The role of outplacement in redundancy management

Explores redundancy as a significant and pervasive outcome of organisational change. Argues that the need to manage the redundancy transition has provoked the development of new HRM policies and practices. Highlights that interventions such as outplacement are often used by companies with little rigorous evaluation of their utility or benefit, yet their continued proliferation would suggest that they appear to have assumed intrinsic credibility and value. Maintains that while the pluralist, contingent nature of the organisational change and individual transition issues are recognised, many organisations appear to resort to normative methods when faced with the challenge of managing the human resource issues associated with redundancy. Argues that the pervasive and complex nature of current changes dictates not only the need for a better understanding of the practices that exist but also an exploration of how HRM theory can contribute to and enhance that understanding.