Survivors of Change

In 1993, David Noer published his book, “Healing the Wounds: Overcoming the Trauma of Layoffs and Revitalizing Downsized Organizations.” Even though I thought the title was a bit too dramatic, the book provides some excellent guidance for organizations after downsizing.

A downsizing results in two types of people: the terminated and the survivors. The terminated, also referred to as the “redundant” (there’s an insensitive term I think you should avoid), are the initial focus of management concern.

“What do we owe the terminated?” is the question introduced into the board room. This question leads to a heated discussion with answers from “nothing” to “lifetime employment.” Of course, lifetime employment is one that I have not heard in awhile, but that gives you an idea of the range of possible responses.

Of course, we want to do as much as we can for the terminated because we are concerned about the terminated individuals. Even though Hollywood depicts us as cold and unfeeling, we business people do have a heart.

But, there is another reason to be generous: the perception of “fairness” by the survivors. Please don’t forget that we (the management members) are now dependent on the survivors.

The organizational impact of a downsizing includes, but is not limited to, the following:

∙ reduced management credibility
∙ reduced loyalty
∙ increased “short-termism”
∙ reduced risk taking
∙ reduced motivation
∙ anger over the downsizing process
∙ dissatisfaction with communication
∙ extra workload on the survivors
∙ a need for more training

David Noer talks about four steps in his model, the “Four-Level Redundancy Intervention Model.” I’d like to comment on the importance on the first three steps.

First, Noer says, “get the process of change right.” This includes a large amount of management planning. It is important to anticipate as many of the consequences of the change as possible. Noer talks about the “efficiency and effectiveness” issues of the change process at this stage.

Second, Noer recommends dealing openly and honestly with the emotional issues. Stage Two involves dealing with disclosed and undisclosed feelings. In my experience, most people are not very good at this. It is self-serving for me to say, but I recommend an independent change consultant during this stage. Organizational leaders need self- awareness and other-awareness to handle this stage well. This stage is important because a solid future can be built upon this “foundation.”

Third, after the emotional issues are dealt with (fear, uncertainty, and doubt--referred to as the FUD factor), it’s now possible to focus on the wide range of needs of the survivors. The survivors need to regain self-confidence and self-worth. This is a good time for the survivors to re-assess their strengths, and to develop new skills.

It is important for the organizational leaders to help redefine the psychological contract at this time. It is also critically important to ensure that HR policies and management practices are aligned with the espoused values of the organization.

For further reading on this topic, I recommend David Noer’s book or my special report entitled “Overcoming Resistance to Change,” which is available on my website www.mikebeitler.com.

Please feel free to send me your questions, comments, and suggestions.