RIM Job Layoffs essay
RIM is currently facing substantial financial problems and deterioration of its marketing performance. In this regard, the company attempts to improve its marketing position through introduction of changes in its organizational structure. However, the organizational change of RIM involves considerable job cuts. The company stands on the ground that employees’ layoffs can help the company to improve its current marketing position but the company should be aware of other factors that may affect its marketing performance, whereas job cuts are poorly communicated at the moment that may raise considerable problems within the company.
In fact, the current performance of RIM deteriorates. Fiscal 2012 has gotten off to a challenging start. The slowdown the company saw in the first quarter of 2011 is continuing into Q2, and delays in new product introductions into the very late part of August is leading to a lower-than-expected outlook in the second quarter (Reisinger, 2011). In response to the downturn in its business development, RIM has started to consider possible ways to improve its marketing performance. In this regard, the company attempts to cut costs that can improve the financial position of the company in the market. RIM considers the possibility of job layoff to save costs. The job layoff is an effective tool to save costs of the company.
At the moment, the company plans to lay off about 2,000 employees that is about 10% of its staff (Patel, 2011). In fact, such job cuts are very significant because the layoff of 10% of the company’s staff can save considerable costs. This measure is essential for the company because RIM failed to respond to the new competitive threats and lost its technological edge (McDougall, 2011).
However, at this point, the company should take into consideration the fact that RIM faces a number of competitive threats and technological environment puts the company into a disadvantageous position. In such a situation, the job layoff of the company may be not enough to improve its marketing position. At this point, it is important to place emphasis on the fact the company has to conduct job layoffs effectively to maximize its positive effects. However, today, the company faces the problem of the poor communication of its job layoff strategy.
In actuality, the company has announced its plans to cut jobs but the company failed to provide detailed information on principles of job layoffs. In such a situation, employees are apparently uncertain in their future in the company because they do not know, who can lose their job in the company. In fact, the growing uncertainty of employees in their future in the company may put under a threat the position of RIM in the market. The uncertainty of employees in their future can undermine the internal atmosphere within the organization and increase the risk of conflicts within the company. As a result, the deterioration of atmosphere within the company and internal RIM that may outweigh the reduction of costs by means of job layoffs.
Thus, the policy of job cuts announced by RIM has poor communication. The poor communication puts under a threat outcomes of this strategy because the poor communication makes the position of employees uncertain. As a result, conflicts within the company may emerge, while many well-qualified professionals may just leave the company for a more stable job. Hence, the company may fail to complete the layoff strategy successfully, if it fails to improve its communication.
