What Layoffs Don't Tell You About Talent

The first time I was laid off, I assumed I had missed something. I replayed recent projects in my head, reread emails and tried to figure out where I had gone wrong. The uncomfortable realization came later. I had not failed. The business had simply changed direction.

I have been impacted by layoffs and restructurings multiple times throughout my career in the food industry. Each situation looked different on paper. Different companies, different roles, different messaging. What they had in common was that performance was not the deciding factor. Cost pressure, acquisitions, reorganizations and shifting priorities were.

Still, layoffs carry a quiet stigma in hiring conversations.

I have felt the pressure to explain what happened, even when entire teams were eliminated. I have been asked indirect questions meant to test stability rather than capability. I have also watched other strong professionals hesitate to share their full story, worried it would be misinterpreted.

Restructuring is a business decision, not a reflection of individual value. Functions are removed regardless of contribution. Projects are stopped mid-stream. Roles disappear even when the work itself is still needed. Treating layoffs as a red flag ignores how organizations actually operate.

What is rarely discussed is what comes after.

Coming back from a layoff is not just about finding another role. It impacts confidence and identity. There is a recalibration that happens. You start paying closer attention to how decisions are made, who is included and what information is shared. You become more aware of how quickly priorities can shift and how little notice changes sometimes bring.

That awareness changes how you work.

One of the biggest gaps I see is not technical knowledge. It is translation. Someone needs to connect formulation ideas to what actually happens on the production floor, then bring those realities back to the bench.

Professionals who have lived through disruption often develop stronger cross-functional instincts. They ask better questions earlier. They are more thoughtful about documentation, knowledge sharing and decision clarity. I have found myself paying closer attention to how information flows, where assumptions are made and how teams respond under pressure.

These are not soft skills. They are survival skills.

Yet hiring processes rarely make space for that perspective. Candidates are often expected to move quickly past the topic of layoffs rather than discuss what they learned. Organizations miss an opportunity to understand how someone has grown through uncertainty.

Onboarding plays a critical role here. New hires who have experienced disruption often arrive cautious. Clear expectations, transparency around decision making and context about business priorities go a long way toward rebuilding trust. When onboarding focuses only on systems and policies, it overlooks the human side of reintegration.

Retention is closely tied to how supported people feel during uncertainty. Employees do not expect stability forever. They expect honesty. Companies that communicate clearly during change and define roles realistically are better positioned to retain strong talent, even when conditions are difficult.

The food industry prides itself on resilience. Supply chains adapt. Processes evolve. Teams solve problems under pressure every day. That same resilience should extend to how we view careers shaped by disruption.

Layoffs are part of the reality of the industry today. Treating them as something to explain away rather than something to understand limits the talent pool and discourages open conversation. Experience does not disappear because a role was eliminated.

Layoffs do not define talent. What people learn, how they adapt and how they move forward does.