Multiple Wave, Large-Scale Redundancy

The Brief

A client needed us to oversee a multiple wave, large-scale redundancy, to remain competitive in their current market.

Due to a large transformation programme which involved rolling out a new software programme as well as offshoring various activities within the Company, our client required a significant business restructure.  Additionally, the manager overseeing the process had limited experienced of handling redundancies and therefore required detailed coaching throughout the process. The redundancies needed to be conducted in gradual waves, to ensure the business continued to operate efficiently, which could have had a detrimental impact on morale for remaining staff without careful support.

The Solution

Understanding the complex nature of a large-scale redundancy, particularly for the inexperienced manager, KaneHR planned well ahead and balanced the strategic needs of our client’s organisation, with the sensitivity required.

Our team planned well ahead to anticipate all eventualities, and structured the redundancies in waves, to assist our client in meeting the operational needs of the organisation, as a sudden reduction in headcount could have a significant impact on productivity.

Although multiple wave redundancies can help to support the needs of the business, they prolong the experience for employees who could be at risk of job losses and can decrease morale. To counteract this, KaneHR ensured that affected employees were given end-to-end support throughout the collective consultation and individual consultation processes, and that selection criteria for redundancies was given thorough consideration by the client, making it both objective and fair.

KaneHR coached the aforementioned manager throughout, drafting their guidance notes, timelines and selection criteria, sharing our expertise and developing the manager for any future redundancies. Due to the manager’s longstanding relationships with many of those impacted upon by job losses, the process was incredibly challenging for them too, so we also supported them emotionally throughout the process.

The Outcome

We were able to assist our client in executing the transformation programme effectively and with zero appeals from employees who experienced job losses. Our client recognised the positive impact of this business transformation programme on their ability to grow and remain competitive in the marketplace and have since requested KaneHR support for several further transformation projects, based on their immense satisfaction throughout our partnership.