Yesterday in a discussion of psychological safety, someone posed a thought-provoking question, “Is it possible that there are situations where it is not possible to create safety? Is it possible that there are situations where competition prevents safety?” The questioner offered an example that has become all too common in the COVID era, during layoffs or furloughs, doesn’t competition rule and prevent establishing safety with colleagues?
My answer? Definitely not.
When word (or rumor) of layoffs reaches you, you can perceive the threat and switch to competition mode, eagerly seeking ways to demonstrate that you are more valuable than your colleagues and deserve to be retained.
Alternatively, you may choose to lead with care, both for yourself and others. You don’t know what might happen. You don’t know what criteria might be used to make the tough decisions. Might it make sense to prepare everyone for layoffs? What might that look like?
I don’t have to imagine. Many of my friends at a previous employer faced this situation last year. When I heard the rumors of multiple rounds of layoffs, my heart went out to them. I immediately reached out to a good friend who was still working there to see what assistance I might offer. She and I organized some resume/LinkedIn profile review sessions to prepare folks for job searching. These sessions had the desired effect of helping people feel prepared for whatever outcome. They also had an unintended effect. We all learned more about each other by reviewing resumes and LinkedIn profiles. Learning about each other helped us all work together to connect job seekers to new jobs. When someone would hear through their network about an interesting role, they could send it to the former colleague with the appropriate skills and interests. Folks also started online spaces for everyone to keep in touch and support each other.
It became very clear very quickly that there were still many jobs available out in the market. As offers started to roll in for some job seekers, we kept the conversation going with chats about interacting with recruiters and negotiating offers. An especially lovely moment was when one junior developer called me for help deciding between multiple offers she had received.
Ultimately, I think this collective, caring action left all the group members in a better place. Everyone could feel more prepared to weather the storm of uncertainty and volatility in the market. Everyone could also feel at peace with their actions in such trying times. Even though the facts of the situation remained unchanged, i.e. some folks were indeed let go, the group resisted the capitalist conditioning to turn on each other and instead decided to turn towards each other. I am so grateful I was able to be part of that.