Delayering and Streamlining | ORGANIZATION STRUCTURE



Management streamlining or delayering of the organization can be a rich vein to tap when it is time to reduce costs, especially in large IT organizations that have not been changed in awhile. Consider changes to flatten the organization. Rather than having one person manage six or seven individuals, have them manage 10 to 20 individuals. This change is easier and more viable with a senior experienced group. If you attempt this with less experienced individuals, or in an environment with a lack of procedures, you could actually lose productivity by increasing the number of individuals under a supervisor.
Top Tip 1: Hire and keep good resources

"We save money in how we hire people. It is always cheaper to hire one really good resource rather that two mediocre individuals. We are careful in who we hire and hire smart business people first and good technical people second. The soft skills are important when looking for quality people. Low turnover is important to keep costs down."
—David Kaiser
SFM Mutual Insurance

Top Tip 2: Manage people at all levels

"We reviewed the organization. Instead of two managers, we had one with broader responsibility so we didn't give up coverage. We took out some redundant skills and used contractors to cover the risk if needed. We also reduced some staff due to project cancelations."
—Greg Hayhurst
Tennant Company

Make sure the management structure is not too deep or redundant with leads reporting to supervisors, managers, senior managers, directors, and vice presidents, unless the organizations size warrants it. Consider moving to more collaborative, team-based models rather than inflexible hierarchies.

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