Honeywell and the Great Recession: The Economic Recovery (B)

Sandra J. Sucher; Susan J. Winterberg

Supplement | HBS Case Collection | October 2014

Honeywell and the Great Recession: The Economic Recovery (B)

by Sandra J. Sucher and Susan J. Winterberg

Abstract

Five years after the Great Recession, Honeywell's CEO Dave Cote and his executive team reflect on the choices they made to manage costs and earnings forecasts during that uncertain time. They discuss which cost cutting measures they decided to take and their personal decisions of whether or not to accept bonuses in 2009. Cote also discusses the challenges Honeywell faced implementing unpaid work leaves (furloughs) in different parts of the world and how he believes the choices they made during the recession positioned Honeywell to respond to the economic recovery.

Keywords: layoffs; furloughs; downsizing; work sharing; short time work; recessions; earnings forecast; Executive Compensation; Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Cost Management; Executive Compensation; Crisis Management; Financial Crisis; Manufacturing Industry;

Language: English

Format: Print

10 pages

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Citation:

Sucher, Sandra J., and Susan J. Winterberg. "Honeywell and the Great Recession: The Economic Recovery (B)." Harvard Business School Supplement 315-023, October 2014.

Article | Harvard Business Review | May–June 2018

Layoffs That Don't Break Your Company: Better Approaches to Workforce Transition

Sandra J. Sucher and Shalene Gupta

Today layoffs have become companies’ default response to the challenges created by advances in technology and global competition. Yet research shows that job cuts rarely help senior leaders achieve their goals. Too often, they’re done for short-term gain, but the cost savings are overshadowed by bad publicity, loss of knowledge, weakened engagement, higher voluntary turnover, and lower innovation, which hurt profits in the long run. This article looks at better ways to handle changing workforce needs that make sparing use of staff reductions and ensure that if they do happen, the process feels fair and the affected parties have a soft landing. Most successful approaches begin with a philosophy that spells out a firm’s commitments and priorities, establish methods for exploring layoff alternatives (such as furloughs, retraining, and reassignments), and determine options for three scenarios: a healthy present, short-term volatility, and an uncertain future. As firms like AT&T, Michelin, Honeywell, and Nokia have learned, thoughtful planning helps organizations address workforce transitions and cope with a shifting economic landscape far better than layoffs do.

Keywords: Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Employees; Transition; Strategic Planning;

Citation:

Sucher, Sandra J., and Shalene Gupta. "Layoffs That Don't Break Your Company: Better Approaches to Workforce Transition." Harvard Business Review 96, no. 3 (May–June 2018): 122–129. View Details

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