Overview of the Case Study
Over the years, the Singapore government had been operating on a two airline policy that had promoted efficient interaction between the government-owned Singapore airline, and its national competitor, Silvertail Airlines. For about 10 years, the duopoly worked so well until 1990 when other competitors joined the airline industry, following the airline deregulation policies adopted by the government. Consequently, the share price of Silvertail Airline Company started changing due to the friendly services such as low cost charges offered by its major competitors. This wind of change prompted a transformation in the company’s board of directors, which was replaced by younger, competent, and qualified experts imported from the U.S. The new management dismantled the top-heavy management structures and positions. It initiated a restructuring process that created a new, young and innovative image of the airline. However, the human resource, especially the cabin crew and ground crew were not impressed by the new wave of change. According to Sam, the recruitment manager, the new image and the target market required a new face and not the elderly crew that was adamant to change (Teh, & Girardi, 2015). Therefore, he proposed some new approaches to get rid of the crew. Bobbi, the cabin crew director liked the whole idea proposed by Sam of making it harder for the elderly crew to survive. Some of these approaches they suggested included reducing the number of cabin crew per flight, eliminating some of the allowances and packages given to the crew and denying the crew holiday breaks. Other approaches included raising the eligibility for promotion, including having a second language and a degree and also making it harder for the crew to complete internal competency requirements. Such approaches aimed at discouraging the crew in what they term as a self-lay off.
Often, organizations that have downsized and restructured itself as a way of becoming more successful and more profitable have not achieved that goal. Rather, most have experienced huge fallout, particularly in reducing their employees’ morale and productivity, besides increasing their levels of absenteeism, and turnover.
Implications on Overall job performance
Probably it is true that the attempt by the Silvertail management to reduce the number of cabin crew per flight and later assigning the duties of ground crew to the other employees could motivate the new younger crew, making them be more proactive and productive. However, this may not be the case. Shah (2000) comments that the effects of post lay off are felt greatly by the surviving workforce. Primarily, it’s likely that most of this crew become worried about the security of their job in the long-term even when the HR management reassures them of their jobs’ safety.
Besides, the new crew may be worried about their capability to work in the new environment and the whole thing of redesigning their duties. In particular, it is true that the management is handling a crew that encompasses employees with different feelings and emotions. Thus, some crew members may experience a strong feeling of depression, loss, and even inadequacy following these new changes in their job environment and experiences. It is likely that the distress may not be noticed by the management, other crew members, or even their family members. In the long term, however, the effects of such move will be manifested. Scholars have indicated that such feelings would have an effect on the employees’ morale and productivity (Henkoff, 1990; Kets de Vries and Balazs, 1997). The feeling connected with other employees is crucial to the realization of the organization’s productivity, its profitability as well as the new young and innovative image it intends to achieve. In an attempt to get rid of the older workforce, Bobbi suggests that the management would promote the younger one. This, he says, will annoy the older crew as they can’t handle been instructed on what to do by the younger crew. Sam, on the other hand, agrees with Bobbi’s idea terming it as good. However, the idea may have a negative effect on the young crew, now that they saw their elders, who happen to be their mentors and advisors been laid off. Raising the eligibility for promotion by having a second language and a degree is likely to increase the concerns among the young crew regarding the future of their job. The management might apply the same strategy to deny them promotion and advancement in the future. It is probably true that Bobbi and Sam do not intend to preserve any of the elderly crew. This occurrence is likely to have an effect on the experience and cross-interaction knowledge that existed from the longevity of the relationship between the elderly crew and some of the younger crew. The new young crew does not have adequate knowledge of how to act in response to non-routine events. Ultimately, the personal interaction and team work of the crew would be lost.
Legal infringement
Basing from our case study, the management intends to lay off their crew using approaches that make their working conditions unfavorable. The management has exercised unfairly discriminatory approaches that impact negatively on the cabin crew. Furthermore, it fails to provide a legal notice to the crew and neither does it intend to consider the effects of the employment in the overall process. According to the employment law, employers should provide documented reasons that explain critically the reason for downsizing and the criteria applied to select the employees to be laid off. Going by these arguments, the approaches adopted by Bobbi and Sam contravene the employment law and violates the crew rights (Cascio, 2009).
Conflicts
Downsizing is likely to have a destructive conflict on those who remain. Due to uncertainties of the security of their jobs, the young crew is likely to experience confusion about the priorities of its management as well as their intended mandate. The workload is likely to increase besides fueling internal competition over the resources. Public hostility coupled by profound sense of distrust is likely to engulf the young crew that remains. The outgoing elderly crew may feel betrayed by the management and the fellow young crew who remain; this general feeling may result in destructive conflicts.
Ethical Dilemma
Bobbi proposes that the management would adopt working conditions that make the life of the crew less comfortable between flights. On the other hand, Sam comes up with an idea of making it harder for the elderly crew to complete internal competency requirements probably because of their age. This move does not only violate their rights but it also unethical.
The following table summarizes possible problems that are likely to happen if Bobbi and Sam implement their plan.
Critically Evaluate Downsizing Tactics and Their Implications
The downsizing literature reveals a systematic approach of workforce downsizing. According to the literature, there are three forms of downsizing implementation strategies (Cameron et al., 1993). These include workforce reduction strategy, organizational redesign strategy, and the systemic strategies.
Workforce Reduction Strategy
The workforce reduction strategy, commonly known as the “layoff strategy” entails a strategy of eliminating or reducing the head count and the unnecessary positions in the workplace. Its primary goal is to layoff or fire employees, initiating work conditions that call for early retirement as well as transferring new individuals to fill critical positions. Typically, it includes initiatives like layoffs, retrenchments, early retirements, hiring freezes, and natural attritions (Cameron et al., 1993). In most cases, the strategy is implemented as an organization measure to reduce costs following a continuous decline in returns (Ryan & Macky, 1998). Cameron (1993, p. 198) points out that this approach to downsizing is not always effective and ultimately leads to negative implications. Thus, although the strategy may be applied as a way of reducing costs or gaining short term profit, it should be considered as the last option of downsizing.
Work Redesign
The organizational redesign strategy entails the elimination of unnecessary or redundant tasks (Luthans & Sommer, 1999). Typically, it encompasses approaches such as abolishing functions, redesigning tasks, eliminating special roles or hierarchical positions, reducing the overall working hours, as well as merging and consolidating units. Notably, the redesign approaches are generally considered hard to implement as it may require some concrete analysis of the positions targeted (Cameron, 1994). Nevertheless, it is regarded as less traumatic for the workforce since the downsized positions are already vacant, thus ineffective.
Systemic Strategy
A systemic strategy is not a common strategy but equally important and effective downsizing approach. Fundamentally, the strategy attempts to incorporate more holistic approaches to organizational change. It includes all aspect of the organization, such as the suppliers, production method, customer relations, inventories, and design processes (Cameron et al., 1993). Also, it focuses on changing the intrinsic cultural aspect of an organization; the attitudes and values of the organization employees are also taken into account. According to Filipowski (1993, p. 1), a systemic strategy considers downsizing as a way of life and not a negative attribute. It is an on-going, incremental process where staffs are not regarded as a key target of downsizing but as a resource needed to create and incorporate downsizing ideas. It fosters transformation and increasing productivity among the employees, particularly in the long-term (Robertson, 2011).
Suggestions on the Various Alternatives To Downsizing
Employees Engagements
An important aspect of alternatives to downsizing is the involvement of every staff in the restructuring process. In this case, the management allows their employees to view downsizing as an opportunity but not a threat. This employee engagement process helps to define staffs as resources to promote improvement in the organization and not costs that reduce performances or deter profit maximization. The management applies competent, dynamic, and knowledgeable ideas that are clear to their staffs and motivate visions of success in future. Importantly, employees’ engagement allows them to analyze the specific tasks of the operation, identify any redundant tasks and select effective approaches to eliminate them.
Furloughs and reduced hours to payroll costs
The idea behind this approach is that the employees get to share the pain of downturn more broadly. The organization is able to keep its talented employees, retain the loyalty of their employees and position itself better for recovery. In other words, furloughing the staffs or taking salary cuts allows the organization to buy more time to develop smarter decisions (Tuna, 2009). Also, organizations that have adopted pay cuts as an alternative to layoffs help to reduce their labor costs, and thereby preserve their employees. To avoid lowering their employees’ morale after the pay cuts, most managers have opted to cut bonuses, slash benefits, and eliminate raises. More interestingly, a number of organizations have implemented tiered salary cuts system where the top management is subjected to the largest pay cuts.
Planning for alternatives to layoffs in advance
At times, downsizing is inevitable though it should be considered as the resort. It could be adopted when managers forecast that the problems are temporary and downsizing is the only central essential outcome. For managers, the feeling of having to lay off some of the best employees is not pleasant. On the other hand, coping with downsizing is overwhelming to employees as most of them feel that their effort and time over the years has not been productive and appreciated. The manner in which the management handles downsizing will determine how their employees perceive the entire process. As Huber and Glick (1993, p. 56), approach it, boosting productivity and promoting competitiveness are aspects that help position the downsizing strategy as just one strategy in a collection of many that could increase organization performance.
HR Plan to Address the Future Hr Needs, Including Building Employer’s Brand for Silvertail, Training, Career Management Etc of Cabin Crew Etc.
Restructuring of the Silvertail top management under the leadership of the new innovative and open-minded CEO has been considered as an efficient strategy that would promote new image of the organization. On the same note, it is inevitable that the company needs new, young, and innovative crew that would promote realization of the set goals. Bobbi and Sam suggest that developing new job descriptions and eligibility requirements is one of the best approaches. While it is a perfect idea that would attract new and more qualified talents, the intended idea of ultimately laying off the elderly crew since they are resistance to change, and unsuitable for new target market is inhuman and unprofessional.
Adopting an Employer Brand
Training and Career development
Training and career development is an efficient approach applied to promote the development of skill and professional growth both for the employees and the management (Atwood et al., 1995). The new crew needs training and development to allow them deal with the change and adapt to the new positions they assume. The cabin crew needs guidance and mentoring to help them plan and manage their careers. Training programs would help realign the commitment of the new crew towards the new organizational priorities. Through career development, the management would energize its crew and enable them become more engaged in the organization’s vision and restructured system. Ultimately, career development would give the crew a sense of an improved self-confidence and professional competence.
Intervention Strategies - Appreciation Inquiry
An appreciative inquiry (AI) is a strategy that emphasizes on collaboration and participation of all aspect of the organization. In essence, it focuses on changing the organization and not its employees by introducing approaches like strategic planning, team building, business process redesign, organization restructuring, individual evaluation, and work diversity (Martinetz, 2002). Unlike the problem solving approach to change that targets the employees, AI invites them to engage in creating the kind of an organization that it aspires to work and live in. The process of AI occurs in phases, commonly known as ‘4D’. Developed in 1990, the 4D phases entail the process of Discovery, Dream, Design, and Destiny. Generally, the phases emphasize on handling problems by learning from remarkably positive achievements in the past, imagining what it would be, evaluating on how to achieve and then working to accomplish these achievements (Mohr and Watkins, 2002). The application of the AI strategy as a positive focus of inquiry would be an efficient intervention approach in our case study. In this case, promoting the target market and the new image of the organization does not necessarily mean that the management has to lay off its existing crew. The initial step would entail reflecting on the factors and parameters in the 1980s that made the company become more efficient and transformative. Apparently, the elderly cabin crew and the ground crew were part of this transformative process. From here, the management should develop a strategy session to articulate new bold and affirmative steps that help to handle the situation.
In particular, the management should encompass various stakeholders, including the employees from all levels and some of its clients. This would help focus on more diverse and proactive issues taking into account the positive core attributes that have always helped the company prosper in the past. Using this approach, the management team would be able to develop a more radically restructured strategy. By engaging and empowering the employees, it would equip them with greater influence besides creating a feeling of appreciation. The elderly crew, which is even more resourceful would help the management develop efficient strategic initiatives. On the other hand, the younger crew would help to translate the experiences learnt from their elders into more innovative ideas.
Conclusion
References
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