Reassignment: Is That Just Another Version of "Being PIPed?"

The process of “reassignment” is filled with questions for workers.

That current human-resources policy entails employers’ claim that workers’ roles are no longer strategically needed. So, those employees are being transferred to a function that is. They may or may not have the background, experience and temperament to be a good fit for that role. The behind-the-scene techie could wind up in client-facing operations or even sales.

The process is binary: Take that internal change or leave. The Wall Street Journal reports that Adobe, IBM and Salesforce are already among the players using reassignment or as some nickname it “Job Purgatory.”

On the one hand, in this era of volatility and uncertainty reassignment makes perfect business sense. Strategies are in flux. It really is just-in-time management or seeing the future through the lens of what-if scenarios.

Disney is reeling. Watchers sense the boomerang CEO Bob Iger didn’t anticipate the intensity of threat.

Generative AI is forcing reviews of how office work is done. In settings ranging from Insider to IBM, it’s already being incorporated into processes.

Even the one-time stodgy world of large law firms is mutating. That has been showcased in the buzzy rivalry between Kirkland & Ellis and Paul Weiss. Both are moving fast.

The bottom line is: Strategies, branding and job descriptions configured in more tame times could generate no current value.

Along with that, reassignment instead of a layoff seems a humane approach to the need for organizations to reset. That concept is positioned and packaged as saving the livelihood of workers.

On the other hand, workers, who have learned to read between the lines, question if the human-resources policy is actually a cost-efficient legal way for employers to reduce manpower with no hit to their reputations. Regarding the latter, Reductions-in-Force can bring on the stink of financial distress. Avoiding them can enhance branding.

With reassignment there might be no severance or unemployment compensation. The well-known version of that is The PIP (Proposal to Improve Performance). As with PIPs, the reassigned employee could feel the squeeze to leave. Consider also the shame factor: You were a manager in marketing. You lost the title and now you are handling on the phone complaints in customer relations. Add on that the possibility that generative AI will take over that function sooner than later.

Meanwhile, every time workers are notified of team meetings or the one-to-one conversation with higher-ups (along with HR being there) usually there is an earthquake of fear. Here is a typical snippet from Reddit Big Law:

“I had a meeting with the most senior partner of my practice group and one other partner placed on my outlook calendar. No warning, no indication in the title what the meeting was about. My heart was pounding. I thought I was being let go.

 

“I went to the meeting and both partners were there in addition to someone I didn't recognize. I think my face said how I was feeling because the senior partner blurted out ‘you're not being let go!’ The third person was a representative from HR.”

 

In coaching, one solution I recommend is to create of mindset of being on a temporary project versus “having” a job. Make contacts. Learn the skills that are transferable to the next project. Push for achievements that can be marketed for other opportunities.  And pick up certifications the employer will pay for.

Data or the gut for your careers and communications? Both of course. Complimentary consultation with intuitive coach, content-creator, and Tarot reader Jane Genova (text 202-468-8579, janegenova374@gmail.com).