Question

As a manager in an organization that must make cuts in order to survive what exactly should you do with staff to minimize the impact?

Answer 1

Downsizing should not be considered towards the end of business cycle. It hurts the sales of the cycle badly. Also out of pocket expenses surge once decision to lay-off is announced. Company should instead focus on cutting down expenses and cost optimization first before reducing head-counts. The supports and facilities may be reduced and the management must be acceptable to the decreased productivity due to absence of these sales support.

Productivity measures should be used determining who to lay-off and who to retain. The manager will not wish to lose the best people.

When making the cut, ensure that the cut is made deeper. Lay-off more than required and not fewer. This ensures two things

=resources can be freed up which can be invested in retained staff to boost morale

=Avoids the situation where the company may need to decide on another cut - which will bring down the morale of the retained workforce

= Ensure that after the job cut productivity boosting initiatives are implemented fast - like raise in commission etc