What Now? Best practices in an uncertain economy.
by Debbie Hatke, MA, SPHRI'm one that tends to think that the glass is "half full". As such, I am much happier terming our current economic condition as a time of "uncertainty"; it sounds better than "troubled" or "down". After all, uncertain is truly what this situation is. One day the stock market is up, the next day it is down; unemployment is up, but other key indices are down. I think it's anyone's guess as to when or how a turnaround is going to happen. So I stay positive and continue to hope for the best in this time of "uncertainty".
While we are all very aware of the economic climate, being reminded almost daily, life must go on and for businesses and their owners, the business must go on. What does that mean? How can we continue to do business when there is so much uncertainty? As HR professionals what can we do to ensure that business "goes on" as needed, despite the uncertainty? I say take your cue from other departments - what are their best practices in an economic slowdown? Here are some observations that I've made over the past few months that come from different departments and varying industries:
- Do more with less. Everyone I talk with says that now is the time to do more with less. Wasn't that what we were already doing? That seems to have been the mantra for most of my existence in the business world. But today it takes on a whole new meaning. I have heard of companies consolidating offices/cubicles and sharing space with a staggered staff (in this instance essentially turning off the lights and electricity-hogging computers for half its employees in a call-center). One particular company has even shut down multiple refrigerators in a break-room that are for employee use - all in an attempt to cut back on overhead costs. Big bottom-line impact? Maybe not, but often times finding lots of little savings can add up to big savings in the long run; and are often overlooked when money isn't so tight. Think of some small ways you can save money that might make an impact over time. A lot of the "green" initiatives that are taking hold are great opportunities to save money, but in some cases they might cost more upfront, so be sure to do a ROI to make sure you are getting the cost savings that are immediately needed.
- Employees are valuable assets. Labor is expensive, but it's also very essential to many businesses. Some companies tend to view their employees as disposable commodities and labor costs are the first thing to be cut when the belt has to tighten. While in some instances cutting labor is the only way to make ends meet, in other cases it's possible to be creative with your labor budget and try other options rather than eliminating employees, and adding to unemployment. One company I know of is asking employees to take a day off (no pay) to allow others to work. While not everyone has the luxury of going a day without pay, if given the choice of job cuts for all or occasional unpaid time off, many would choose the latter. Likewise, some companies are freezing salaries to keep everyone employed and avoid layoffs while still meeting the payroll. This may not be a good long-term solution, but it just might get some companies through until things start to improve in the economy. Before eliminating employees, be sure to analyze if that's the best, first move.
- Business as usual. While you don't want to appear insensitive to the times, it is important to take on a "business as usual" demeanor when it comes to getting things done. When you talk with marketers, they know that now is not the time to stop marketing. In fact, marketers say that now is precisely the time to market more. Market-share is up-for-grabs as companies are forced to leave the market or are erroneously concentrating on the wrong focus and let market-share slip to competitors (like yourself). Now is the time to strike and capture some of that market. Sales and marketing professionals are taking this opportunity to enhance relationships with their existing clients as well as attract new customers. Similarly, HR should also use this time to enhance relationships with their clients - which include employees. As the budget permits, try to maintain (or even improve) the status quo.
- Don't forget to reward employees for a job well done. You may not be able to financially reward them, but you can recognize their performance in a variety of positive and meaningful ways.
- Keep soliciting new ideas from employees. It's easy to instinctively resist change and avoid trying something new for fear of financial implications, but innovation is often key to helping organizations survive during tough times (think of the cost saving ideas your employees could generate).
- Don't eliminate training. You might have to scale back the training you typically provide, but try to keep the opportunity to learn and improve skills available if at all possible. If employees have the opportunity to train outside your organization, remember they may be able to bring back other best practices they learn from others while in training.
- Don't forget to reward employees for a job well done. You may not be able to financially reward them, but you can recognize their performance in a variety of positive and meaningful ways.
- Remember the "survivors". As HR professionals you are well aware of "survivor guilt" - the feelings of despair employees feel when others fall victim to a layoff and they "survive". However, you don't have to have an actual layoff in your organization to have employees that feel this guilt. The sheer volume of today's layoffs seems to impact just about everyone. Your employees may have close friends or family members who have lost jobs and are dealing with unemployment. In addition, today's layoffs are different than in the past. Previous layoffs usually resulted in laid-off people getting similar jobs to the ones they had lost. Today, however, it is more likely that whole job types will be eliminated and folks will be forced to find work in a completely different arena than they are used to working. Should you have a layoff situation within your organization, your "survivors" will certainly have a lot on their minds. Be keenly aware of the environment, both within your organization and the outside community. Keep your employees "in the know" as much as possible. Constant communication, and validation of what's going on elsewhere, is the key to calming fears among your employees. Offer your employees coping strategies or provide forums where they can talk about such issues. If they feel better about such situations and can work through the issues, their performance and the overall environment of the organization will likely improve.
Debbie Hatke, MA, SPHR is a Senior Human Resources Management Consultant and Talent Strategy Manager with Strategic Human Resources, Inc. (www.strategichrinc.com). If you have questions or comments about this article, you can contact Debbie at Debbie@StrategicHRinc.com.