How To Keep a Reduction in Force From Becoming a Destruction of Force

In a 2020 MSNBC broadcast, an assistant professor of economics from UC Berkeley stated that the COVID-19 pandemic would slow down the economy since “Millions of employee relationships will have been destroyed.”

Not necessarily!

A reduction in force does not have to mean a destruction of force. Not if business leaders take a strategic approach to maintain engagement with employees who will be critical to re-invigorating business when the current reality is behind them.

But if there is one lesson to be learned from the last few years, it's that “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it” is not an effective strategy — it’s just the adult equivalent of hiding under the bed.

No one anticipated furloughing key employees or rescinding offers to ideal candidates due to a worldwide pandemic. Still, there is a strategy that could enable businesses to minimize permanent losses, fuel employees’ readiness to return and re-engage them more quickly when the current situation changes.

It’s called “multi-touch communication.”

Multi-Touch Communication

Multi-touch communication is the practice of initiating multiple contacts with crucial audiences through direct messages sent at regular intervals on various platforms.

Multi-touch campaigns have been a staple of marketing professionals for years. We think they provide a useful model for business leaders who want to maintain engagement with high-value employees and even job candidates who, due to the recent pause in business operations, have been temporarily sidelined.

A multi-touch campaign in this context might consist of the following:

Audience Audit

The last thing business leaders want to do is to extend false hope for re-employment. The audience selection criteria are the essential aspect of this kind of campaign. It should include only those employees whose re-engagement is both anticipated and critical to the survival or revival of the business, considering not just critical skills but attributes like organizational memory, emotional energy, resilience, etc. It might also include current employees whose continued engagement and retention may be at risk in this environment.

"Meanwhile Messaging"

Maintaining engagement with selected employees during this time will look different based on the size and technological sophistication of a business.

One critical element of success is to personalize the messages wherever possible. All companies can use regular conference calls, video meetings, or video calls. While larger enterprises will depend on cascading methods like ”Divide and Contact” (assigning portions of the contact list to individual leaders), just remember to disable that pesky “REPLY ALL” option when emailing multiple recipients or sending messages to each person.

Regardless of the media, however, the highest impact messages would include:

• Self-revelation: While it’s difficult for some leaders to put themselves out there, the good ones get out from under the bed. The good ones share how difficult this situation is for them. They explain that they are reaching out with “meanwhile messaging” to their people because they don’t want the last communication they sent to be the last one employees hear from them. "I regret that I have to let you go, lay you off or furlough you." Self-disclosure also means admitting that there are some questions they don’t know the answers to, but that they will commit to honestly answering the ones they can and seeking answers to those they can’t. Transparency is essential: no spin, no fantasy.
  
  
• Appreciation: Acknowledge their value to the business, giving specific examples where possible. Express the desire to keep them engaged and the hope that the feeling is mutual. Set the expectation that these communications will continue during the business pause.
  
  
• Expectation: Explain what leaders are doing to keep the business running in the meantime. Depending on circumstances, here’s where they can include any applications for SBA loans, payroll protection, state or local relief efforts that they are pursuing. Invite employees to share their ideas, concerns and questions through the specific communication tactics leadership will provide in the meanwhile.

Transition Tactics

Here are a few thought starters to consider for your multi-touch campaign:

Regardless of the media and frequency, multi-touch campaigns enable businesses to respond more quickly to changes in a workforce situation, redeploy sidelined resources, facilitate ongoing engagement in the employee relationship and ensure that a reduction-in-force does not become a destruction-of-force.

This article originally appeared on LinkedIn. You can view it here.