The moment you announce a redundancy, everything changes.
You can feel it in the air—the tension, the fear, the sudden uncertainty.
It’s not just the people leaving who feel it. It’s also the ones staying behind. And it’s the leaders—yes, you—who carry the invisible weight of those decisions.
I’ve coached hundreds of executives around the world through difficult transitions. But I’ll never forget a particular leader I worked with in the UK. The company was facing significant cuts. The pressure from HQ was relentless. But this leader chose a different path: instead of hiding behind HR processes or sterile email memos, he stepped forward with radical empathy.
He co-created a humane transition plan with the affected employees. He gave them time, offered retraining support, and made space for open conversations. He even stayed late to check in personally with people who were grieving.
The result?
A culture that healed.
Engagement rebounded.
And perhaps most powerfully—those who remained felt more connected than ever to their leader.
Redundancies are not just business decisions. They are emotional earthquakes.
And yet, too often leaders try to move through them with detachment.
We lean on cold scripts. Hide behind phrases like “we have no choice”. Offer hollow reassurances that everything will be okay.
But here’s the truth:
What people remember is how you made them feel.
Not the spreadsheets. Not the strategy. The humanness you showed when everything was on the line.
Why brave leadership during layoffs matters more than ever: A study by the Harvard Business Review revealed that over 33% of surviving employees quit within 12 months of a layoff, citing loss of trust in leadership as a key driver.
Redundancies handled poorly don’t just affect those who exit. They shatter morale, increase attrition, and decimate psychological safety.
But when layoffs are handled with compassion, clarity, and courage, the opposite can happen. Cultures grow stronger. Teams trust deeper. Leaders gain lasting respect.
So what does brave leadership look like in the face of layoffs?
– You name the pain, instead of pretending it’s business as usual.
– You create space for grief, rather than rushing into “moving on”.
– You treat people as partners in the process—not passive recipients.
Let me be real with you.
I know it’s not easy.
I’ve coached leaders in Fortune 500 companies, start-ups, NGOs, and global banks through redundancies. Some were forced to cut entire departments. Others had to tell people they’d worked with for decades that their role was gone.
But I’ve also seen what happens when a leader makes one courageous choice: to lead with heart.
The ripple effect is undeniable—loyalty, trust, and yes, even performance, begin to return.
Not overnight.
But steadily.
Powerfully.
Over to you now. Ask yourself…
-
If your team were watching how you lead through layoffs, what story would they tell a year from now?
-
Are you communicating real support—or just lip service?
-
How do you want people to feel on the other side of this moment?
English 
Spanish