"Since working with Joan Runnheim Olson over the past ten months I have seen Kim grow in her ability to share her views in a more confident and direct way while maintaining her compassion for others.  Kim is taking a more active role in leadership meetings and confronting issues that would have been ignored in the past.  Kim has grown as a leader in our company due to this coaching."

- Jill Koosman, CEO, in regard to Kim, CFO

Q & A

Q. I am being downsized and don’t have a severance package.  Can I negotiate one now? 

A. Being in this position will make negotiating a severance package difficult, but you can’t lose much by trying.  Severance packages can be negotiated at any time, whether before or after the separation from employment date, or at any time during the termination notice period.  Circumstances, though, impact the flexibility an employer may have to respond and the leverage you can bring to bear in the negotiation process.   

If you are being downsized as part of a mass layoff or a incentive designed to prompt employees to leave voluntarily, chances are your employer is offering a standardized severance package.  In such a case, the employer may be completely unreceptive to negotiating an individualized package or to making any adjustment to the package offered for a couple of reasons.   

One is that you are dealing with an employer who is experiencing financial problems and has limited resources available to enhance a severance package.  The second reason is that negotiating with one of the several individuals involved can set a precedent that could result in the employer’s being required to negotiate with all employees affected by the downsizing.  Also, if your employer has an existing severance benefit plan which has been communicated by means of a plan document or in an employee handbook, it may be reluctant to offer more, unless it wants to get something, like release of claims, from the employee in return for an enhanced benefit. 

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