Several years ago Dr. John Sullivan, the guru of recruiting, posed the question as to who won the war for talent. With the current unemployment numbers, the answer may not be as obvious as one thinks. In times of economic trials, many companies think that the path to monetary strength is to cut the employee overhead. We would suggest that this may only be a temporary fix.
We have moved from a marketplace based on what we produce to what we know. As a result, the knowledge of our employee base can determine whether an organization survives into the future. I had recently attended a meeting in which the presenter discussed a corporation which thought the road to prosperity was to offer early retirement to any employee with more than 20 years seniority. Every one of the employees in question accepted the buy out. The company went out of business in 6 months.
There is another way. In his book "Reaching the Goal", John Ricketts suggests that instead of conducting layoffs, create project skill benches. Employees are put on projects to completion. Then they come back to the skill bench and if business is slow, then send them for additional training. Upon completion of the training they come back to the skill bench for the next project.
All to often we forget that the employees are what keeps our customers satisfied and therefore adding to the bottom line. If you find that your revenue is slipping the answer is to check with the voice of the customer, not cutting staff. Make sure that you are meeting the needs of the customer which will relate to the level of employee involvement required.
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