[Jacob Jian Feng Jarabejo]

Are there alternative strategies that could be employed to achieve cost savings and increase efficiency without resorting to staff reductions? How can organisations balance the need for cost savings while maintaining a positive culture amongst employees and retaining key talent?

[Beau White]

I feel like overlap is inevitable, however if an organization has versatile talent that can flex across disciplines, then more associates can be retained.

[Nicole Stuart]

There are many factors that influence the answer. First, what type of merger is it? Staff reductions are much harder to avoid in a horizontal merger as there is inherently more crossover and duplication. Second, how big is the company? Smaller companies have fewer options and less ways to absorb costs. However, larger companies may be able to leverage other divisions to retain redundant staff in complimentary roles. Third, how specialized is the skill? This will help or hinder the number of options for an individual to fill an open position.

[Yeonlin Leonard Lee]

I think it is inevitable as one of the main factors of having merger is to have economies of scale and cost saving, which is actually cutting of staffs, one of the ways that I can think of is to have a better exit package so at least the staffs leaves happier

[Erin]

I agree with all of the above posts, however, I think exploring the option of a shared services department is important, specifically with administrative roles. In my experience, admin departments are often short staffed as it is, so this could solve a problem of recruitment and hiring if skilled staff can be integrated into and trained on the new practices and protocols.

[Author]

Posts