Training and Development in an Era of Downsizing

Downsizing as a restructuring strategy has been actively implemented for the last three decades. While employee reductions were utilized mainly in response to crises prior to the mid-1980s, downsizing developed into a fully-fledged managerial strategy for tens of thousands of companies in the mid- to late-1980s. Since then, downsizing has transformed the international corporate landscape and affected the lives of hundreds of millions of individuals around the world. While the overall effects of downsizing have been widely reported, many misconceptions surrounding the concept of downsizing have remained. This conceptual paper focuses on the role of training and development (T&D) during the downsizing process. In particular, the research depicts the current body of literature associated with the function of HR and its plans, programs, and policies that firms adopting downsizing must provide to their surviving workforces. Finally, the paper offers concluding comments regarding effective downsizing practices that have emerged in the literature.