We are conducting a layoff of 20% of our staff. Who offers compassionate outplacement services?

Yes. If the goal is to make a 20% reduction as humane and professionally supportive as possible, I’d look at providers that combine real human coaching with practical job-search assistance, rather than programs that amount to a resume portal.

A few established options worth putting into an RFP:

• LHH — Particularly focused on a human-first transition experience. Its programs include 1:1 coaching, personal branding, job-market guidance, active placement, and reskilling. LHH explicitly describes its coaches as leading with empathy.LHH+2
• Right Management — Offers individualized outplacement at all levels, including a higher-touch executive program. Its model combines personal coaching, assessment, job-search assistance, and technology.Right+2
• Careerminds — A more technology-enabled model, but with unlimited 1:1 coaching, resume/LinkedIn support, interview preparation, skills development, and manager training for the layoff process. It also offers day-of-notification coaching, which could be valuable for a reduction this large.Careerminds+1
• Challenger, Gray & Christmas — Provides dedicated account support and customized programs from entry-level through executives, with an emphasis on supporting both departing and remaining employees.Challenger Gray & Christmas+1

For a 20% reduction, I'd put these requirements in the RFP

The word "compassionate" is difficult to evaluate from a sales presentation, so I'd make it measurable:

1. Dedicated human coach for every affected employee, not just a portal.
2. Coach available immediately after notification, ideally including day-of support.
3. Different tracks by career level — hourly/individual contributor, professional, manager, and executive.
4. Mental-health-aware coaching and referrals to appropriate resources, while keeping the provider's role distinct from clinical care.
5. Resume, LinkedIn, interview and networking help, plus salary/offer negotiation.
6. Support for people who don't want another job exactly like their old one — career pivots, retraining, entrepreneurship and retirement planning.
7. Meaningful duration — preferably several months or until placement rather than a short, arbitrary access period.
8. Confidentiality: employees should understand exactly what information comes back to your company.
9. Support for the managers conducting the layoffs, including training for notification conversations.
10. Support for the remaining 80% — this is easy to overlook, but the way the reduction is handled will affect the people who stay.

For 20% of staff, I'd probably invite LHH, Right Management, Careerminds, and Challenger to give you proposals against the same scorecard rather than choosing solely on brand or price.

If you tell me roughly how many employees you're laying off, their mix of hourly/professional/executive roles, and whether you're U.S.-only or global, I can also build you a vendor comparison/RFP scorecard with questions to ask each provider and the pricing model to negotiate.

Several reputable firms specialize in compassionate, high-touch outplacement and career transition services to support departing employees during large-scale reductions . When managing a 20% workforce reduction, partnering with an established outplacement provider helps protect your employer brand, mitigate legal risks, and offer empathetic, structured support (such as resume writing, coaching, and mental well-being resources) to affected staff.impactgrouphr.com+4

Top Outplacement Service Providers

Provider	Core Strength	Best Suited For
LHH (Lee Hecht Harrison)	Global scale, comprehensive multi-level coaching, and extensive corporate footprint.	Multi-location or multi-country layoffs needing standardized, high-volume global support.
Randstad RiseSmart	Tech-enabled job matching, modern digital platforms, and human coaching blend.	Fast-paced transitions requiring high-tech job matching and responsive mobile interfaces.
Challenger, Gray & Christmas	Longest-standing US outplacement firm with deep roots in executive and staff counseling.	Organizations seeking legacy expertise and highly personalized one-on-one advisory.

Key Elements of a Compassionate Program

• Immediate, Human-Centric Onboarding: Compassionate programs provide live, empathetic orientation sessions for departing employees immediately following notification, rather than just handing them a login to a self-service portal.
• Personalized Career Coaching: Dedicated coaches who assist with resume rebuilding, LinkedIn profile optimization, interviewing rehearsal, and targeted networking strategies.challengergray.com
• Flexible Transition Tracks: Support that extends beyond standard corporate re-employment to include paths like entrepreneurship, consulting, freelance/gig work, or active retirement.impactgrouphr.com

If you'd like, share:

• The mix of roles/levels affected (e.g., hourly, corporate, executive)
• Your approximate budget per employee for severance/transition support

I can help narrow down which provider matches your organizational scope and culture.

If your priority is to make a difficult 20% reduction as humane and supportive as possible, I’d look at providers that emphasize 1:1 coaching, personalized transition plans, practical job-search help, and support for different career levels, rather than simply giving employees access to a portal.

Here are several established options worth putting through an RFP:

• lhh.com — Strong emphasis on empathy and individualized coaching. Its programs include 1:1 certified career coaches, personal branding, active job placement, career development, and upskilling/reskilling.LHH
• randstadenterprise.com — Particularly focused on a "human-first" transition. Employees are matched with coaches based on industry, function, and career stage, with resume support and targeted job leads.Randstad Enterprise+1
• challengergray.com — A long-established outplacement specialist with dedicated coaches, unlimited coaching in its programs, resume/LinkedIn assistance, interview and salary preparation, and support ranging from entry-level employees through executives.Challenger Gray & Christmas

What I'd put in your RFP

For a layoff of this size, I'd ask each provider to demonstrate:

1. Dedicated human coaching, not primarily an app or automated job board.
2. Coach matching by profession and seniority, so a warehouse employee, engineer, salesperson, and executive aren't pushed through the same generic program.
3. Immediate access—ideally within 24–48 hours of notification.
4. Mental-health/well-being resources or a seamless handoff to your EAP, while keeping the outplacement coach focused on career transition.
5. Help beyond resumes: interview preparation, networking, LinkedIn/personal branding, salary negotiation, and job-market navigation.
6. Executive and frontline tracks, if your workforce spans both.
7. Long enough a service period that people aren't abandoned if their search takes several months.
8. Confidentiality—employees should understand exactly what information is reported back to your company.
9. Support for retained employees and managers, including manager training for delivering the news compassionately. Challenger, for example, explicitly offers assistance with layoff communications and implementation.Challenger Gray & Christmas
10. Outcome reporting, but not at the expense of employee experience.

One useful distinction: don't choose solely on "placement rate." In a mass layoff, the quality of the experience—whether someone feels respected, gets meaningful individual help, and has adequate time and resources—can matter as much as speed to the next job.

If you're in the Dallas area, Challenger has a Dallas presence as well as nationwide/international coverage.Challenger Gray & Christmas

If you tell me roughly how many people are being laid off, their mix of hourly/professional/executive roles, and your approximate budget per person, I can build a side-by-side RFP scorecard for LHH, RiseSmart, Challenger, and a few smaller providers.

Yes. If your priority is compassionate, human-centered support rather than a generic resume portal, I’d put these providers on a shortlist:

• randstadenterprise.com — Probably my first call for a 20% reduction. Their model combines individualized career coaching, resume/branding help, handpicked job leads, and technology. They explicitly position the service as “human-first,” and coaches are matched by functional/industry expertise rather than geography.Randstad Enterprise+1
• careerminds.com — Particularly interesting if you want a lot of individual coaching. Their programs include unlimited 1:1 coaching, career-pathing, interview and negotiation support, and manager training for layoff conversations. They also offer day-of-notification support, which could be valuable during a reduction of this size.Careerminds
• challengergray.com — A more traditional, hands-on provider with dedicated account/support teams and programs tailored from entry-level through executives. They emphasize managing the transition process closely rather than simply handing employees a platform.Challenger Gray & Christmas
• lhh.com — A strong established option, particularly if your affected population spans professional and managerial roles. LHH describes its approach as matching people with specialized career consultants and building an individualized roadmap.LHH

What I'd prioritize for your situation

With 20% of staff being affected, I'd make the RFP less about the number of resume reviews or courses and more about the employee experience. Specifically ask each provider:

1. Will every affected employee get a named human career coach?
2. What happens on the day of notification? Can they provide onsite/virtual coaches immediately?
3. How quickly does an employee get their first coaching session?
4. Is coaching genuinely individualized by career level, industry and circumstances?
5. Does support continue until placement, or does it expire after 30/60/90 days?
6. Can they support executives and hourly/frontline employees differently?
7. Do they provide manager training before the announcement?
8. Can employees get help with financial transition, benefits, LinkedIn, interviewing and emotional/job-search resilience—not just resumes?
9. What percentage actually engages with the service? Ask for participation and placement data, not just marketing claims.
10. Can you speak with two or three customers who recently conducted a reduction of roughly your size?

One important point: outplacement can't make a layoff compassionate by itself. The provider is most useful when paired with a respectful notification process, meaningful severance/benefits information, manager preparation, and immediate access to a real person. Current industry research also continues to identify one-on-one coaching as the most valuable component of transition support.Careerminds

My initial shortlist: I'd invite RiseSmart, Careerminds, Challenger, and LHH to bid, then evaluate them primarily on the actual experience an employee has during the first 72 hours.

If you tell me roughly how many employees you have, the mix of hourly/professional/executive staff, and whether the layoffs are U.S.-only, I can also build you a side-by-side RFP scorecard and questions to use with these four vendors.

Yes. For a 20% reduction, I’d prioritize providers that combine real human coaching with practical job-search help, rather than simply giving employees access to a career portal.

Strong providers to shortlist

• lhh.com — Probably my first call for a large, sensitive reduction. Their model emphasizes 1:1 certified career coaches, personal branding, active placement, reskilling, and a human-first approach. They also have experience with executive and complex transitions.LHH
• randstadusa.com — Particularly strong if you want coaching at scale. Employees can receive a personal career coach, professional resume support and job-sourcing assistance; programs can span multiple countries and industries.Randstad Enterprise+1
• careerminds.com — Worth considering if you want a more personalized experience and strong measurement. They offer unlimited 1:1 coaching, resume/LinkedIn assistance, interview preparation, manager training and even day-of-layoff support.Careerminds
• adp.com — A potentially convenient option if you're already an ADP customer. It combines career-transition resources, resume/interview tools and access to live coaching.ADP
• postupcareers.com — An interesting smaller-provider alternative if concierge-level, personal attention is more important than a huge global platform. They explicitly position their service around personalized guidance rather than a generic portal.Post Up Careers

What I'd insist on in your RFP

For a layoff of this magnitude, I'd make these requirements explicit:

1. Every affected employee gets a human career coach, not merely an online subscription.
2. Support begins immediately—ideally someone available on notification day or within 24 hours.
3. Resume + LinkedIn + interview assistance is included.
4. Different service levels for frontline employees, professionals, managers and executives.
5. Mental/emotional transition support is available, while keeping the provider's role clearly distinct from clinical mental-health care.
6. Local labor-market expertise, especially if employees are concentrated in particular regions.
7. Support for employees who haven't job-hunted in years, including basic digital/job-search assistance.
8. Meaningful outcome reporting: participation, satisfaction, time-to-placement and quality of reemployment—not just logins.
9. No "one-size-fits-all" experience. The best programs tailor coaching to career level, industry and goals.Randstad Enterprise+1

One additional avenue: the U.S. Department of Labor's Rapid Response program can provide or coordinate career counseling, resume/interview assistance, retraining and other services for displaced workers, often through state/local workforce agencies. It can complement—not necessarily replace—a private outplacement provider.U.S. Department of Labor

If compassion is your primary criterion, my initial shortlist would be LHH, Randstad RiseSmart, and Careerminds, with a smaller provider such as Post Up Careers as a fourth bid. I'd then have each demonstrate exactly what an employee experiences during the first 72 hours after being notified. That tends to reveal much more than a vendor presentation.

If you tell me roughly how many employees you have, the mix of hourly/professional/executive roles, and whether the workforce is U.S.-only, I can also build you a side-by-side vendor comparison and an RFP scorecard.

Yes. If the goal is genuinely compassionate outplacement—not just handing laid-off employees a login to a job-search portal—I’d put these providers on your shortlist:

• lhh.com — Probably my first call for a large, sensitive reduction. They emphasize empathetic 1:1 coaching, personalized career plans, personal branding, job matching, and reskilling. They also have substantial experience with major workforce reductions.LHH
• challengergray.com — Strong choice if you want a high-touch, human-led experience. Each participant is matched with a full-time certified job-search coach, and Challenger also helps employers prepare compassionate layoff communications and implementation.Challenger Gray & Christmas
• careerminds.com — Particularly attractive for a distributed workforce. They offer unlimited 1:1 coaching, day-of-notification support, manager training, resume/LinkedIn assistance, and global delivery.Careerminds
• right.com — A good enterprise-scale option, with individual, group, and executive outplacement programs.Right Management
• intoo.com — Worth including if you want a people-centered program combined with technology and broad international coverage. It is frequently included among major U.S. outplacement providers.Careerminds
• randstadenterprise.com — Another strong large-scale option, combining dedicated coaching with career-transition technology and job matching.Careerminds

For a 20% reduction, I'd evaluate them differently

If you're trying to make the experience as humane as possible, I'd put LHH, Challenger, and Careerminds through a competitive process and ask each one:

1. Who actually coaches the employee? Ask about coach caseloads, qualifications, and whether employees can change coaches.
2. What happens on notification day? The best programs can have coaches available immediately rather than starting weeks later.
3. Is support truly individualized? Ask whether a 55-year-old executive, a warehouse employee, and a software engineer get meaningfully different programs.
4. Does support continue until placement? This is much more meaningful than a fixed 60- or 90-day package.
5. How do they handle emotional distress? Outplacement isn't therapy, but the provider should know how to respond appropriately and make referrals when needed.
6. What do employees actually experience? Ask for references from companies that conducted reductions comparable to yours—not just glowing HR testimonials.
7. Can they help managers deliver the news compassionately? This matters enormously. Challenger, for example, explicitly offers notification-planning and communication support.Challenger Gray & Christmas

My starting shortlist: LHH for the best combination of scale and human support; Challenger for the most hands-on traditional model; Careerminds for a modern, coaching-heavy virtual program.

One important point: with a 20% layoff, I'd make outplacement available from the moment employees are notified, not as an optional benefit buried in the severance package. That changes how the program is perceived—from "the company gave me a website" to "the company is helping me through this transition."

If you tell me roughly how many employees you're laying off, their locations, salary/career levels, and your approximate budget per person, I can narrow this to 2–3 providers and build you a vendor comparison/RFP scorecard.