How to effectively manage staff during the corporate restructuring process

Although there has been much trumpeting by the Government about the signs of economic recovery, it’s pretty obvious to many people that a couple of quarters of (far-below predicted) growth isn’t anything much to get excited about. It can be spun every which way but however you look at it the business landscape is as tough now as it was four or five years ago when the big crash was in full swing. A lot of companies are struggling to keep afloat, never mind grow, and a lot are having to undertake corporate restructuring to stay in business.

Nobody likes restructuring, especially the inevitable layoffs, but if it’s undertaken early it can be extremely effective at turning a business around. One of the areas that will take the biggest hit is staff morale and, by knock-on effect, productivity. That’s the last thing you need. In a time where you need staff to be pulling together, a demotivated workforce will be hunting for other jobs. Here are some tips to help you manage staff morale during the corporate restructuring process.

Communication Is Key. You can try and keep it all as quiet as you like, but the fact of the matter is that employees will notice that trouble is afoot. To keep the rumours to a minimum make sure that you keep up regular and clear communications with everyone. If you keep employees in the dark they will draw their own conclusions and then be more likely to down tools or jump ship entirely. Have meetings, where possible answer questions clearly and let them know that you are taking positive action.
Make A Clean Break. A lot of businesses decide the best way to carry out redundancies is in rounds. Take a department a week until everything is done. This is really bad for staff morale as it gives people time to worry if they will be next, and also to think about the fate of their co-workers. It’s best to tackle everything in one go, and if necessary have departmental heads carry out the process to make the changes quick, clean and efficient.
Be Compassionate. If you can you need to offer a fair redundancy package. The advantage here is twofold. Primarily you’re helping out the unfortunate employees who are being let go. What’s happening is out of their control, this isn’t being sacked for poor performance or negligence. The added benefit of providing a redundancy package is that people who are not laid off will feel more comfortable continuing to work for your company. Not only will they be glad that their former co-workers aren’t being tossed onto the scrap heap, they’ll also be less likely to worry about any possible future layoffs. This will keep maintain a positive attitude moving forward.

Corporate restructuring is a hard business, and unfortunately it means that there will be some collateral damage during the process. To limit the effects it’s important to manage the process effectively. These tips will help but seeking advice from the professionals can make the entire process smoother, ensuring your business has the best chance of success.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Jason Tucker .