsey Voluntary Departure Scheme
The employees receiving McKinsey’s compensation for leaving may be disappointed at having to move out from their roles but the support from the company should help them find their footing more easily compared to other employees losing their jobs right now. The size of the company and its dominant position in the market makes it easy for the company to extend such extensive support. However, other organizations that find themselves in such a position still owe their employees some consideration.
Smaller-scale businesses may not have the funds for such extended financial support for their employees but there are many ways to extend support to whatever degree possible. Financial assistance for a three-month duration might be helpful to ensure the employee has enough time to look for temporary work if nothing else or get their assets into place for the upcoming months.
Any additional assistance such as getting them in touch with a recruitment agency, skills support ideas like McKinsey’s career training program, and other considerations can also make the transition easier for the employee. Planning out a severance package is something the company needs to invest time in early on in its inception to ensure that it has sufficient resources available when it does come time to let some employees go.
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