Outplacement counseling is an important and growing professional service industry in the United States and abroad. In general terms, outplacement counseling is a process of assisting employees who have lost their jobs to develop effective career plans and to find new employment. The need for outplacement services has grown dramatically in the past 15 years, as major U.S. corporations in a wide range of industries have eliminated jobs at the rate of approximately 400,000 per year.
Outplacement counseling has come to be recognized by business managers as a useful and practical tool to assist them in responding to a set of difficult business challenges. With the rapid expansion of the field has come the need to assemble, organize, and clarify the body of knowledge and information that is now available about outplacement. This book is designed as the first one in the field to present authoritative, up-to-date information on a comprehensive range of outplacement topics.
This volume is of value to all those interested in the field including current practitioners, "would-be" practitioners, and human resources professionals. It is also of interest to candidates receiving outplacement services, counseling students, and researchers interested in counseling in business and industry. With such a broad audience in mind it contains a wide range of information. There is both counseling theory and practical suggestions designed especially to assist the practitioner. In addition, there is broad descriptive information around a range of topics that are of value to all readers looking to become more familiar with the field. The book also contains many brief case histories of actual outplacement candidates. Written in nontechnical language, these descriptions bring to life the flavor of outplacement practice.
Work is a central and vital part of adult life. It has always been complicated to assist individuals in making sound career-related decisions. It is more complicated than ever given the rapid social and technological changes taking place throughout the global economy. Millions of individuals have already lost their jobs as a result of these changes. More will, undoubtedly, follow. During the past 20 years the outplacement industry has come to play a significant role in assisting individuals in securing employment and in helping organizations respond to their changing human resources challenges. As a result of its importance, the field of outplacement deserves to be more fully understood, judiciously improved, expertly delivered and wisely used. This book is presented to assist in these efforts.