Outplacement Brief and Offboarding Checklist

A specification for the career transition support you are buying, paired with an operational offboarding checklist so nothing is missed on the last day.

When to use it

When commissioning outplacement, and again for every leaver as the exit date approaches.

Briefing outplacement and offboarding people properly

Outplacement is bought late, briefed thinly and measured loosely more often than any other part of a restructure. This checklist does two things: it sets out what to specify when commissioning career transition services, and it covers the practical offboarding steps for every leaver as their exit date approaches.

Briefing the provider

Specify the population and their levels, the support model — one-to-one coaching, group workshops, digital tools or a blend — the duration, and the outcomes you expect to see reported. Ask how coaches are matched, how quickly someone is contacted after their exit is confirmed, and what happens if a person disengages and re-engages three months later. Ask what the reporting looks like: engagement rates, time to land, and destination types, not just licences issued.

What good support includes

Practical help with CVs and LinkedIn, interview preparation, access to the hidden job market, and — the part that matters most and is easiest to skip — coaching through the emotional stages of transition. People who land well tend to have had a coach, not just a platform. Our approach explains how ImaginativeHR structures that support across Group, Core, Complete and Executive Transition programmes.

The offboarding side

For each leaver: final pay and holiday, equipment return, systems access, references, continued benefits, handover of work, and a proper goodbye. The last item is not sentimental — an abrupt exit is what colleagues remember.

Timing

Commission early, so support starts while people are still employed rather than after they have gone home. Confirm access in the Redundancy Notice and Outcome Letter, and treat the retained team in parallel using the Retained Team Re-engagement Plan.

If you are comparing outplacement providers, our guides include what to ask and how to hold a provider to account.