Top Outplacement Firms: A List for Buyers of Outplacement

When shopping for outplacement services, you probably want to know who the top outplacement companies are. There are tons of different firms ranging from boutique, location-based providers all the way up to the old-school juggernauts. However, the need for outplacement typically arises during a highly stressful time, just when you shouldn’t also have the burden of worrying about whether or not you are choosing the right firm.

Well, at Careerminds, we have an open policy about who competitors are and what they offer. To better help you understand what sets these firms apart, we decided to look into the top outplacement firms you can consider to see what makes them all tick. This list includes descriptions of the country’s top outplacement firms taken straight from their websites. We are not going to compare and contrast them here, but feel like it is the right thing to do to explain what options you have.

Keep in mind that it’s difficult to get a thorough sense of a provider’s outplacement offerings from a summarized list or firm directory. So make sure you do your own research into the providers you decide to consider, to make the best decision about which will be the right partner for your organization.

Let’s get straight into it. Here are the top outplacement firms in the US, as well as some of the key differentiators of our industry-leading outplacement services.

When looking at a list of outplacement firms, it’s hard to tell what sets the top outplacement firms apart from the pack. To help you shop for the perfect provider, it’s good to keep in mind what outplacement is at its core. Know what to look for in these outplacement firms that will enable them to properly support your laid off employees through their career transitions. In today’s world, this means using digital tools and a tech-driven approach alongside more personalized, face-to-face support to give you and your employees the best of both worlds.

There are some key outplacement services to look for that will help your outgoing employees find new, meaningful work. These include expert career coaching, resume writing and optimization, networking, job search training, and unlimited support that’s accessible and easy to use at any time, from anywhere. When combined, outplacement should cover every part of the career transition process from start to finish.

Now let’s look at the top outplacement firms and what services they each provide that can help support employees through this career transition, beginning with our own outplacement services at Careerminds.

You are on our website right now! We have many resources you can view that will illustrate why we are on the top of this list, but here is the core of what makes us different from other providers:

“We combine cutting-edge technology with personalized, one-on-one career assessments and job coaching, which allows us to deliver customized solutions to anyone, anywhere at a lower cost than traditional firms. We promise to support outgoing employees throughout the whole process by working with them until they are placed in a new, meaningful role.”

One of the main differentiators about Careerminds outplacement is that we do not have any term limits or retainer fees. We will work with your employees as long as they need “until placement”–meaning until they are placed in new, meaningful work–and will only charge you when you need our services. This shows that we stand behind our service enough to be willing to work until the job is done, not until the contract runs out.

When it comes to something as personal as finding a new job, it’s important that the service can be flexible to work with individuals and their unique needs. Careerminds is the ONLY one of these top outplacement firms willing to work with clients as a true strategic partner until all participants are placed, regardless of how long it takes.

We pair this uniquely unlimited support with our virtual outplacement platform and proprietary technology, as well as the aid of a real live coach dedicated to guiding participants through every step of the process. Participants receive robust e-learning training, tools, and personalized one-on-one coaching to optimize their resumes, search the hidden job market, network and update social accounts like LinkedIn, and find and apply for jobs that they truly want. 

At Careerminds, we utilize the power of the internet to offer more cost-effective, global outplacement services to clients regardless of their physical location. This modern, high-tech and high-touch approach allows us to be anywhere our client is, while also ensuring that the service has a human element to it. Our CEO and Founder Raymond Lee took the antiquated outplacement model and infused it with this forward-thinking approach, disrupting the career transition industry and changing how outplacement providers operate across the board.

Take a moment and download our competitive comparison sheet so you can see the differences between Careerminds and our competitors. Transparency is one of our key differentiators!

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Lee Hecht Harrison (LHH) is one of the largest outplacement firms in the US and around the globe. They are one of several brands under The Adecco Group, the world’s second largest HR provider and temporary staffing firm and a Fortune Global 500 company, which serves as both an advantage and disadvantage. 

Their wide-reaching outplacement services boast a personalized approach with a national network of experienced career coaches who are prepared to provide individualized guidance to clients across a variety of countries and industries. They also offer a range of talent sourcing and hiring solutions besides outplacement, including recruitment solutions, leadership development, and career mobility through employee training programs. 

Here is a sample of what they say about their services:

“From front-line staff to C-suite executives, we can help you transition employees internally as well as into new jobs with new employers,” reports the company on their site.

“We have the career coaches, programs, and technology to support one employee or thousands around the world. Our programs can be personalized to support a variety of career paths; entrepreneurship, consulting, freelance and contract roles, portfolio careers, and active retirement.”

Right Management is the global talent management offering of parent company Talent Solutions (ManpowerGroup) for outplacement, career management, and leader development solutions. They provide these services across more than 75 countries worldwide, helping businesses engage, develop, and retain their workforce by leveraging data and insight to drive talent decisions. 

ManpowerGroup acquired Right Management Consultants in 2003, folding their services and expertise into their canon of offerings and branching into the career and organizational coaching space. Today, they offer industry leading experts in career coaching and job connections to provide clients with skilled talent while finding meaningful, sustainable employment for millions of people across a wide range of industries and skills. 

Here’s how Right Management describes their services:

“Our solutions are smart and targeted because they’re based on insights gathered from your organization and its leadership,” they report on their site.

“This ensures we implement strategies and solutions that align with your company’s culture, values vision, and objectives. Implementation based on insights delivers measurable results and sets you up for long-term success.”

The Global Outplacement Alliance (GOA) is a network of domestic and international career specialists that together offer seamless industry outplacement and career management services. Their global network of career service specialists boast a deeper understanding of local markets and more individualized support in their range of services and expertise.

However, as a membership organization, the GOA is less so an outplacement company directly employing these career specialists, and more of a consulting partner that connects clients with its local career service members around the globe. There are many pros and cons to this type of structure, so make sure you understand these distinctions when shopping for the right outplacement firm for you.

Here is more about the GOA in their own words:

“The Global Outplacement Alliance is a cohesive network of national and international career service specialists providing seamless, best in industry career management, outplacement, and talent management services,” the company says on their site.

“GOA partners adhere to a higher standard of outplacement services, which include a customized approach, high integrity, and hands-on outplacement and career transition services focused on the individual needs of clients and employers.”

VelvetJobs is another leading company in career transition, employer branding, and outplacement services. Once again, VelvetJobs is a service which matches experts in their network with employers, which may or may not be what you are looking for. They offer a suite of career tools and services, job listings, resume help, and personalized career advice.

Uniquely, their website is a platform which provides different tools for both sides of the process. Individuals can pay them directly to use their job search engine and resume building services. On the other side, companies can hire them for their job posting builder and feature on the platform, employer branding service, and outplacement services for their employees.

Their outplacement services in particular claim to be recognized by over 15 million professionals. However, they have also received mixed reviews online, including claims that they may not boast the most competitive prices. So once again, it’s important to do your own research, request demos, and dissect costs to evaluate this for yourself.

We’ll leave you with these thoughts from VelvetJobs and let you explore further:

“VelvetJobs is the leading innovator in career transition and outplacement. Top employers in a variety of industries trust VelvetJobs to transition talent, recruit talent, and manage their employer brand,” the company said to SHRM.

“Millions of professionals have used VelvetJobs that offers career tools and services, curated a selection of jobs from leading companies, resume help, and career advice.”

Mercer is an American consulting firm that was founded in 1945. It is one of the four operating subsidiaries of global professional services firm Marsh McLennan, and is headquartered in New York City with offices in 43 countries and operations in 130 countries. While they are a larger firm with several distinct lines of business, they focus primarily on human resources and financial services consulting services. 

Mercer’s full-service outplacement program utilizes experienced virtual career coaching and award-winning technology to offer a 100% virtual, on-demand approach that helps transitioning and displaced employees land a new job nearly 2.5X faster than the national average. However, one downside to this hyper-modern approach to keep in mind is the lack of options for in-person coaching or support.

Here is a bit more about how Mercer describes their approach:

“Today, employers want an outplacement solution that provides a virtual career center, social network integration and pushes jobs through alerts to job seekers, supported by one-on-one coaching,” the company states.

“Mercer’s approach helps transitioning employees to land nearly 3x faster than the national average time it takes to find employment. We are redefining outplacement design, delivery, and results and provide a service that meets the needs of all levels of employees.”

Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc. is a Chicago-based global outplacement and career transitioning firm with offices throughout North America. Founded in 1966 by James Challenger, it was the first of executive outplacement firms in the US. Today, they support transitioning clients all over the world, at all levels, and in a broad array of industries. 

The company’s primary goal is to make the transition to reemployment easier for displaced workers. They do this through a more hands-on approach to outplacement, serving as “co-owners” of the job search by using only full-time coaches, working one-on-one with and proactively following up with every participant, and letting clients know the final outcome for each individual in the program.

This is what they have to say about their services:

“We partner with our customers to provide customized outplacement. Our programs are flexible – we are able to provide them remotely, in person, individually, or in groups,” the company writes.

“The Challenger approach to career transition is to treat each affected employee with the utmost respect and compassion while delivering processes that positively impact the job search.”

Like Careerminds, Randstad RiseSmart is another modern and fast-growing provider of global, contemporary career transition and human resources services. Founded in 2007 under parent company Randstad, RiseSmart has expanded its offerings to more than 100 countries and 40 industries. Today, they boast to help more than two million candidates find meaningful work every year, while helping employers to strengthen brands, improve retention, and re-engage talent.

Randstad RiseSmart provides a coaching-centered approach to their outplacement services, combining contemporary solutions, on-demand analytics, and data security best practices with a team of dedicated and highly-qualified coaching professionals, resulting in a similar combination of human touch and technology.

Read more about their services in their words:

“RiseSmart offers outplacement services that are better, smarter, and faster than the rest – delivering greater value for better savings than those of outdated, traditional offerings,” the company says on its site.

“We’ve helped thousands of people find new jobs quickly with the outplacement resources we provide through our outplacement programs. In the process, we have also helped world-leading companies reduce costs and protect their valuable brands.”

Career Partners International (CPI) is another leading HR consulting company which provides services to companies navigating the changing complexities of the modern workplace. These services include outplacement, career management, executive coaching, and leadership development.

CPI acts more as a consulting agency, connecting clients with their network of partner organizations and consultants in over 300 locations worldwide. This extensive reach allows for a high coach-to-participant ratio, and ensures local consultants understand and have direct experience with the challenges and opportunities of a client’s region. However, this approach does also come with its downsides that are important to research and consider.

Here is how CPI describes what they have to offer:

“When consolidations, downsizing, mergers, and acquisitions affect your workforce, choose the best value in an outplacement partner. Career Partners International ensures positive outcomes for your brand reputation, departing employees, workforce productivity, engagement, and morale,” the company writes on its site.

“As a global industry leader and trusted adviser for 30 years, Career Partners International (CPI) understands and shares your people-centered approach to business. We provide comprehensive outplacement services in the strictest confidence with integrity, transparency, compassion, and respect for all individuals. Working together, we help your people remain your brand advocates, regardless of their career direction.”

There are many other outplacement firms out there that offer former employees outplacement assistance services such as career transition coaching, job search advice, salary negotiation, resume writing, and interview preparation support. This sampling provides details about some of the best firms with information taken straight from the company websites. 

If you are looking for an outplacement firm to support your outgoing employees while attracting the best talent and keeping your remaining employees happy, we always suggest that you ask tough questions, get references, and schedule a demo to make sure they are the right fit for you. Pay attention to how well they use technology in the demo, how their platform looks, and how easy it is to use.

If you think Careerminds might be the right outplacement firm for you, we encourage you to dive deeper into the specifics and successes of our Careerminds outplacement program. Click below to schedule a demo with one of our outplacement experts today.

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Rebecca Ahn

Rebecca is a writer, editor, and business consultant with over 10 years of experience launching, managing, and coaching small to midsize companies on their business, marketing, and HR operations. She is a passionate people advocate who believes in building strong people, teams, and companies with empowering culture, content, and communication that facilitates meaningful results at every level and touchpoint. In her spare time, Rebecca is an avid traveler and nomad who also enjoys writing about travel safety and savvy. Learn more on her LinkedIn page.