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The Boomerang Principle: Inspire Lifetime Loyalty from Your Employees
It is rare for an employee to stay with one organization for very long. In fact, “job hopping” is the new norm, especially for Millennials. In The Boomerang Principle, companies learn how to leverage this fact rather than fear it. By engendering a lifetime of loyalty from former employees, leaders can see them “return” in the form of customers, partners, clients, advocates, contractors, and even returning employees.
Author Lee Caraher has built several companies and managed many Millennials along the way. In her first book, Millennials & Management, she shared her wisdom on how to get an intergenerational workforce to contribute to the larger goals of the organization. In this follow-up book, she shifts the emphasis to creating valuable, long-lasting relationships with your employees to ensure they remain your biggest fans, even if they leave the company.
The Boomerang Principle is a pragmatic answer to the outdated corporate mindset around employee turnover. Instead, it shifts the focus to creating lifetime loyalty from your alumni who will bring back business again and again.
Author Lee Caraher has built several companies and managed many Millennials along the way. In her first book, Millennials & Management, she shared her wisdom on how to get an intergenerational workforce to contribute to the larger goals of the organization. In this follow-up book, she shifts the emphasis to creating valuable, long-lasting relationships with your employees to ensure they remain your biggest fans, even if they leave the company.
The Boomerang Principle is a pragmatic answer to the outdated corporate mindset around employee turnover. Instead, it shifts the focus to creating lifetime loyalty from your alumni who will bring back business again and again.
194 pages, Hardcover
Published April 11, 2017
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216 people want to read
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February 14, 2017
There are few books that can be described as trailblazers, this is one of them. On the fortunate side, it is largely one of going back to principles effectively used in the past, on the unfortunate side the overwhelming majority of executives simply will not follow the advice.
Decades ago, when people were first employed at a business they were operating under an implied mutual understanding. The employee would do a good job and work there for a long time, in many cases a lifetime before retiring. On the other side, the employer would provide benefits such as a pension plan and only engage in lay-offs in extreme cases of economic recession. Once the business recovered, the laid off workers would then be rehired into their old positions with no loss of seniority.
Many employers complain about the lack of loyalty among their employees, yet as Caraher points out, the majority of the blame for this is due to the crass actions of employers. Employees know that they can be terminated with very little to none in the way of severance at any time. Companies that do provide benefits are constantly reducing them in the quest for higher profit margins.
The current situation is summed up well on page eight.
“In one survey of corporate executives of publicly traded companies, none of the participants said they would invest in a five-to-ten year plan guaranteed to increase profitability if it meant ‘a penny off of their share price.’”
It is then pointed out that this means that there is no priority regarding the welfare of their employees.
Within this environment and with the understanding that employees will generally be leaving anyway, Caraher puts forward an alternative tactic. When employees leave, treat them well, stay in touch with them to the extent possible and welcome them back if the circumstances change. Much like hiring back laid off workers. The point is that a lot of business success in the modern world is driven by goodwill, including how the departed feel about your organization.
It is a sound policy and the ubiquitous nature of social media makes it easy to keep in touch. This policy is also an admission of understanding the reality, sometimes the reason people leave is a consequence of what the company is doing wrong. Furthermore, it is likely to be something that can be fixed, to the betterment of the organization.
The American economy is rapidly changing, with more and more workers operating in what is called the “gig format.” This is where a worker joins a group, works until a set of tasks is completed and then moves on to join another group. This also includes the freelancers, people that contract for a specific job and then move on. Since this is the new reality that is unlikely to change, the smart managers should do all they can to make sure that ex-employees have as positive an opinion as possible regarding their organization. As is stated several times in the book, lifetime loyalty does not have to mean working there for a lifetime, only having a positive opinion of the organization for a lifetime.
Decades ago, when people were first employed at a business they were operating under an implied mutual understanding. The employee would do a good job and work there for a long time, in many cases a lifetime before retiring. On the other side, the employer would provide benefits such as a pension plan and only engage in lay-offs in extreme cases of economic recession. Once the business recovered, the laid off workers would then be rehired into their old positions with no loss of seniority.
Many employers complain about the lack of loyalty among their employees, yet as Caraher points out, the majority of the blame for this is due to the crass actions of employers. Employees know that they can be terminated with very little to none in the way of severance at any time. Companies that do provide benefits are constantly reducing them in the quest for higher profit margins.
The current situation is summed up well on page eight.
“In one survey of corporate executives of publicly traded companies, none of the participants said they would invest in a five-to-ten year plan guaranteed to increase profitability if it meant ‘a penny off of their share price.’”
It is then pointed out that this means that there is no priority regarding the welfare of their employees.
Within this environment and with the understanding that employees will generally be leaving anyway, Caraher puts forward an alternative tactic. When employees leave, treat them well, stay in touch with them to the extent possible and welcome them back if the circumstances change. Much like hiring back laid off workers. The point is that a lot of business success in the modern world is driven by goodwill, including how the departed feel about your organization.
It is a sound policy and the ubiquitous nature of social media makes it easy to keep in touch. This policy is also an admission of understanding the reality, sometimes the reason people leave is a consequence of what the company is doing wrong. Furthermore, it is likely to be something that can be fixed, to the betterment of the organization.
The American economy is rapidly changing, with more and more workers operating in what is called the “gig format.” This is where a worker joins a group, works until a set of tasks is completed and then moves on to join another group. This also includes the freelancers, people that contract for a specific job and then move on. Since this is the new reality that is unlikely to change, the smart managers should do all they can to make sure that ex-employees have as positive an opinion as possible regarding their organization. As is stated several times in the book, lifetime loyalty does not have to mean working there for a lifetime, only having a positive opinion of the organization for a lifetime.
December 30, 2024
I thought I was switching away from ABB and Social Selling, but here it is again - this time about social selling through alumni communities. A fresh perspective: to support a brand, people don't necessarily need to stay within the company. Leaving the company when you’ve lost motivation is actually an act of loyalty.
Former employees can take on various roles: brand advocates, clients, or recommenders. Or they might return to work for the company, and such individuals are referred to as boomerang employees.
The central idea of the book: a company that is easy to return to is a company that’s hard to leave.
Employees have always left companies, and in today’s economy, this trend will only increase. It’s excellent when a company understands the importance of working with such a community and allocates resources for it.
Benefits for employees:
- Familiarity with the job and processes;
- Returning to their team;
- Realizing that “out there” isn’t necessarily better.
Benefits for the company:
- Quick onboarding for returning employees;
- A signal to others that “out there” isn’t all that great;
- A fresh perspective on familiar challenges.
The book includes a lot of, in my opinion, unnecessary information about leadership, coaching, and supporting millennials (employees born between 1980 and 2000). What I would have liked instead of such chapters: a discussion of the downsides and pitfalls of working with boomerang employees. For instance, not all current employees will be thrilled about the return of a “star,” especially under special conditions. Let’s not forget that the hiring budget is always higher than the budget for salary increases. This is a solvable issue, but it cannot be ignored when considering the rehire of a boomerang employee.
I would gladly read a second edition of this book, if it ever comes out.
Former employees can take on various roles: brand advocates, clients, or recommenders. Or they might return to work for the company, and such individuals are referred to as boomerang employees.
The central idea of the book: a company that is easy to return to is a company that’s hard to leave.
Employees have always left companies, and in today’s economy, this trend will only increase. It’s excellent when a company understands the importance of working with such a community and allocates resources for it.
Benefits for employees:
- Familiarity with the job and processes;
- Returning to their team;
- Realizing that “out there” isn’t necessarily better.
Benefits for the company:
- Quick onboarding for returning employees;
- A signal to others that “out there” isn’t all that great;
- A fresh perspective on familiar challenges.
The book includes a lot of, in my opinion, unnecessary information about leadership, coaching, and supporting millennials (employees born between 1980 and 2000). What I would have liked instead of such chapters: a discussion of the downsides and pitfalls of working with boomerang employees. For instance, not all current employees will be thrilled about the return of a “star,” especially under special conditions. Let’s not forget that the hiring budget is always higher than the budget for salary increases. This is a solvable issue, but it cannot be ignored when considering the rehire of a boomerang employee.
I would gladly read a second edition of this book, if it ever comes out.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews