How Downsizing Affects Organizational Memory in Government: Some Implications for Professional and Organizational Development

Abstract

This paper examines some ways that downsizing can affect professional and organizational development in government by posing some possible scenarios based on social and organizational theories. The paper maintains that the depletion of social capital in the past two decades may lead to some predictable consequences in the future. For instance, downsizing has necessitated incumbents' having to play multiple and often conflicting roles: a condition that culminates in stress and burnout and, eventually, to turnover. Because organizations carry little promise for continued employment and advancement, career paths will be truncated; “revolving doors” may happen, in which individuals cycle in and out of government service frequently. The removal of individuals with “institutional memory” may deplete the supply of mentors and coaches, who provide both career advice as well as promote a common perspective on organizational problems. The decline in organizational problem solving ability, in turn, can lead to ways to “reinvent” mission and essential programs. This may engender searches for fundamental values, re-constructed heroic stories, and an emphasis on defining and getting “in touch” with vital customers. The latter turn of reinvention is creative rather than destructive, for it provides a means for regenerating a basis of knowledge lost during downsizing. Hence, although downsizing may reduce human resources and fuel organizational decline, ultimately, the decline can lead to re-birth.