Restructuring Doesn’t Have to Start With Cutting People

PEOPLE & ORGANIZATION | RESTRUCTURING

Restructuring an organization does not always mean the people doing the work are no longer needed. Sometimes the work is changing, and the real question is whether the people already inside the organization can change with it.

That became an important part of a broader transformation involving the consolidation of functions, implementation of new technology and changes to how work would be performed across the organization.

The Situation

The organization was changing how work was structured across departments and functions. Activities that had historically been managed separately were being consolidated, new technology was replacing manual and fragmented processes, and responsibilities were shifting as the organization moved toward a more integrated operating model.

Those changes had a direct impact on the workforce. Technology changed workflows and eliminated some manual tasks. Consolidation changed where responsibilities belonged. Some roles contained work that was duplicated elsewhere, while other positions would require different skills as processes and systems changed.

The existing organizational structure no longer fully reflected how the work needed to be performed.

What We Found

Existing job titles and descriptions did not always reflect the full capabilities of the people performing the work.

Some employees had experience and transferable skills that aligned with newly designed roles. Others had the underlying capabilities to take on different responsibilities with additional training or development. There were also positions built around processes or responsibilities that would no longer exist in the same form.

Looking only at positions would have missed the distinction between work that was no longer needed and people whose skills could still be valuable somewhere else in the organization.

The restructuring therefore required understanding the work that needed to be performed, defining the capabilities required to perform it, and then evaluating where those capabilities already existed.

The Approach

Roles and responsibilities were redesigned around the new operating model, including changes to job descriptions where technology, workflows or functional responsibilities had materially changed the work.

Employees were interviewed and evaluated based on their experience, skills, institutional knowledge and ability to perform in the redesigned organization. The process looked beyond the positions people currently held to determine where their capabilities could fit as the organization changed.

Where there was alignment, employees moved into new or redesigned roles. Where development could close a capability gap, people were cross-trained or provided additional training to prepare them for different responsibilities and systems.

Some positions were ultimately eliminated because responsibilities had been consolidated, duplication had been removed, technology had changed how the work was performed or the role was no longer required. Those decisions followed the redesign of the organization rather than becoming the starting point for it.

The Result

The restructuring reduced duplication and aligned roles and responsibilities more closely with how the organization needed to operate.

Employees were redeployed into new and redesigned positions, existing talent was developed where training could close capability gaps, and valuable institutional knowledge was retained. Positions that were no longer necessary were eliminated based on the requirements of the new structure.

The organization changed both how work was performed and how talent was deployed to support it, rather than treating restructuring solely as an exercise in reducing headcount.

The Executive Insight

Restructuring should not begin with a list of people to cut. It should begin with a clear understanding of how the organization needs to operate next.

Changes in technology, workflows, business strategy and organizational structure can make an existing position unnecessary without making the person occupying it unnecessary.

That distinction matters. Organizations can lose valuable experience and institutional knowledge when workforce decisions are made before leaders understand what capabilities already exist inside the business and where those capabilities could create value.

There will be times when positions need to be eliminated. The better question is whether that decision follows the design of the organization or becomes the strategy itself.

Capabilities Involved

Organizational Design | Workforce Strategy | Restructuring | Talent Assessment & Redeployment | Technology & Workforce Transformation | Training & Development | Change Management