The HR department at financial services company Abbey Life has created a
unit to help staff being made redundant to find and prepare for other work.
Following the sale of its sales operation to Allied Dunbar, Abbey Life
announced it is to shed 400 of the 1,200 jobs at its Bournemouth head office.
In response to the redundancies personnel director Steve Barker teamed up
with outplacement consultancy Marton House to create Options – a unit dedicated
to helping staff get new jobs.
The service offers a programme of core activities such as CV preparation,
vocational guidance, interviewing technique as well as extra modules on
self-employment and psychometric testing.
Options has also created a website on which employers can register vacancies
or check out skills and competencies.
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Barker, who is among those being made redundant, said as far as he was aware
it was the only current example of a joint internal and external service for
outplacing staff. He added the joint approach was more efficient and cost
effective than simply employing an outside agency.
