Michael Loox sensed something was wrong. For a little over a year, he had been the senior manager of safety and asset protection at Chipotle Mexican Grill. It was a good job in a career that spanned some thirty years. During that time, Loox had served in various senior loss prevention roles for such notable companies as The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Victoria’s Secret, Prada, and Gucci Group. But by the summer of 2023, Loox knew something was amiss at Chipotle.
“Intuitively I felt it,” he said. “I felt a difference in the relationship with my immediate supervisor. It became more standoffish. I read the room, and it didn’t leave me with a good feeling.”
Sure enough, on a June evening in 2023, Loox received a call from human resources and was told the company was streamlining the corporate office. He was being laid off, effective immediately.
“Even though I was somewhat prepared for it, it still stung and hurt,” he said.
While Loox at least had an idea he might be laid off, Deana McLees-Bailey was blindsided. Like Loox, McLees-Bailey has an impressive loss prevention career, including working at Nike and a 20-year stint at Ann Taylor.
In August of 2022, she started as director of enterprise risk at clothing retailer Aritizia. After about a year and a half with the company, she was summoned to a Zoom meeting while on the road visiting a store. She stopped at a coffee shop for the meeting, and management informed her she was being laid off as a part of company downsizing.
“It was just one of those awful scenarios,” she said. “I was totally surprised.”
Loox and McLees-Bailey are hardly alone. For the last several years, layoffs have hit the restaurant and retail industries hard, driven mostly by COVID-19 and a shaky economy. Companies that have laid off employees or announced impending layoffs include Peloton, Walmart, Nike, REI, Lands’ End, Macy’s, and CVS, among others.
Losing your job is bad enough, but being caught off-guard makes the situation that much worse. To help employees in LP, we talked with Loox, McLees-Bailey, and others who offered advice on preparing for a layoff during these volatile and uncertain times.
Situational Awareness
Adrian Guardia is an instructional associate professor in the Department of Management and Marketing at Texas A&M University-San Antonio. He teaches MBA courses on career development and talent management.
He said that during his career, he’s both planned and delivered layoffs, as well as been a casualty of layoffs. “You might think having been on one side of the desk would have prepared me for the other side. But I found that I was not prepared. The experience made me aware I need to be ready when things change.”
Similar to the way Loox indicated that he intuitively felt something was wrong at Chipotle in the months leading up to being laid off, Guardia said it is critical to develop situational awareness about your employer.
“Oftentimes, we are unaware of what is happening within our organizations. It’s important to be observant about where we work and look for any changes,” Guardia said. “What is taking place in your department? Are there any changes in policies or practices? How do those changes affect you? They may be early warning signs of bigger things to come.”
Moreover, Guardia said it’s essential to look at the big picture, including if outside forces impact your industry or sector. “Look for signs and economic influences that may be regional, national, or even global. They could create a ripple effect that impacts things like the supply chain, which could negatively impact your company and your job.”
Lean On (the Right) Connections
Loox said being laid off from Chipotle was particularly painful, as it was the second time his job had been eliminated. About seven years earlier, he had been part of a downsizing at BLD Brands, where he had served as director of loss prevention and safety for about a year.
“The first time I got laid off, it was horrifying because I had never experienced something like that,” he said. “The second time was almost worse in the sense that I was 56 and married with four kids, including two grade school-age children.”
But this time, Loox wasn’t blindsided, and he soon developed a game plan. For one, he stuck with a regular routine. He woke up every morning around 7:30 a.m., showered, dressed, and then spent two or three hours researching and looking for work.
“I think a lot of folks who are laid off start grinding eight to ten hours a day, seven days a week. But I adopted a laser-like focus. I leaned on a select number of people I was very close with. You might have 2,000 connections on LinkedIn, but only a few of them are in a position to do something for you. I’m not trying to minimize connections. But thoughts and prayers don’t get a job for you.”
Like Loox, the first thing McLees-Bailey did after being laid off was reach out to some close connections.
“I first called an industry friend who has always been very even-keeled,” she said. “In that moment, when you’re still frazzled, it helps to have someone listen, ask the right questions, and put you in the right mindset.”
Determined not to “sit there and wallow and feel sorry for myself,” McLees-Bailey said the day after she was laid off, she woke up early and made a list of who to call. “I started with the most influential people I know, including loss prevention vice presidents and board members from the National Retail Federation. I figured go big or go home. They would be able to spread the word that I was looking for a new opportunity.”
McLees-Bailey also asked some of her contacts to write recommendations for her on LinkedIn. “I was very selective and reached out to former HR partners, peers, and bosses. I wanted people to have a good, holistic view of who I was.”
Guardia stressed that to make the most of your connections, you should constantly be forging professional relationships, rather than scrambling to connect with others when you’re desperate.
“Having a network you can tap into means associating with others in meaningful ways,” he said. “Join organizations, volunteer, and show people that you’re multi-dimensional and have the qualities that would be valued in any organization. Make sure you’re a known quantity and stay active and engaged in your network.”
Take Stock
A layoff can leave you reeling and unsure about the future. But it’s also an opportunity to take stock of your life, assess your career options, and determine what you really want. While Loox and McLees-Bailey ended up staying in the loss prevention industry, the experience of being laid off made them both look inward and consider what else is out there.
“As much as I wanted to stay in loss prevention and asset protection, I started looking at other opportunities where I could exploit my top three or four skills,” said Loox. “I can put together camera and alarm systems, I can manage projects, and I have a master’s degree, so I can teach. I started exploring other options because it’s a tough time in asset protection right now.”
McLees-Bailey took a similar approach. “I’ve been in loss prevention for a long time. That’s my comfort zone. I can do the job inside and out, backward and forward, with my eyes closed. But I started to think about what I really wanted to do next. Being laid off opened my eyes, and I looked at different areas of opportunity.”
When it comes to taking stock, Guarda once again stresses the importance of early preparation. “One should be assessing the contributions they make to their organization. What have I done to add value? What have I accomplished? Because you may find yourself having to talk about your contributions in very specific ways. Always have your two-minute elevator pitch ready to go.”
Update Your Résumé
It’s easy to forget about your résumé if you’re busy at work and happy with your job. But, as recent times have shown, you never know what’s on the horizon. Rather than be caught off-guard, it’s a smart move to keep your résumé updated so you’re in a better position to land a new job if the unexpected happens.
“The world has changed a lot in the thirty-five years that I’ve worked in loss prevention,” Loox said. “I spent $115 with a résumé service, and it made a world of difference. Now I make sure always to refresh my résumé.”
McLees-Bailey also connected with several people to help update her résumé, but she did so with a targeted focus. “I basically interviewed them and asked for samples of loss prevention résumés,” she said. “I didn’t want a generic résumé, I wanted help from people who understand the loss prevention industry and the job market.”
Prepare a Nest Egg
Maintaining an emergency fund is always a good idea, regardless of where you are in your career. Most financial planners recommend having three to six months’ worth of living expenses in an account you can access quickly, easily, and without withdrawal penalties. While everyone’s financial situation is different, the idea is to set aside as much funds as possible to help soften the economic blow if there’s an emergency.
McLees-Bailey said she’s always been financially responsible and had a sizable nest egg when she was laid off—enough to get her through the six months she was unemployed.
“It was fortunate that I was prepared financially,” she said. “I only spend money if I know I have it. I don’t use credit cards unless it’s an emergency. I definitely suggest that people always keep an emergency fund, especially with the environment that we’re in these days.”
Once he landed a new job after being laid off for the first time in 2017, Loox said he decided to always have liquid capital available. “I just wanted to make sure we had a decent cushion.”
This strategy paid off when Loox was laid off again last year. While he cut out unnecessary spending, he was able to cover basic monthly expenses without disrupting family plans, including helping pay for his two older kids’ weddings and taking one of his teenage daughters to a Taylor Swift concert.
“The lesson I learned is to never live beyond your means. Preparing your finances beforehand makes a big difference. I was cautious. I made sure we had capital around and focused on getting through each month. That also helped me be more psychologically prepared when I was laid off.”
The nest egg also gave him more time to find the right job where he was, rather than move and uproot his family as he had to the first time he was laid off.
“I didn’t want to disrupt their lives again, and I made the decision that I wasn’t going to relocate. With teenagers, it’s not so easy to get up and go anymore. Your children have to be a consideration.”
The Next Chapter
After several months of job hunting, Loox said a LinkedIn contact alerted him to a job opportunity at Sheetz that he thought sounded like a good fit. “I went into the interview process cold like everyone else. I didn’t know anyone on the inside, and I had no referrals,” he said. “I submitted my brand-new résumé with my brand-new cover letter. A few days later, I got a call from a recruiter who wanted to talk to me about the job.”
In September 2023, Loox landed the job as senior manager of store security and loss investigations at Sheetz. “I don’t want to say I was lucky, or that I was blessed. I worked hard to get where I am.”
McLees-Bailey said her job search lasted about six months. “I can tell you; the process sucks these days. When I went to Nike and Aritzia, I was recruited, so I had never actually put myself out there looking for a job.”
During her job search, McLees-Bailey scoured LinkedIn and other job platforms, and if she saw a position that interested her, she would reach out directly to the VP of loss prevention or the VP of talent acquisition. She landed multiple interviews—a process that often took months—but was often the “sacrificial external candidate.”
Then, a former employee reached out about an opportunity as director of retail security operations at Security Industry Specialists. A company recruiter texted her and asked if she’d like to come in for an interview.
“I interviewed for about two weeks, including with the CEO, and it was the first interview where I felt a connection,” she said. “I was myself. I wasn’t memorizing facts or trying to overly impress people. We were able to have a great, normal conversation. I got the job offer almost immediately and started in April. It was a huge, huge relief.”