There’s nothing like an uplifting blog post title, right? This one will most definitely not break the Internet. In fact, I wouldn’t hold it against you if you find the topic off-putting.
But staff reductions, once thought to be a very rare occurrence in business has sadly become a regular event. In some industries, it’s almost considered seasonal.
In radio broadcasting, we’ve kept those HR departments busy these last many months. Once again, economic turmoil – in this case, spurred by rampant inflation following a rare global pandemic – was the culprit. And not just in our neck of the workforce woods. It triggered reactions in many economic sectors, particularly in technology.
In recent weeks and months, the damage has been centered on tech companies of all sizes and shapes. To my knowledge, the only tech company of import that hasn’t RIFed entire groups of employees has been Apple.
At CES 2023 last month, it was a case of cognitive dissonance on display throughout the many lavish and vast exhibits. On the one hand, many innovative companies were showing off their latest and greatest, while letting hundreds and even thousands of their employees go.
To that end, an alarming number of technology giants instituted cuts starting last year. Of course, we all know about the chaos at Twitter, leading to an estimated 3,700 lost jobs since Elon took over.
ABC News just published a comprehensive list. Job slashers in the tech sector include Amazon, Zoom, Wayfair, Vox Media, Spotify, Microsoft, IBM, Meta, Door Dash, and even Google.
Many of these job rollbacks impact a high percentage of these companies’ workforces. Many are in the 5-7% range.
And you’re right if you’ve noticed many did exceptionally well during the worst days of the COVID outbreak. Many CEOs admit they may have overreacted to the good quarters, and hired to meet increasing demands on their goods and services. When business slowed down, they found their ranks overstaffed.
But it also seems like others may have been engaging in proactive downsizing, preparing their companies (and Wall Street) for the recession that has still yet to materialize.
Or maybe I should call it an “alleged recession.” We’ve been talking about
it now for the better part of 13 months, and yet, it hasn’t happened. The job market – in spite of the aforementioned rounds of layoffs – remains robust.
And while inflation was a real problem to average Americans while the supply chain shortage interrupted manufacturing, the economy has been chugging along.
It should also be noted holiday sales soared 7% in 2022 (although much of that has been attributed to rising costs due to inflation).
But Atlantic writer Annie Lowrey asks the simple question, “Why are layoffs contagious?”
In fact, she refers to these tech RIFs as “copycat layoffs.” That’s because some C-suiters see other companies reducing their workforces, enabling them to downsize as well. In essence, that gives them cover.
And Lowrey submits that aside from damaging morale and affecting the performance of those who didn’t lose their jobs, companies don’t usually do better after reductions go into effect.
Her advice? Don’t institute layoffs. Instead, treat your people like assets. In that way, you don’t just toss them overboard when the going gets tough. Or as she advises, “think about picking workers up when other firms are putting them down.”
And what about radio?
To be fair, we always read blaring headlines in the industry’s trade publications whenever RIFs occur. It’s important radio’s workforce understands current conditions, so the trade press is just doing its job.
And layoffs in radio are probably no worse than the macro trends we’re
seeing in so many other sectors, including the tech companies already mentioned. If anything, broadcasting differs from high-flying tech companies that always have the opportunity to rack up monster quarters. As a mature industry, radio’s potential growth is limited by market conditions, putting it in a much different position than Google or Amazon.
Many in radio – especially air talent – saw it coming. Back in July, our AQ4 study of on-air hosts revealed more than six in ten were very or somewhat worried about a recession and job cuts:
But this post isn’t about whether radio companies are justified to institute job cuts. It’s none of my business – or yours (unless it’s your company), and as a long-time business owner myself, I’ve faced the same pressures at various points in the last dozen or so years.
I feel for those of you whose positions have been eliminated or you’ve simply been cut. As Mike McVay wrote so eloquently on his Radio Ink blog yesterday, this business can scuttle your plans, dash your hopes, and break your heart.
But if layoffs are inevitable because of tough economic headwinds, is there a way to better manage them, both for the good of the organization, as well as current and former employees at the station?
Ron Carucci and Mindy Millward, writing for the Harvard Business Review, have advice for companies wielding the axe. In “When Cutting Costs, Don’t Lose Sight of Long-Term Organizational Health,” they outline seven key steps to alleviate both the pain and the damage. (And I’ve added two of my own.)
- Stay focused on strategy, not cost goals – The idea here is to keep the company’s long-term strategy in place, despite inevitable job cuts. Part of the trick is determining which employees are more focused on past performance and which are more apt to deliver on the future promise. As the authors note, an economic downturn can sometimes accelerate a company’s future goals.
- Protect your competitive work to ensure the company emerges stronger – Often leadership hopes to achieve fairness in their job cuts, making sure every division (or in radio’s case, stations) is similarly impacted. But as the HBR story points out, not “all work and its resulting costs are ‘equal.'” In the world of radio, that strategy just
doesn’t make sense because there’s typically a station (or two) in each cluster that is a big performer and/or a superior brand. To punish the “big dog” at the same level as also-ran stations misses the mark, and hurts the strongest stations most. - Face difficult emotions before you start – The above chart from AQ4 illustrates the angst, fear, and suspicions that employees inherently feel. Thus, the authors advise leadership deals with the fallout ahead of time, especially dealing with the guilt that often comes along with being the one instituting the cuts.
- Protect your future culture – This is a suggestion most radio broadcasters likely follow. In many cases, the digital wings of companies have felt less pain than station operations because they’re more about tomorrow than today. All that said, I’d add a caveat here:
- Don’t mortgage the foundation – And by this I most definitely mean the radio brands, which are often used to drive traffic to digital outlets. They must remain viable if radio companies are successful in transforming themselves.
- Engage people in hard decisions – The idea here is that corporate execs bring middle managers into the process rather than work in isolation to fix the company and make the tough calls. Oftentimes, the CEO, COO, or CFO aren’t on the ground at the station level, perhaps missing the contributions key employees make. But a warning: don’t consult with managers on staff cuts – and then let him or her go. It happens with too much regularity.
- Focus on key talent and avoid regrettable losses – This one was written with radio in mind because the term “talent” goes beyond skills. On the airwaves, personalities are still the lifeblood of radio. The ones who can get ratings but also deliver to the sales department and work different platforms should be untouchable. Too often, however, “spreadsheet cuts” dictate that MVPs are often let go. This has taken its toll on radio in recent years.
- Learn your lessons from irresponsible growth – Rarely does radio “over hire” during the good times. Maybe that’s because since 2008-09, it’s been tough going for broadcasters. Few have added more people than the company could support. But it’s a fair warning just the same.
- Figure out the social strategy – This is an addition to the HBR story, a lesson I learned from Lori Lewis when she worked with us. Companies – especially
radio groups – could hire and especially fire without impunity. Maybe a newspaper reporter would come calling after a termination, but overall, most of the comings and goings in radio were well below the radar. Social media has altered the equation, giving personalities and fans a key voice. Pre-determining a social media game plan is now part and parcel with making those tough calls.
If pink slips must fly for whatever the reasons, let’s consider these “better practices” that can at least salve staffers who find themselves on the beach, as well as retained employees wondering when the smoke is going to clear, and the company – or in the case of radio – the station brand.
Cutbacks may be inevitable, but they need not be debilitating – to all parties.
These are the times that truly try all of our souls – whether you’re the CEO or the part-time/weekend jock. Smarter and more humane decisions made at these inflection points will help make things better when the good times return.
Jacobs Media has consistently walked the walk in the digital space, providing insights and guidance through its well-read national Techsurveys.
In 2008, jacapps was launched - a mobile apps company that has designed and built more than 1,300 apps for both the Apple and Android platforms. In 2013, the DASH Conference was created - a mashup of radio and automotive, designed to foster better understanding of the "connected car" and its impact.
Along with providing the creative and intellectual direction for the company, Fred consults many of Jacobs Media's commercial and public radio clients, in addition to media brands looking to thrive in the rapidly changing tech environment.
Fred was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2018.
- In 2024, The Forecast Calls For Pain - December 23, 2024
- Old Man, Take A Look At My Ratings - December 20, 2024
- In The World Of On-Demand Audio, How Do We Define Success? - December 19, 2024
I’m a contractor. the mismanagment by these companies has been a boon for my business.
I get it.
Public companies are really vulnerable to short term thinking. There’s a lot of, “if I don’t make this quarter, I won’t be around for the next one, so I’ll worry about long term strategy some other time”. I don’t think today’s stock price is the best way to measure exec performance and comp, but that’s the way they do it. Unless there is a broad based change in that thinking, people will be more or less replaceable component parts.
There’s that old expression, “had the horse down to one grain of oats per day and then it went and died on me.” Tech orphans can take heart, the big tech companies have laid off legions, but the smaller ones are still hiring.
Witty, sarcastic, and spot on, Bob.
I understand the need to cut employees at non-optimum times,but the way it has been done in some instances can be unnecessarily crude and cold.
I remember reading about a bunch of employees who were fired on a Zoom call with no opportunity to ask questions of how they were to be paid for the reminder of their work or the reason they were let go.
There was another example of a bunch of remote workers who were fired through a e-mail message.The message was sent out and that was it. No follow-up or an appointment to talk with a real live manager about what was to happen next.
Managers seemed to be focused on getting the layoffs done and not think about the people who will suffer the consequences.
It is bad enough when layoffs happen. But when they happen cruelly or cavalierly, no one forgets – the ones terminated and the ones who are retained. It is easy to be classy and welcoming when you hire someone. How they’re let go is always a test for companies, and many fail that test.