Background & Purpose: Increasing employee mobility and changing career patterns have made the return of former employees to their previous organizations—known as boomerang employees—an increasingly important phenomenon in contemporary work environments. Accordingly, the study aimed to design and develop an integrated model of the antecedents, processes, and outcomes of boomerang employee return.
Methodology: In this qualitative meta-synthesis study, a systematic review of the research literature published between 2010 and 2026 was conducted using online academic databases. Through the search process, 62 published studies were retrieved and, based on a specific screening algorithm, 38 studies were selected for final analysis using thematic analysis.
Findings: Thematic analysis resulted in the identification of three main themes concerning boomerang employee return: antecedents, return processes, and outcomes. The antecedents comprised three dimensions: individual factors, organizational factors, and environmental/macro factors. The return process consisted of six dimensions: cognitive–evaluative, identity–psychological, learning and experience transfer, social–interactive, structural–role, and organizational–reintegration. The outcomes comprised two dimensions: positive outcomes and negative outcomes.
Conclusion: From a theoretical perspective, the present study enhances the understanding and theoretical knowledge of the academic community and business managers by identifying the major antecedents, processes, and outcomes of boomerang employee return, thereby contributing to the development and advancement of this field. From a practical perspective, the relatively integrated model developed in this study provides a basis for a more comprehensive understanding of employee return and can assist organizations in making more informed decisions regarding rehiring and designing effective practices for the reintegration and retention of returning employees.