Evidence Based HR and Management Research

This multi-phased study of 201 car salespeople working for 93 different car dealerships identifies that quitting behaviour depends on two factors; who else leaves and employee relationship with managers. In academic circles, this is known as turnover contagion.  Without support and timely communication from leaders, employees may begin to engage in mass exodus when other employees leave.  

Through data analysis on 976 employee profiles, this research shows that which employees volunteer for a layoff when the option is presented versus who is selected by management for involuntary layoffs differs roughly 50% of the time.  Although voluntary layoffs may be viewed as more humane, organizations clearly need proper policies and procedures in place to correct mismatched or dysfunctional exit of employees if voluntary layoffs are used.

Data analysis on 388 downsizing announcements demonstrates that shareholders react differently to layoff announcements based on the level of responsibility assumed in the message, the positioning of how negative the event is and the inclusion/exclusion of the CEO in the announcement. Organizations must remain genuine but also manage the explanation for downsizing activity to minimize negative stakeholder reactions (that impact stock prices).

A survey of 99 employers demonstrates that employers shift the onus of responsibility for SIEs integration to other stakeholders (namely, the immigrant or government agencies), require documentation to evaluate human capital attainment of SIEs and may be systemically discriminating against SIEs. Employers must take accountability for integrating SIE’s, partner/collaborate with critical stakeholders for skills assessment and remove barriers to entry to benefit from the competitive advantage that foreign trained professionals bring to the workplace.

A mixed methods approach was used to pair content analysis of 178 downsizing announcements from 2005 to 2011 with organizational financial data pre- and post-downsizing event. This research helps to explain the divergent relationships between downsizing and organizational financial performance by identifying downsizing as a multi-dimensional event. Organizations experiencing both financial growth and decline engage in downsizing, but they rationalize the downsizing differently (according to social accounts: excuses, justifications, denials and apologies).