5 Ways in which Coaching can help your organization go through Layoffs

Going through a layoff is a challenging experience, even if it’s somewhat expected due to a recent business or industry downturn. The transition phase can be stressful, but it’s important to remember that the end of one’s job doesn’t have to mean the end of one’s career. With the right guidance, career coach, and tools, many affected employees find new positions with equal or greater pay.

While family and friends can offer comfort and support during tough times, they may not have the professional coaching culture to guide candidates in their job search. At this critical stage in a candidate’s career, certified career coaching is one of the best sources of sound career guidance and advice. Companies going through an employee layoff should also invest in an internal coaching platform. It can help them in managing their organizations better. Organizational coaching is typically a platform with a background in HR, recruiting, or career coaching. They are accredited by a Coaching Federation or another certifying body and trained to lead candidates through a proven methodology to help them meet their goals.

The pandemic and subsequent recession have made it difficult for businesses to survive, and the economic situation, coupled with rising global inflation, demands increased vigilance from business leaders. Though unpleasant, leaders must consider exit strategies to ensure their companies stay afloat. An exit plan is essential in the event of necessary layoffs. Sometimes, layoffs can happen suddenly, and there may not be enough time to adequately prepare an exit plan for affected workers. Mistakes during job cuts can result in public relations crises, legal disputes, and even potential fines.

According to a study by Randstad RiseSmart, 54 per cent of companies do not have plans to support employees during layoffs, despite economic downturns often forcing them to downsize. A good workforce management plan includes everything from onboarding to existing team members, with some exit programs providing team coaching, support services, and employee assistance programs. Investing in internal coaching practices is worthwhile as it can help protect a company’s reputation.

Business coaching is typically experienced in dealing with performance improvement, career transition, and career challenges that employees face at some point in their careers. They can also be carefully matched with companies based on industry knowledge and experience, regardless of geography. Engaging with a specialized career coaching platform improves the company’s chances of overcoming business hurdles.

Have you ever met an entrepreneur who was caught amid a layoff cycle? It’s tiring, neck aching and a challenging situation. Unfortunately, the events surrounding a layoff are all too common, and it’s rare to see leaders who know how to support their employees through such a difficult time effectively and even turn it to their advantage. Companies are often compelled to lay off employees in today’s economy, sometimes in waves. When some employees are spared, they may feel relieved initially, but then they begin to worry and wonder about the next wave. “Will I be next?” “Should I start looking for a job elsewhere?” “What will I do?” These thoughts are symptoms of survivor syndrome. The effects of this syndrome can lead to a significant drop in employee engagement and productivity. Recent research has indicated that employees often report reduced commitment and performance after layoffs.

If you’re a leader experiencing the same, you’re probably wondering what you can do to help your team navigate the dreaded layoff cycle. Here, we shall discuss five ways leadership coaching can help your organization go through layoffs.

Layoffs can be a painful experience for affected employees and managers who must deliver the news. To make matters worse, the average duration of unemployment for job seekers is surprisingly long, with economists considering those jobless for more than six months as long-term unemployed. As of July 2021, the average length of unemployment was close to seven months. Despite the uncertainties brought by new unemployment policies and changes in the labor market, job openings are available. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics data released in August 2021 reveals that in June 2021, there were 6.7 million new hires and 10.1 million job openings at the end of the month.

Growing a business can be challenging, especially during layoffs, and making costly mistakes along the way is not uncommon. Hiring a Team coaching service can provide a shortcut to success and offer tailored advice based on your industry. Competent leadership coaching will concentrate on your strengths, refine your skills, provide constructive feedback, and lead your company toward financial success.

Take a look at the different types of coaching options that you can take help from:

Types of coaching

• Face-to-face coaching
• Internal coaching
• External coaching
• Digital coaching

Out of all, organizations find digital coaching suitable for them. It helps them deal with layoff and fight the challenges in a more rational and effective way. Check out the ways how coaching helps your company minimize the layoff impact.

Employers can proactively support their laid-off workers and layoff survivor employees through careful planning, partnership, services, and thoughtful transitions. For this, your organization needs guidance from a digital coaching platform to get quality executive coaching.

Have you ever considered whether business coaching could help your organization during layoffs? The advantages of business coaching may surprise you. Starting a business can be a solitary journey. At first, you may spend all your waking hours working on your business and feel stranded on a deserted island.

Well, then digital coaching platform can clearly help you steer through this rough path. You have a long range of coaches available at the coach marketplace to choose from. With the help of digital coaching platform, organizations can handle their layoffs better. Digital coaching platforms such as uExcelerate offer flexible and affordable training and upskilling options that prepares the individuals for the upcoming circumstances.

Digital coaching provides you with a team of seasoned entrepreneurs or executives with expertise in starting and growing successful businesses virtually. They can provide training and mentorship to companies seeking guidance via an online platform. For instance, if you have been running your business for about three years but have observed minimal profit growth, a business coach can guide you virtually on what steps to take and how to manage a layoff rather than making hasty decisions on your own.

Here are five practical ways in which coaching can help your organization to minimize the impact of layoffs –

Helps you in Gaining Perspective – The role of coaching is not to make decisions or deliver results. Rather than aim to understand your business thoroughly to offer valuable insights and guidance every step of the way,  a skilled coach can assist you in recognizing critical challenges, making sound decisions, prioritizing profitable projects, and devising strategies that propel your business to new heights, even in difficult times like layoffs. You can gain a fresh perspective after the layoff and adopt more effective approaches through coaching. Coaches can positively influence how you think and act, improving outcomes.

Clearer Roadmap and Better Skills: Coaching is not equivalent to seeking guidance from a friend. While friends and family have good intentions, they might need help understanding your challenges in growing a successful and profitable business during a layoff. In contrast, a business coach helps you prepare a clear plan and roadmap for advancing your organization after such an event.

One significant benefit of coaching is the opportunity to continually enhance your skills, regardless of how long the layoff has lasted. Rather than providing all the answers, an excellent digital coaching platform aims to identify your learning style and working preferences. From there, it is up to you to pinpoint areas for improvement, such as communication, project management, or team management. Throughout the process, coaching serves as a guide, , and source of motivation while allowing you the freedom and autonomy to progress and achieve your goals.

Strengthens your Confidence to Improve Profitability and Performance – As an entrepreneur, you may have faced personal and business challenges during a layoff that has shaken your confidence. However, not letting these negative experiences and fears dictate your actions is crucial. Business coaching offers a supportive environment for personal growth and development. Whether you are a new or seasoned business owner, coaching during a layoff encourages you to work through challenges and trust yourself as a confident leader.

Effective leadership coaching is essential for maintaining employee performance and business profitability.

An unmotivated team can lead to substandard work, lower client retention, and decreased profitability. If you struggle to communicate and manage effectively with your managers and employees, this can negatively impact their output. To become a successful leader after a layoff, you must understand your strengths, weaknesses, and sources of motivation. Internal business coaching is an integral aspect of self-development. Through coaching, you can gain insights into effective management and leadership strategies. Your coach can assist you in identifying a leadership style that best suits your personality and work style. Teams led by effective leaders tend to be more productive, satisfied, and connected to their organization, leading to positive outcomes for your business.

Better Leadership and Accountability: Even some of the most successful business owners today, such as Eric Schmidt, former CEO of Google, and technology titans Steve Jobs and Bill Gates, have recognized the value of business coaching during a layoff. Despite having achieved significant growth, they sought the guidance of coaching to continue investing in their personal and professional development. This is because they understood that the most valuable investment is in oneself. One-on-one or team coaching can help clarify your goals, devise a winning strategy, and implement an action plan after the layoff situation so that you can focus on increasing revenue.

One critical aspect of business coaching is accountability. Holding yourself accountable during events like layoff is crucial for the success of your small business. Good coaching will overcome the impact of a layoff will challenge you to think more broadly, take risks and try new ideas, and hold you accountable for achieving your goals.

Balanced Approach towards Business Goal: Achieving your visions and goals can be challenging, especially in such times. While it’s good to set ambitious goals, it’s also essential to set realistic and achievable ones based on the current scenario. That’s where executive coaching comes in. It can help you identify and articulate realistic and attainable goals that align with your business’s needs and objectives. Additionally, they can help you create a long-term plan that balances your entrepreneurial life with other personal goals. By working with coaching, you’ll have someone who can guide you through the process, and you can freely discuss your aspirations with your coach. The coach will help you devise a plan to achieve new goals without compromising your business’s success.

As a business owner, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by your day-to-day tasks, especially when you are short on staff after a layoff. With business coaching, you’ll get the structure and organization necessary to run your business like a well-oiled machine. Your coaching can help you implement and maintain systems and structures for success. They’ll provide effective time-management plans, tips, and strategies to enhance your performance based on your work style and personality.

To Conclude

It’s important to note that the benefits of internal coaching depend on the effort and time invested by both parties. Like any other relationship, compatibility is crucial. Going for the one-on-one organizational coaching program focuses on building internal marketing capabilities and rapidly scaling small businesses. If you’re struggling to create a high-performance marketing team or have gaps in your strategy, or are going through a layoff period, team coaching programs can help identify and provide solutions to these challenges.

These leadership coaching sessions will guide your business during a layoff and provide it with a structured program that takes you through a defined process. With a trusted digital coaching platform such as uExcelerate, you can build the business you’ve always dreamed of – one that offers growth, greater freedom, and profitability even after a severe layoff event.

So, consider hiring executive coaching today only to implement adequate internal coaching practices to support your professionals and the organization during a layoff!