Implementing Changes During Downsizing

The current situation is that the organization has lost its funding and is forced to downsize its operations and employees. In order for the hospital to remain competitive, it needs to implement strategies that would reduce its current expenditures and increase revenues. There have been recommendations made by consultants hired by the President. The recommendations made are reducing staff, no annual increases, closing of one emergency room, stopping new hiring's, and closing the hospital's public programs. The hospital CEO has requested that all department heads need to implement cost cutting measures within their department and they have to increase their patient base by 20% in the next six months while reducing their annual budget by 10%. Sullivan, the President, and CEO of the hospital, has requested all department heads to develop a strategic plan in the next one month detailing how they will implement the proposed changes. According to the CEO, there is a need for the hospital staff to start doing more with less. This would allow the hospital to address their current financial situation.

The issues at stake currently have to do with the Department of Psychiatry. It looks like the department is the hardest hit with the loss of funding from the state. The department has undergone numerous changes over the years all that had to do with the downsizing of its services and employees. The changes requested currently are not putting into focus the changes the department has undergone previously. Already there is a high turnover of employees, and there has been a loss of morale amongst the employees. The department head feels that the requested changes will have a negative impact on the department and he is not mistaken. The case does highlight how different employees are feeling in regards to the new changes. The employees within the department are stressed, and they are angry. They have not been working together as a team, and most of them are seeing each other as rivals. Department employees are working against each other, and some of them have even gone as far reporting each other to the HR. The department needs to establish teamwork amongst the employees within the department. Since there is no possibility of hiring additional employees and the department has to increase the number of patients' teamwork will be the only way the department can manage to achieve this strategy. There is need to build trust amongst the team members, which is currently lacking. With trust, long lasting relationships can be developed, and this would result in greater commitment towards the hospital in the long-term.

Leon should communicate the strategy to employees by using different methods of communication. He should not solely rely on written communication, but rather a mix of written and verbal communication. He should also avoid sending out a long email because there are employees who do not read long emails. Different employees have different learning techniques. Therefore, a mix of video, audio, visual, and written communication should be employed (Thompson, Strickland, & Gamble, 2007). The language used should be clear and relevant. This ensures that each employee understand the strategy and they know what is expected of them. Leon should avoid using jargon and industry-specific acronyms. It has been noted that using these results in the opposite of what is expected, and most employees would not understand or comprehend what is required. Once the strategy has been communicated, it is vital to request feedback from the employees. Therefore, Leon should offer employees a method or avenue for offering feedback. The best avenue that works for the organization should be considered and implemented. Using a model that is understood and accepted by the employees is the best way to request and receive feedback for the strategic plan communicated.

There was no involvement of HR in the development of the strategic plan by Leon. The plan has numerous HR implications like employee termination/layoffs, reduction in employee working hours, increased workload for the doctors who are part of the family practice plan, and salary cuts. The plan proposed by Leon will definitely result in reduced costs for the department, but it might have a negative impact on the employees if HR is not involved in its implementation. The proposed strategic plan affects the employees directly, and there is need to have an experienced individual to handle some of the issues. Alignment with HR would allow the organization to better understand the implications that downsizing would have on employees. Downsizing is not easy, and it has to be done. However, there are better ways to ensure that when done it does not result in negativity or animosity from the employees left behind. With the involvement of HR, there could have been better ways to cut costs instead of laying down employees. Firing employees should always be the last thing after all other avenues have been exhausted. The current situation with the psychiatry department has been caused by a lack of enough personnel and letting more employees go and reducing the salary of doctors could result in negative effects.

For Leon to reduce turnover within his department, he needs to create a cohesive teamwork environment within his department. This will ensure that the team members are all working together to achieve a common goal and not working against each other as is the current case (Bunderson & Boumgarden, 2010). Leon is going to create self-managing teams that would have a leader selected by the team members. The team would build trust, and this would result in long lasting relationships that would be beneficial to the organization in the long-term. Working within a team results in higher productivity and better communication with other team members. Leon's department has been hard hit by the financial crisis facing the organization, and the department cannot take any further employee turnover. A reduction in the number of employees would mean the few employees left would have to take up more responsibilities, and this would lead to further HR issues and complaints.

References

Bunderson, J. S., & Boumgarden, P. (2010). Structure and learning in self-managed teams: Why "bureaucratic" teams can be better learners. Organization Science, 21(3), 609-624.

Thompson, A. A., Strickland, A. J., & Gamble, J. E. (2007). Crafting and executing strategy. The quest for competitive advantage. Concepts and cases. 15th edition, New York, NY.