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CNN Sunday Morning

Interview With Rick Cobb

Aired August 31, 2003 - 09:15   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Don't want to put a damper on your Labor Day weekend, but when you head back to work you actually might want to step it up a notch, because research from a leading consulting firm shows that you're 25 percent more likely to lose your job after Labor Day. Let's find out why and get some job security tips from Rick Cobb. He's of Challenger Gray & Christmas Incorporated. That's an outplacement job firm.
And Rick, explain to us why. Why are you more likely to get canned after Labor Day?

RICK COBB, CHALLENGER GRAY & CHRISTMAS: Well the last seven years, when we've tracked layoff data, the last four months of the year or where companies start looking ahead to the next year. And so they have to make budget cuts and adjust their headcount for the coming year.

VAUSE: OK. So you go back to work and you think something might be up.

COBB: Right.

VAUSE: People aren't talking to you, your name has been removed from the door, you're not invited to the office lounge anymore. What signs should you look for?

COBB: Well, I think that's what happened is that companies have been able to get -- become more efficient through technology. And the real important thing is that even though you banked lots of vacation time and have opportunities to maybe duck work or avoid interacting with you boss, you really want to make yourself as visible as possible. And you want to spend as much time being productive as you possibly can, which means you may have to eat a few vacation days in order to show your worthiness to stay.

VAUSE: Is there any one industry that's more likely -- if you're working in one particular industry, more chance of getting fired at the moment in this present economy?

COBB: Not really. Actually, the announced layoff data is indicating that we're slowly starting to pull out. But the larger companies, the Fortune 1000, are still continuing to make adjustments. So it's counterintuitive. Actually, there are a lot of opportunities in companies that are making cuts.

VAUSE: We'll get to that in just a moment. But we heard from the president that the economy is looking up, consumer spending is up. So is there any reason to think that maybe this year won't be as bad?

COBB: Well, our data indicates it won't be as bad, but we're still not back to, say, the levels that we were at in '99 and 2000. Our announced layoff data for the first eight months of the year were lower than 2002, but still substantially higher than a positive economy would indicate.

VAUSE: OK. Let's assume you go back to work, you get fired, and now you're looking for work. Where are the jobs at the moment?

COBB: Well, and that's the counterintuitive part. A lot of the places where companies have made cuts are also the places where they're making -- where they're hiring. As a company changes how it looks, as it begins to reinvent itself, they will cut out some of the lesser or lower-performing positions, but they'll actually need people who can do more in less time.

And so you'll actually have hiring in the same opportunities where they're releasing. So technology, high-tech environments, computer software, a lot of those places are hiring at the same time they're releasing.

VAUSE: And which ones pay the most money?

COBB: Well, the very specialized retention or production, dollar retention or production environments, like an actuarial or the high- end software development and support people, the software security systems, those are the places where they really need that one expert.

VAUSE: You list something like a chief privacy officer as somebody earning $122,000 a year. Explain to us what that person may do.

COBB: Well, if you've got -- more and more, what you've got is you've got organizations where they're technology, and they need -- you're talking about the...

VAUSE: Post 9/11 jobs.

COBB: Pardon? Oh, post 9/11 jobs. So you are talking about someone now where you actually have to have more security in your own organization. One of the areas where you look at -- the hospitality industry, if you look at what's happened recently overseas, the hotel industry now has to have this delicate balance where they make sure that their guests feel comfortable and secure, and yet they can't be visible in the security or you'll scare away the very guest you're trying to encourage to come to your hotel. That's a very specialized position.

VAUSE: Yes. There's so much more to talk about, Rick. Unfortunately, we've run out of time. But thanks for joining us, Rick, so early here on Sunday morning.

Rick Cobb from Challenger, gray & Christmas, an outplacement firm, giving us some very good tips there on what to do if you get fired. Thanks, mate. COBB: Thanks for having me.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired August 31, 2003 - 09:15   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Don't want to put a damper on your Labor Day weekend, but when you head back to work you actually might want to step it up a notch, because research from a leading consulting firm shows that you're 25 percent more likely to lose your job after Labor Day. Let's find out why and get some job security tips from Rick Cobb. He's of Challenger Gray & Christmas Incorporated. That's an outplacement job firm.
And Rick, explain to us why. Why are you more likely to get canned after Labor Day?

RICK COBB, CHALLENGER GRAY & CHRISTMAS: Well the last seven years, when we've tracked layoff data, the last four months of the year or where companies start looking ahead to the next year. And so they have to make budget cuts and adjust their headcount for the coming year.

VAUSE: OK. So you go back to work and you think something might be up.

COBB: Right.

VAUSE: People aren't talking to you, your name has been removed from the door, you're not invited to the office lounge anymore. What signs should you look for?

COBB: Well, I think that's what happened is that companies have been able to get -- become more efficient through technology. And the real important thing is that even though you banked lots of vacation time and have opportunities to maybe duck work or avoid interacting with you boss, you really want to make yourself as visible as possible. And you want to spend as much time being productive as you possibly can, which means you may have to eat a few vacation days in order to show your worthiness to stay.

VAUSE: Is there any one industry that's more likely -- if you're working in one particular industry, more chance of getting fired at the moment in this present economy?

COBB: Not really. Actually, the announced layoff data is indicating that we're slowly starting to pull out. But the larger companies, the Fortune 1000, are still continuing to make adjustments. So it's counterintuitive. Actually, there are a lot of opportunities in companies that are making cuts.

VAUSE: We'll get to that in just a moment. But we heard from the president that the economy is looking up, consumer spending is up. So is there any reason to think that maybe this year won't be as bad?

COBB: Well, our data indicates it won't be as bad, but we're still not back to, say, the levels that we were at in '99 and 2000. Our announced layoff data for the first eight months of the year were lower than 2002, but still substantially higher than a positive economy would indicate.

VAUSE: OK. Let's assume you go back to work, you get fired, and now you're looking for work. Where are the jobs at the moment?

COBB: Well, and that's the counterintuitive part. A lot of the places where companies have made cuts are also the places where they're making -- where they're hiring. As a company changes how it looks, as it begins to reinvent itself, they will cut out some of the lesser or lower-performing positions, but they'll actually need people who can do more in less time.

And so you'll actually have hiring in the same opportunities where they're releasing. So technology, high-tech environments, computer software, a lot of those places are hiring at the same time they're releasing.

VAUSE: And which ones pay the most money?

COBB: Well, the very specialized retention or production, dollar retention or production environments, like an actuarial or the high- end software development and support people, the software security systems, those are the places where they really need that one expert.

VAUSE: You list something like a chief privacy officer as somebody earning $122,000 a year. Explain to us what that person may do.

COBB: Well, if you've got -- more and more, what you've got is you've got organizations where they're technology, and they need -- you're talking about the...

VAUSE: Post 9/11 jobs.

COBB: Pardon? Oh, post 9/11 jobs. So you are talking about someone now where you actually have to have more security in your own organization. One of the areas where you look at -- the hospitality industry, if you look at what's happened recently overseas, the hotel industry now has to have this delicate balance where they make sure that their guests feel comfortable and secure, and yet they can't be visible in the security or you'll scare away the very guest you're trying to encourage to come to your hotel. That's a very specialized position.

VAUSE: Yes. There's so much more to talk about, Rick. Unfortunately, we've run out of time. But thanks for joining us, Rick, so early here on Sunday morning.

Rick Cobb from Challenger, gray & Christmas, an outplacement firm, giving us some very good tips there on what to do if you get fired. Thanks, mate. COBB: Thanks for having me.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com