Dear SafetyXChange Members:

When you leave a company, you don't expect to go back. But if there's one thing I've learned about this business it's to never say never. For those of you who like the word "never," I'll put it like this: You never know when circumstances will make a return engagement a real possibility.

Reasons You Should Go Back

Why do executives and managers go back to their old companies? Often, it's simply the product of the realization that the previous job was actually a better fit than the current one. In some cases, something about the former employer changes, such as substantial growth that opens up opportunities that didn't exist the first time around.

An example of one who wants to "go home again" is ExecuNet member and retail executive Dave Campbell. Dave left his job with a major retailer to take a position with a much larger conglomerate with a retail arm. Shortly after taking the new position, Dave realized that the grass wasn't greener. The new company, Dave discovered, was contemplating selling his unit to a much smaller organization. Ten months later, the deal closed. Rather than work for the smaller company, Dave made a run at starting his own business. "But I soon realized that I missed the corporate environment and began a job search," says Dave. At the top of Dave's wish list is his old company.

Reasons You Shouldn't Go Back

One thing you need to guard against is returning to a former employer because you think it's your only option. If you weren't happy the first time, don't go back unless you have solid reasons to expect things will be different. "Employees should not go back to employers out of desperation," says Paul Mathews, president and founder of Connecticut-based Hire Aspirations. "Make sure you're passionate about the company, its products and the direction the company is moving in. Be clear in your own mind about what has changed to make you want to go back."

Be careful about going back to a previous employer that laid you off. Companies don't always state all their reasons for laying-off employees, cautions says Karen Armon, CEO and founder of Alliance Resources LLC in Littleton, Colorado. So a company that gave you the pink slip the first time around might have some hidden misgivings about you.

Setting Up a Return Engagement

Arranging the return is obviously much easier if your former company comes to you. But often it's the employee who has to supply the initiative. How do you do this? Experts say the first step is to reconnect with your former bosses or colleagues to gauge the company's interest. According to Matthews, getting back in touch with the individuals with whom you had positive relations should help you "reinforce your value proposition and bring to the fore your successes at the previous job." But don't rest completely on past laurels, advises Matthews. "You'll need to cite what you've accomplished since leaving the company and match yourself up to the new role."

Make sure the individuals you contact are willing to act as advocates for you. "Proceed cautiously with people you don't trust or may have a grudge against you," warns Steve Kendall, president of Lithia Springs, Georgia-based Management Recruiters of Atlanta West Inc.

Once you initiate contact and line up support, forward a r?sum? and cover letter to others at the company that contains referrals from those contacts. Example: "Ms. Jones strongly suggested I apply for the role of...and that I follow up directly with you." This can be especially helpful if the hiring manager joined the company after you left.

Overcoming Hard Feelings

Of course, your chances of landing a return engagement will be much stronger if you did a good job and left on positive terms. But even that is no guarantee. The company's interest will depend on not just logical but emotional factors that are hard to account for. A company might hold your decision to leave against you and harbor skepticism about the sincerity of your desire to return, notes Armon. "This is especially true if your departure hurt the company," adds Kendall.

So be prepared to explain why you left the first time and why you want to return. You may also face the burden of persuading the company that you won't part ways again. "I have the vision of having to guarantee someone that I would never leave again," says Campbell.

Conclusion

Next week, we'll look at how to make a successful transition when accepting a new job from an old company.

Wishing you career success,

Lauryn Franzoni
ExecuNet
www.execunet.com

WORKING TRENDS

Employee Drug Use

By Glenn Demby

Employees who use illegal drugs on the job are a significant concern, particularly when those employees occupy safety-sensitive positions. But here's some good news: Use of marijuana and amphetamines in U.S. workplaces hit an all-time low in 2006.

This is the principal finding of the annual Drug Testing Index® released by the medical lab testing giant, Quest Diagnostics. The most recent Index, which summarizes the results of more than 9 million urine drug tests that Quest performed on workers between January and December 2006, had the lowest overall rate of positive tests since the Index began in 1988. Specific findings: 

• Positives in federally-mandated drug tests for amphetamines and methamphetamines among safety-sensitive workers declined 20% (from 0.35% in 2005 to 0.28% in 2006);
• Positives for amphetamines and methamphetamines in the general workforce fell 12.5% (from 0.48% to 0.42%);
• Positives for marijuana in the general workforce declined 6.3% (from 2.54% to 2.38%); and
• Overall positive drug tests among all workers and job applicants fell from 4.1% in 2005 to 3.8% in 2006.

Quest suggests that the decrease in positive drug test is the result of increased vigilance among employers motivated by growing liability risks and reduced productivity associated with drug abuse by their employees.

Source: Quest Diagnostics, "Drug Testing Index,"  http://www.questdiagnostics.com/employersolutions/dti/2007_03/dti_index.html

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