downsizing

Main body Exploration of meaning of downsizing – Definition

Organizational Perspective

Downsizing is the planned set of organizational policies and practices aimed at reducing the extant workforce with the goal of improving firm performance (Datta et al., 2010: 282) Individual Perspective

Downsizing is a constellation of stressor events centering around pressures toward workforce reductions which place demands upon the organization, work groups, and individual employees, and require a process of coping and adaptation (Shaw and Barrett-­‐Power, 1997, p. 109)

Begin illustration complexities of downsizing, problematic strategy with downsides.

Purpose and intended outcomes from organizational perspective

The painful upheavals in so many companies in recent years reflect the failure of one-­‐time industry leaders to keep up with the accelerating pace of industry change. Such a discrepancy between the pace of industrial change and the pace of company change give rise to the need for organizational transformation. A company’s organizational transformation agenda typically includes downsizing, overhead reduction, employee empowerment, process redesign, and portfolio rationalization. The goal is to carve away layers of