Turbulent times cause companies a lot of problems, and sometimes opportunities. One question our clients ask is how to staff the current operation to support the business, without cutting out so much muscle that you lose the ability to grow or improve your profitability. There is a break point in that discussion and the answers depend upon what your end objective is.
We’re used to seeing nearly annual reorganization by our clients in the pharmaceutical sector. The reasons behind this are related as much to the need to show a positive return on the balance sheet as they are to addressing shifting market needs. I believe that some companies continually refine the quality of the sales force, for example, by doing a nearly annual lay-off to avoid having to dismiss staff for cause and taking the chance that they will be sued for wrongful discharge. But, hey, I get it. The average time to run someone through the discharge process is about 9 months. That is a long time to wait in a turbulent business environment to make a change and correct a performance problem. Read more…
