Business restructuring is sometimes necessary to keep a company operational. When a downturn in sales, an increase in operating expenses or other factors put financial pressure on an organization, restructuring can help keep the company from failing.
The restructuring process is fraught with numerous challenges, including staffing issues. Companies often have to make difficult decisions about reducing their workforce to help the company improve after restructuring. Workers are aware of that, and talent flight is common when restructuring occurs.
The most productive and valuable employees at a company may start looking for employment elsewhere when they realize that their employer’s company is experiencing financial hardship and about to go through drastic changes.
How can organizations avoid the loss of the talent they need to keep a company profitable after restructuring?
Identify key players early
Ideally, management can proactively communicate with the workers who have the biggest impact on the company’s success. From the top-performing sales professionals to the engineers turning out the most cutting-edge ideas, there are usually employees who have an outsized impact on company operations. The sooner the company communicates with those workers in particular and provides them with an incentive to stay, the better the chances the company has of operating effectively with fewer employees in the future.
Embrace transparency
After negotiating the retention of key workers in private, the company likely needs to move quickly. As workers become aware of restructuring efforts, people may begin planning their exit from the organization. Communicating with workers about what lies ahead and being as transparent as possible is often an effective strategy. Workers who know the company may restructure and who understand what the plan is for that process can then make informed decisions about their future employment.
Reinvest in workers
Frequently, restructuring results in fewer workers doing more work, possibly for less pay or the same wages. Such scenarios lead to burnout and diminish the loyalty of those professionals to the organization. Particularly in scenarios where an organization intends to streamline operations by downsizing its workforce, making commitments to those who stay to provide equitable wages and more advancement opportunities can be a smart move. Those who stay with the company in the long run may eventually feel grateful and have a stronger sense of loyalty to the company because of how the business treated them during its darkest hours.
Business restructuring can inspire a myriad of changes, but a sudden and unpredictable loss of talent doesn’t need to be one of them. Preparing assertively for the likelihood of talent loss can help organizations come out of the restructuring process stronger.