{"id":12208,"date":"2023-09-03T12:44:05","date_gmt":"2023-09-03T12:44:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mysourcefunding.com\/startups\/how-to-achieve-lean-not-mean-when-cutting-your-companys-costs\/"},"modified":"2023-09-03T12:44:06","modified_gmt":"2023-09-03T12:44:06","slug":"how-to-achieve-lean-not-mean-when-cutting-your-companys-costs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mysourcefunding.com\/?p=12208","title":{"rendered":"How To Achieve \u2018Lean,\u2019 Not \u2018Mean,\u2019 When Cutting Your Company\u2019s Costs"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Uncertainty about the economy doesn\u2019t do companies any favors. When business and consumer spending slows, leaders face tough decisions about which expenses to cut. And workers worry about whether those cuts will send them to the unemployment line. It\u2019s not an unfounded fear, as 2023\u2019s layoff announcements from big-name companies keep coming.<\/p>\n

During this year\u2019s first quarter, 136,000 employees got their pink slips. While tech giants have been in the news with headcount reductions, large banks, auto manufacturers and retail pharmacy chains are also letting people go. It\u2019s decisions like these that make employees question whether leaders are on their side.<\/p>\n

When times are tough, it\u2019s convenient to slash the payroll. However, there\u2019s more to running a lean operation than reducing staff down to a skeleton crew. With any cost-saving measures, you want to be attentive to your employees\u2019 needs and enable your company\u2019s long-term strategies. Here are some ways to achieve both.<\/p>\n

Target Inefficient Processes<\/h2>\n

Yes, the salaries and benefits for the people on your payroll can be significant costs. But inefficient processes could be what\u2019s truly costing your business in terms of lost productivity. You could be zeroing in on the wrong target and damaging employee morale by cutting your HR budget.<\/p>\n

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The phrase \u201cwork smarter, not harder\u201d is about finding the most efficient way to accomplish your goals. Take a team of IT support techs as an example. From a high-level perspective, you notice their resolution times are too long. Yet it also appears they\u2019re not devoting enough time to work-related tasks. Customers aren\u2019t getting the service they deserve, while the company is apparently paying the team to twiddle their thumbs.<\/p>\n

It might be tempting to call everyone into the office separately, asking them to explain what they do around here. You can take a different approach by focusing on the tools and processes the team has at their disposal.<\/p>\n

In this case, support techs may be working with outdated software that doesn\u2019t enable them to efficiently tackle the problems they see. The team feels their efforts are futile, so they compensate by slacking off. By identifying what\u2019s driving the undesired results, you can implement more efficient tools and processes. This approach may take additional time upfront, but it demonstrates your willingness to address shortcomings human to human.<\/p>\n

Be Strategic<\/h2>\n

To seem fair, leaders sometimes reduce costs across the board. They cut 10% of staff from all departments, for example, or tell every mid-level manager to stop ordering complimentary team lunches. These moves may save your company money in the short run, but they\u2019re far from strategic. And they don\u2019t always address long-term performance goals.<\/p>\n

Gartner reports that only 43% of leaders achieve their savings targets during year one of a cost-reduction drive because of unrealistic objectives. Blanket cost cutting can actually set companies up for repeat failure since the measures don\u2019t address the behaviors behind inefficient spending. You have to think about where the problems lie and the company\u2019s ongoing strategy.<\/p>\n

Say your sales numbers are down by 20%. However, you discover one product is behind the drop. There have been technical glitches over the past year, causing customers to lose faith. As a result, they\u2019re discontinuing their use of your company\u2019s other solutions.<\/p>\n

Penalizing every business unit with equal cuts doesn\u2019t make sense. It\u2019s better to fix your problem child if your company\u2019s strategy is to be a reliable market leader. The source of those technical glitches may be overlapping vendor relationships\u2014you might simply have too many cooks in the kitchen. Streamlining the resources behind the product will do more to help your company meet its long-term objectives without alienating your staff.<\/p>\n

Reskill Employees<\/h2>\n

AI may be here to stay, but there\u2019s a sharp disconnect between how executives and individual contributors feel about it. Research shows 64% of executives think AI is exciting. Two-thirds of high-level leaders also believe AI will positively impact employees\u2019 experiences. However, 46% of individual contributors think AI is scary, and 31% believe it will negatively impact them.<\/p>\n

With AI\u2019s capabilities increasing, employees fear bots will replace their jobs. Automating repetitive tasks may help companies implement lean processes. But relying on technology to completely take over for humans to save a buck is seen as cold. It discounts the contributions and talents of your staff. You\u2019re writing them off in favor of cheaper and faster, but not necessarily better.<\/p>\n

What leaders should instead is acknowledge where AI and humans can work together. It may mean automation does take over some of the tasks your staff currently performs. But instead of getting rid of people, reskill them to take on advanced responsibilities in areas of need. Chatbot software may handle insurance policyholders\u2019 initial claim requests, but carriers can upskill employees to address claims with complex injuries.<\/p>\n

Thoughtful Cost Cutting<\/h2>\n

Shaky economic conditions drive budget cuts as leaders worry about whether the balance sheet will even out. While dismissing the idea of cost cutting may be unrealistic, your decisions don\u2019t have to demotivate your team. Targeting inefficient processes, aligning cuts with strategies and reskilling staff members will help you achieve \u201clean,\u201d not \u201cmean.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Read the full article here<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Uncertainty about the economy doesn\u2019t do companies any favors. When business and consumer spending slows, leaders face tough decisions about which expenses to cut. And workers worry about whether those cuts will send them to the unemployment line. It\u2019s not an unfounded fear, as 2023\u2019s layoff announcements from big-name companies keep coming. During this year\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12209,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[77],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-12208","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-startups"},"yoast_head":"\nHow To Achieve \u2018Lean,\u2019 Not \u2018Mean,\u2019 When Cutting Your Company\u2019s Costs | Brandiary<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Uncertainty about the economy doesn\u2019t do companies any favors. 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