Outplacement plays a critical role in closing the skill gap

  • Head Quarters
    New Orleans, Louisiana
  • Inustry
    Utilities
  • Employees
    10,000+

The Challenge

Entergy Corporation is a Fortune 500 holding company that provides utility services to 3 million customers in four southern states through its utility operating companies. These Entergy system companies have been on a journey to upskill and retain employees to meet the ever-changing needs of the utility industry.

Entergy’s HR department partnered with Careerminds years ago as their outplacement provider. As of late, however, Entergy’s Talent Acquisition department turned to Careerminds to help implement a program to retain employees impacted by the planned closure of a nuclear power plant.

The Goal

The program objective was to allow any impacted plant employee the opportunity to fill an open position within the Entergy system if their skill set matched the role. Impacted employees were also given the opportunity to upskill if they did not meet the requirements for a position of interest. A secondary objective was to retain 100% of impacted employees within the Entergy system.

The Solution

Every impacted employee who participated in the program had a branded profile with relevant technical and behavioral skills that matched to identified job openings. Entergy’s Talent Acquisition department was connected to Careerminds’ coaches to facilitate matching workers to the most appropriate job openings.

Careerminds coaches met with participants in the redeployment Program on a regular basis to assess their progress in transitioning to new roles, to help them identify opportunities that were realistic for them based on their skills and experience, and to encourage them to think positively about their future roles.

In positions identified as good possibilities for reskilling or upskilling, a skills gap analysis was performed in coaching sessions with the input of both the candidates and the coaches and skills needed to be developed or enhanced were identified.

Regular meetings were held between Entergy Talent Acquisition representatives and Careerminds coaches about the progress of candidates in the program, and efforts were made by the Entergy HR business partners to help the candidates network with recruiters for the identified positions.

One program participant was able to upskill into a new Human Resources role. He was interested in advancing his career rather than being in a “bubble,” as he termed his situation. To accomplish his goal of being hired for an HR advisor position, he first applied for and was accepted into a leadership development program, enabling him to earn an HR credential that better positioned him for a higher-level job position.

Emphasis was placed on building his brand to include his new skills and the contributions he could make in a new, more advanced role, and time was devoted to interview preparation with the Careerminds’ coach. In the end, the participant felt he was effective in upskilling through the collaborative efforts of his employer and Careerminds who had his best interests in mind and could help him achieve his goals.

The Result

Ultimately, every impacted employee who chose to participate in the program found another position within the Entergy system, and no employee was outplaced.

Whether companies are looking to redeploy workers internally or transition externally, outplacement firms like Careerminds are taking “outplacement” to the next level by future-proofing workers in transition by upskilling them to add value to their future jobs and roles.

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