Tips To Avoid Being Laid Off

2012 continues to be a tough year for business. With the global economy worsening by the day, and a shrinking customer base, most businesses are struggling to stay afloat. Inevitably, when this happens, businesses must cut costs, and people are usually the first to go. During good times, corporations make the mistake of hiring too many employees, and as we all know, trees don’t grow to the sky; business conditions change.

Many organizations are beginning to look into a compromise agreement with their staff as Sony, a mega electronics manufacturer has announced that it lay off 6% of its global staff by the end of 2012, citing harsh competition from Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Company and Nokia, once a leader in mobile phone sales recently announced that it was going to lay off 10,000 staff by the end of 2013, and will be closing its manufacturing plant in Finland.

What can an employee do to protect themselves from being laid off? It’s all about ensuring that you’re valuable to your organization, and this post gives 3 tips on how to go about that.

1. Are You A Cost Centre Or A Revenue Centre

I always say that an employee must bring in more (in value and revenues), than he/she is paid. You are not just an employee, think of yourself as a mini profit/revenue centre for the business. There’s always something you can do to bring in more money, or save the business costs. An office receptionist could for example become more profitable if they went out of their way to form a bond with the customers they interact with both on phone and in person. Always look for ways to bring in more revenues or reduce revenue loss for the business.

2. Reduce Your Vulnerability

To a large extent, most organisations function like the Savannah or a forest: it’s survival for the fittest. The most vulnerable beings are often the first to go. You must always be vigilant, and be aware of your position as an individual within your department, and how vulnerable your department is in the context of the entire organization. Is your department core to the organization or is it a support function?

On an individual level, how does your personal performance compare with your colleagues? How does your boss regard you? If you are an exceptional performer, is your boss the only person that is aware of this? I am not suggesting that you suck up to all the senior members of your organisation or department, but take advantages of opportunities to demonstrate your skills in the organisation, as often as they present themselves.

If your department is vulnerable, it helps to find out what other departments do, and seek for opportunities to move to more core departments as early as possible, even before a lay off is announced.

3. Multi skilling

A good employee strives to make himself indispensable to an organization. In this post, I suggested that you use your free time to develop skills that are easily transferable. Identify the growth areas in your business, and strive to skill up in those areas. While it’s good to specialize and be exceptional in one area, in tough business times, a business is likely to retain the employees that have diverse skills .

At the end of the day, as an employee you only have so much control over the your employer’s strategic decisions, but you can ensure that you’re the last to go should a lay off occur.