It’s tough to hear about job cuts as the economy takes a hit, but I can’t help but feel a sense of optimism for those who’ve been laid off. Why? Well, two reasons. First, there’s the silver lining of a severance package. Imagine getting a payout equivalent to six months of your salary, and then landing a new job just two months later with similar pay. You’d essentially be earning double for four months!
Second, the shock of losing a job might just be the push some people need to take a leap of faith. Maybe they’ll start their own business, go back to school, or switch to a new career. Sometimes, being forced to change can turn out to be a blessing in disguise. Learning to adapt to uncomfortable situations can make you stronger. In fact, getting laid off might just be the best thing that ever happens to you. It certainly was for me.
Now, let me share a story about a mass severance package negotiation. After sending out one of my weekly newsletters, I received an email from a reader who had been laid off from his job at a big tech company. He shared a severance package negotiation success story that I’d never heard before.
To protect the reader, I’ve been holding onto this story since early 2020. He agreed to let me share his severance package negotiation story as long as I didn’t disclose where he worked or his last name.
Negotiating a severance package can be tricky, especially when deferred compensation is involved. Until all the severance package money is in your bank account, you’re still at the mercy of your previous employer. Even after you receive all your severance money, it’s best to stay quiet for a while. If you do something to jeopardize the reputation of the firm, they could try to get that severance package money back!
Now, let’s get to the $40 million mass severance package negotiation. The reader, let’s call him Bob, was laid off from his job at a big corporation before he could start negotiating a severance. Despite the bad timing, he used the confidence and strategies from my book to negotiate a bigger payout for Restricted Stock Units (RSUs), which he would have missed out on by about a month.
Bob initially planned to negotiate for his RSUs only. But in the end, he campaigned to get the RSUs paid out for all 2,000 employees who were let go. The average value of the RSUs was $20,000 per person, so this was a $40 million ask. And he got it for everyone.
Bob’s story is a testament to the power of strategic thinking, courage, emotional intelligence, and organization. He knew how to negotiate well, which is one of the most important skills in life. Whether it’s getting a promotion or getting your kids to go to bed on time, negotiation is involved in everything important.
So, have you ever heard of one person negotiating a mass severance package before? If you’ve been recently laid off, what was the experience like? How big of a severance package did you get? I’d love to hear your stories.
