You must reduce the engineering organisation by fifteen percent. How do you decide, and how do you lead the people who stay?
In layoffs, decide what work stops before which roles go, apply criteria agreed with HR and legal because the process varies by country, and never start from names. Tell people individually and with dignity, then cut the roadmap to match the smaller team so those who stay do not carry the same work.
Answer
Short answer
Layoffs should be decided from the work, not from the people. First decide what the business will stop doing, then which roles that removes, and only then apply selection criteria agreed with HR and employment counsel. Rules on consultation, notice, selection and severance vary a great deal by country. Tell each affected person individually and with dignity. Then cut the roadmap and reassign ownership so the people who stay inherit a smaller plan, not the same plan with fewer hands.
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Likely follow-ups
- Your CEO wants the cut spread evenly across every team so that it looks fair. What do you say?
- Two of the roles your criteria select belong to people with specialist knowledge of a system nobody else understands. What do you do?
- The day after the announcement, a team lead asks whether there will be a second round. You do not know. How do you answer?
- How would you run this differently if part of your organisation sits in a country that requires consultation with employee representatives before decisions are final?
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