Boomerang Employees: To Rehire or Not Rehire

It’s unfortunate, but sometimes your best employees will find opportunities elsewhere. Maybe they were lured by better pay, impressive perks, or the appeal of trying something new. That’s fine, it happens. But what happens if that same employee comes back months or even years later? Should you rehire them? In the past, this might be out of the question, but with the evolving talent marketplace, maybe it’s time to rethink “boomerang” employees. Research shows that boomerang employees’ behaviors and attitudes are unlikely to change after a departure and return. They’ll likely display the same levels of productivity and perform similarly to how they did before they left. This is good news if this individual was a rock star, but it might not be prudent if the employee in question wasn’t the best worker. Also worth noting, boomerang employees are more likely to turn over than internal and external hires, suggesting that if they’ve left an organization once, they’d be willing to do it again. Ultimately, it’s about the individual employee in question. If you want them to return and do the same things they did before, there’s no real reason to say no.