SMEs and the state of the outplacement industry

"PAUL, please do not introduce your job search candidates to us, they are tainted goods". These words came through an e-mail from a Hong Kong- based headhunter that works with a top tier international search firm about 18 years ago.

I had written to him to introduce the profile of a job search client of mine whose most recent employer had made his job redundant. By the way, there were no financial obligations involved then - it was simply my way of helping my clients in their efforts to find their next employer.

It has been almost two decades since I was inducted to the world of outplacement support. A Western concept, outplacement is a company-paid benefit that extends beyond what an employer is legally obliged to do when an employee's services are terminated.