Cheryl Smith’s former employer provided her with INTOO’s Flex outplacement program, which delivers unlimited one-on-one coaching by text, audio, and video chat within the platform seven days a week.
Experienced HR director Cheryl Smith was wowed by the immediate and on-target guidance provided by INTOO’s on-demand career coaches.
As an experienced HR professional who has worked for large global companies, Cheryl Smith was familiar with outplacement programs, but had never used one herself. That changed when she was laid off in March of 2022. While quite knowledgeable about best practices for a job search, Cheryl found that the instantaneous career and emotional support provided by INTOO Outplacement’s on-demand coaches helped her when she needed it most.
INTOO offers on-demand career coaching seven days a week by text, audio, and video chat. Cheryl found the coaches’ immediate guidance useful when a tactical question would suddenly arise and she could simply click a button to connect to a live video chat with a coach within seconds. “You never know when you’ll have a burning question, because there’s a lot of activity when you’re looking for a job. I was on the computer and the phone all the time. Things happen very quickly and you need to be able to talk to someone right away. So to be able to have an on-demand video chat with a coach, and not have to schedule it, was extremely helpful.”
From troubleshooting her interview tactics to determining how best to respond to one job offer while expecting another, each coach Cheryl spoke with took an unhurried approach to working with her to find solutions and calm her nerves.
The fact that the coaches were available on the weekends and were available without scheduling was impressive to Cheryl. “It’s amazing. They’re really there within seconds.” The weekend support was important when Cheryl had Monday morning interviews and wanted help to prepare.
Along the way, Cheryl found the other tools in the digital platform helpful as well. The prompts that appeared, specific to her job search journey, helped guide her to which next steps could be most helpful to create more progress. For example, while she initially didn’t think she needed assistance with her resume, Cheryl decided to take advantage of the resume review service after being reminded by the platform and received helpful feedback.
Figuring out what was most important to her in her next role was made easier by Cheryl’s conversations with the coaches. “All the advice was very on target.” When she came across the position at Saks OFF 5th, she was concerned that her lack of Workday software experience might be an issue, since the company was about to roll out implementation and Cheryl would be managing some of the modules. But she didn’t have to worry. “The hiring manager and the people there were so positive, which is what I was looking for—a positive place with nice people.” She is now the company’s Director, Talent and Performance Management.
Cheryl had previously been on the selection committee for outplacement RFPs, where they’d selected services from some of the other major providers. But, “…none of them would be able to compete with the just-in-time nature of INTOO’s on-demand coaching,” Cheryl says. “I’m grateful that my previous employer offered INTOO outplacement. It was a great experience using the service.”
Download a copy of Cheryl’s testimonial here.INTOO offers a variety of outplacement programs for employees at every level. The Flex program offered to Cheryl provides one-on-one, on-demand coaching by text, audio and video chat. Premium and Select programs additionally provide individuals with dedicated, matched coaches and executive coaches, to help you support every member of your workforce. Contact us today to learn more.JTNDaWZyYW1lJTIwc3JjJTNEJTIyaHR0cHMlM0ElMkYlMkZyZXNvdXJjZXMuaW50b28uY29tJTJGaHVic0Zyb250JTJGZW1iZWRfY3RhJTJGMzY3NDA2JTIyJTIwc2Nyb2xsJTNEJTIybm9uZSUyMiUyMGJvcmRlciUzRCUyMjAlMjIlMjBmcmFtZWJvcmRlciUzRCUyMjAlMjIlMjB3aWR0aCUzRCUyMjI1MCUyMiUyMGhlaWdodCUzRCUyMjMzMCUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRmlmcmFtZSUzRQ==
Robyn Kern is a seasoned business writer who has written in the HR, education, technology, and nonprofit spaces. She writes about topics including outplacement, layoffs, career development, internal mobility, candidate experience, succession planning, talent acquisition, and more, with the goal of surfacing workforce trends and educating the HR community on these key topics. Her work has been featured on hrforhr.org and trainingindustry.com.
