Boomerang employees are former workers who had previously left the organisation and are now returning. The biggest advantage of hiring these employees is that they already know the organisation’s culture, understand the existing systems, and require less onboarding than external hires. On paper, they're the perfect solution to open roles.
HR teams love boomerang hires because they feel like safe bets. They are aware of their working style, know their strengths, and have a pre-existing relationship with them. But boomerang hiring comes with its own set of risks. HR teams often assume that the employees return to the same level as they left and that their past performance guarantees job success.
That’s not always the case. Some boomerang employees return having further developed and honed their skill sets, while others return after not-so-good experiences at their previous jobs. Therefore, without a clear strategy for evaluating boomerang candidates, HR teams end up rehiring employees who are not at their previous level or have outgrown their previous role in the organisation.
How can HR teams evaluate boomerang candidates effectively?
HR teams who treat boomerang employees like any other candidate, while acknowledging their history, make smarter rehiring decisions.
- Interview them like they're new: HR professionals must be mindful about not skipping steps in the assessment process just because they “know the candidates.” The same job may now require more advanced skills than the employee needed during their previous time with the company.
- Assess what they've learned since leaving: HR teams need to ask specific questions about what these employees did at other companies, what skills they developed, and how they've grown their portfolio. If they can't articulate clear professional development, they might be returning because they failed to advance elsewhere.
- Understand why they are coming back: HR teams must ask difficult questions like whether the employee is returning because your organisation is genuinely the best fit for their career, or because their other options didn't work out.
What are the common mistakes HR makes while hiring boomerang employees?
Even well-intentioned HR teams make errors that turn boomerang hires into regrettable decisions.
- Paying them more than the current employees: Despite market corrections, if the boomerang hires earn significantly more than the existing employees, it breeds resentment and disengagement risks.
- Assuming they'll slot back easily: HR teams must keep in mind that the organisation's processes have evolved with the adoption of new technologies, and assuming that the boomerang employee will seamlessly slot back into their old roles can cause disappointing outcomes.
- Making exceptions for them: Boomerang employees sometimes get special treatment from HR teams, such as flexible start dates, title bumps, salary goes beyond standard ranges, just because of their history with the organisation. This creates inequity and a sense of injustice among the existing employees.
How can HR teams build a strategic approach to boomerang hiring?
A smart boomerang strategy balances the benefits of institutional knowledge with the risks of repeating past mistakes.
- Create clear eligibility criteria: Not every former employee should be eligible for rehire. HR teams must outline what makes an ex-employee a good boomerang candidate. It can be a strong performance history, voluntary departure in good standing, or skills that have measurably grown. If they were let go due to performance-related issues or left on bad terms, they shouldn't be considered for a role.
- Establish a waiting period before rehiring: Requiring a minimum time away, for instance, six months or a year, ensures that employees have actually experienced other environments and aren't just running back because their new job didn't work out.
- Be transparent about boomerang hires: When an employee returns to the organisation, explain the decision to the team. Give a detailed reasoning about the skills they bring to the table, the experience they have gained after their first stint, and why it makes sense to bring them back now.
Conclusion
Boomerang employees are candidates who happen to have a history with the organisation. That history can be an asset if they've grown and if the issues that drove them away have been resolved. It becomes a liability when HR rehires out of convenience or misplaced trust that ‘they already know what they're doing here.’
HR teams evaluate boomerang candidates rigorously. Ask them difficult questions like why they left their previous org and why they are returning. When done right, boomerang hires bring experience, institutional knowledge, and proven culture fit. HR teams must only hire boomerang employees if they're the right person for the job.
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