Redundancies have been an “easy” reaction to past recessions, but three-quarters of organisations that downsized post-9/11 reported that it damaged their subsequent growth. Workforce planning is often badly done, and organisations don’t know how many or what type of staff they need, and who to keep and who to let go. Put together a proper workforce plan, specifying the numbers and types of skills needed against several future scenarios. Engagement still drives performanceAll the time and money put into developing staff engagement can vanish overnight if the business fails to show commitment to employees in harder times. Retraining and redeployment are clear signs of that commitment to them. They will repay this loyalty in the long run and your employer brand will remain intact.