How Empathetic Technical Leaders Communicate a Layoff [The 7-Part Layoff Communication Plan]

One of the most dreaded tasks a leader must undertake is telling great employees that they are going to lose their jobs.

No matter how well you’ve planned your business or your organization, sometimes factors outside your control require you to reduce your workforce.

There is no way around it, when it comes to communicating a layoff, you won’t feel good saying it and those affected won’t feel good hearing it.

That is exactly why this sensitive and devastating discussion must be handled with the utmost care.

Clarity and empathy are required.

Yet far too often, we see examples of layoff communications being handled poorly.

Leaders are squandering their opportunity to treat the people they are letting go with dignity and respect, convey confidence with critical stakeholders, and infuse motivation and a sense of urgency with the people remaining.

It doesn’t have to be this way.

In this newsletter, you’ll learn how to do it the correct way with a simple 7-Part Layoff Communication Plan.

My Personal Experience Communicating Layoffs.

Unfortunately, I’ve had a lot of experience with this situation.

I grew up professionally in a commodity industry (aluminum production), where prices for our product cycled regularly and so did the business outlook. See a graph of the price of aluminum below.

Alcoa, with over 135 years of continuous operations, developed strategies to maintain business operations during market downturns. Yet, there were very lean times when a severe downcycle forced us to reduce our workforce.

I’ve been in at least half a dozen executive strategy meetings where we discussed how to save money including which teams to cut, down to the specific names of people we would need to tell the bad news.

One time that was especially tough for me was when I had to lay off 20 people from a breakthrough innovation project.

At the time, we just couldn’t afford to keep funding a long-term, high-risk project. Before that, I had laid off only 5 people over the years. Always as a singular person whom we would heavily incentivize to retire early.

But this time, it was almost an entire team located in Europe. Because of the size and location of the layoff, Alcoa provided several people to support me in the process.

As difficult and unpleasant as it was, I was heartened to hear from my leadership that the communication process was handled smoothly and with the utmost care and dignity to those affected.

Now, as a trusted advisor to executives, I occasionally have to draw upon my experience to help them craft their layoff communication strategy (and deal with the personal and organizational emotional aftermath).

The 7-Part Layoff Communication Plan.

Here is the 7-Part Layoff Communication Plan.

Let’s go over each part in detail.

Audiences.

Anytime you are communicating a layoff, you have at least 3 distinct audiences with different needs and interests:

Those being laid off. Being laid off raises concerns about financial security, transition uncertainty, and future employment.
Those being asked to remain in the organization. Being asked to stay in an organization that is laying off people raises concerns about increasing workload, team morale, and future job security.
Those who are not in the organization but are highly affected (i.e. peer leaders in adjacent parts of the organization and critical customers or investors). Being a critical stakeholder in an organization that is laying people off raises concerns about how their own organization might need to adapt, the overall financial security of their investment, and market perception.

Your communication strategy needs to address all three of these distinct audiences.

➡️Action: Write down the names of people in each of the three audience categories.

Main Talking Points.

Before we get into the details of how to customize your communication plan for your different audience categories, let’s start with the high-level information that everyone will want to know.

Your main talking points should address the following three items.

The reason for the layoff. Provide a clear, concise explanation of the reasons, whether it’s due to restructuring, financial challenges, or other business considerations.
The timing of the layoff. Provide a clear timeline for the layoff, including the last working day, return of company property, and any other important dates.
The action plan and help chain. Provide a summary of what people should do next to get more information and take any immediate actions. Also, include when you plan to provide the next status update. (The help chain is described in the next section).

➡️Action: Write down your main talking points.

Help Chain.

How can your audiences obtain additional information once you communicate the layoff?

While it might be efficient to have an online list of FAQs or a chatbot to do this for you, you need to ensure that there is also a live human that people can talk to.

Options include:

A direct report
A person from HR.
You.

While it may seem that you are being generous if you say “Call me any time”, it isn’t if you aren’t actually available any time. It’s much better to set specific guidelines for how to utilize the help chain and when it will be available.

➡️Action: Write down the ways you plan to make follow-up information and support available.

FAQs.

Now it’s time to customize your strategy based on the unique needs of your three audiences.

Below are a set of common questions for each of the three audiences. Do some brainstorming to come up with your own.

Common Questions from Employees Being Laid Off:

Why am I being laid off?
What support will I receive during this transition?
How will my benefits be affected?
Can I apply for other positions within the company?
What is the timeline for my departure?

Common Questions from Employees Remaining with the Company:

How will the layoff impact our team’s workload?
What steps are being taken to ensure the company’s stability moving forward?
Will there be any additional changes to our team or responsibilities?
What resources will be available to help us cope with the changes?
How can we contribute to the company’s recovery and success post-layoff?

Common Questions from Critical Stakeholders:

How will the layoff impact our existing contracts and agreements?
Are there any changes in payment terms or schedules?
Are there changes in customer support and communication channels?
What measures are in place to ensure continued quality and reliability?
How can we stay informed about future developments and changes?
What impact will the layoff have on the company’s financial performance?
How will the layoff impact the company’s market position and competitiveness?

➡️Action: Select FAQs that will resonate most with your organization and write down your responses.

Sequence and Setting.

Sequence

An important and overlooked aspect is the sequence of announcements.

Far too often, for the sake of efficiency and out of fear of information getting out too early, leaders tell everyone at the same time.

This is a mistake.

An “all at once” approach doesn’t adequately address the emotional and practical needs of your different audiences. Instead, consider this sequence:

Critical stakeholders→Those being laid off→Those being asked to stay.

Critical stakeholders should be informed first, out of professional courtesy and because they will likely need to create their own talking points as a result of your actions.

If you are concerned about information leaks, remember that your critical stakeholders are also leaders.

Leaders can and should be trusted to maintain confidentiality when asked to do so.

You should inform them that you are sharing confidential information. You should also communicate verbally (vs. in a written message), and you should not disclose names unless absolutely necessary. You can inform them that you will follow up with details once the affected people have been notified.

Your direct reports also fall into this category. They should be informed in advance to signal their hierarchy in your organization.

Next are those being laid off. They deserve a safe space to hear about their fate either in a one-on-one situation with you or among others who will also have to hear the same hard news.

Finally, are those being asked to stay with the team. Remainers deserve a safe space to hear about the situation and to be able to ask their questions without fear of being judged as selfish or greedy for being concerned even though they aren’t going to lose their jobs.

Understand that there doesn’t need to be a long time between these announcements.

They absolutely can happen on the same day.

Setting

Now that you know the sequence, you need to define the setting (location) of your announcements.

Critical stakeholders and your direct reports can be informed over the phone.

For those being laid off and those remaining, in-person is best.

In the case of my Alcoa example, I flew to Europe for 2 days so I could communicate the layoff myself and be available for questions. We also asked the regional vice president to be there, too. So we spent about $10,000 getting leaders to the location to communicate the layoff in person.

If you have a distributed team, select the location with the most people.

If you are fully distributed or can’t travel, opt for a live remote option at a convenient time for most people (i.e. video call).

If you are across multiple time zones, schedule several meetings to accommodate them.

(Yes, it is highly likely that they will have found out about it already, and it is worth it to make yourself available to deliver the news to them live and answer any questions).

➡️Action: Write down a potential sequence and settings for your communication.

Delivery.

Now you have everything you need to share your plan with those who need to hear it.

As you think about actually making your presentation, consider your announcement in the same way you would any other important presentation.

Materials
1. Ensure any written materials are clear, free of errors, and translated into the appropriate languages.
2. Review your notes.
Mindset
1. Implement any pre-presentation rituals you might have.
2. Be ready for emotional outbursts.

➡️Action: Prepare your materials and mindset for your announcement. Then deliver the announcement.

Follow-Up.

Follow through on whatever actions you agreed to before and during the announcement.

➡️Action: List any new action items that arose through the course of your discussions. Put them on your to-do list.

TL;DR

No matter how well you’ve planned your business or your organization, sometimes factors outside your control require you to reduce your workforce. Communicating a layoff is going to devastate people you care about and therefore must be handled with the utmost care.

With the 7-Part Layoff Communication Plan, you will treat the people you are letting go with dignity and respect, convey confidence with critical stakeholders, and infuse motivation and a sense of urgency with the people remaining.