Layoff Lessons: Always be in touch with rival companies

Lost your job? Why don't you start-up your own company instead of looking out for another job?

Readers who were laid off share the lessons they learned during their layoffs.

Illustration: Dominic Xavier/Rediff.com

We begin with Partha Banerjee's advise:

I have been laid off several times and I have found job every time except now when I am jobless for quite long.

Mostly my layoffs have been myself ie not due to mass ley off. My suggestions are as follows to avoid a layoff .

# Be careful when you take up a new job. Check the job & the work culture, intention of the boss, owner etc.
# Try to assess why they want to hire you. Are you being taken to replace some one who is very powerful and could act nasty so as to push you out?
# Keep a second source of income always running -- part time job, working spouse, side business, partnership, so that you have an extra income.
# Do not show any sign to make your new employer feel you are not serious about your job.
# Always be in touch with competition and their relevant people in HRD
# Have professional qualification in the field of your work; it helps in getting the next job.
# While looking for a job keep yourself updated with the market, read trade journals, attend business association meetings, etc..

***

Here's Dipankar Nag's advice and lessons he learnt:

# Never depend upon single source of income.

# Nobody can tell whether you will be the next person or not, who will be laid off.

# You may think that you are an asset to the company but perhaps the company is not thinking so. So everything is relative.

# Hence don't depend on these kind of thoughts. Just concentrate on the second source of income so that if you get laid off then at least you can survive without bothering much about financial problems.

***

Finally, this is Srinivasamurthy A who has some concrete advice for software professionals who have loss their jobs recently oh how to start-up:

Dear Employees

# Don't despair at the unfortunate events in your crucial stage of life. Don't lose hope; where there is will, there's a way.

# Given your rich experience start a software company. Those among you financially well off can become promoters.

# In the transition state of the world of software industry, the industry now needs (for some) a whole range of in-house customisable packages with minimal outsourcing. Some needs continuation of present form of services that are being rendered now by majority of Indian software industries.

# To do this, first contemplate whether it's prudent to go into legal recourse against your current employer, or spend the same time and effort into building your new future.

# Form an association for the future enterprise, pool up resources and go for loans/subsidies from government. The government may come to your rescue by giving subsidies and also assurance to use their products where they don't attract competitive bidding.

# The new enterprise should spread to smaller towns in order to carry out intensive research in finding the needs of the untapped clients and develop highly user-friendly packages with language support in user interface.

How to cope with layoffs

Achche Din or not, people are being laid off. Layoffs can happen anytime. To anybody.

If you have been laid off and coped with it well, we would like to know the lessons you learnt and what it takes to emerge successful.

Please mail your responses to getahead@rediff.co.in (Subject line: Layoffs) to help those who have been laid off or could face layoffs in the weeks to come.

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