How to communicate about layoffs

It’s a rough time in tech. Whether you’re a founder struggling with the new market conditions, or an employee wondering if you’ll be affected by them, it’s hard to know how to navigate through so much noise. Daily news about tech layoffs is overwhelming. It's tough at any company, but particularly a startup where early employees are those who work harder, longer & for less than they would at an established organization.

Over the years I’ve heard consistent questions around communicating about layoffs. I'm sharing my answers to the most common ones here in hopes that it might help founders who are facing this right now. It won't be easy (speaking from experience), but it can be honest and respectful. You know your business best. Take what feels right, and leave the rest.

Do we need to share the news publicly?

If you’re a private company, whether you share your news publicly is up to you. There are lots of factors to consider, but if you do share any comms publicly it may help you be more proactive in supporting employees, by connecting them to an ecosystem of companies that may be hiring.

The most important thing is to ensure your employees are the first to hear, and that any subsequent external messaging is the same as what you’ve shared internally. Layoffs are never a good news story, but consistency will reassure employees & customers that you’ve been truthful.

Should we divulge the number of employees being impacted?

If you’re forced to look at layoffs in order to keep the lights on, today you’ll be joining a large swath of tech companies doing the same, in service of ensuring a strong sustainable business for the long term, and in direct response to a dramatic shift in market conditions.

One of the core principles of crisis comms is to be honest and transparent. The numbers will get out eventually, so arguably you are just extending the life of the story by drip feeding facts. There’s value in just getting all the bad news out there at the same time. It's never going to be pleasant, but at least you'll (hopefully) only need to go through it once.

Should we talk proactively to media?

Journalists are covering this topic. If you don’t give them access to information, they will shape the narrative themselves by speaking to current or past employees, and other sources who may even speak anonymously.

I don’t recommend letting journalists know before your employees. But outreach to one or two trusted journalists the same day as the announcement would be appreciated and you may receive more balanced coverage.

This also ticks 2 boxes: prioritizing employees while also ensuring accuracy in the narrative the media will run with.

Should we share details about the steps we are taking to support those we are laying off, publicly?

The balance between honestly and authentically communicating with your employees, and managing your reputation externally is critical. Prioritizing the brand ahead of your employees will likely be seen as performative and insensitive.

Articulate your messaging with your employees as the sole audience in mind. Try not to let external audiences influence how or what you plan to say. If the detail ends up being shared with a journalist, or by an employee, it will keep its original intended tone and authenticity.

The guiding principles in any crisis comms can still apply to a situation that may not technically be a crisis (though arguably for those being laid off it could well be), but will still be a bad news story:

• Be honest and transparent - Don’t try to ‘spin’ your way out of something. If you show people what you are doing you will set their expectations realistically.
• Keep it simple – There are inevitably complexities to the situation, but trying to surface nuances at the moment bad news breaks rarely works.
• Be respectful - Maintain respect, even for those who are disparaging. Know that there WILL be people who are critical – you need to have confidence that you have done what is best for your business and acted in line with your core values.

And for founders, people leaders, and especially those affected by layoffs or cost cutting, let yourself feel what you feel, but remember that we’re in rough waters, and you’re not alone. This will end, and you will come out the other side on sunnier shores. Hang in there.