{"id":192965,"date":"2025-12-09T07:16:23","date_gmt":"2025-12-09T07:16:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/adjusting-to-a-leaner-world-of-work-hro-today\/"},"modified":"2025-12-09T07:16:23","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T07:16:23","slug":"adjusting-to-a-leaner-world-of-work-hro-today","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/adjusting-to-a-leaner-world-of-work-hro-today\/","title":{"rendered":"Adjusting to a Leaner World of Work – HRO Today"},"content":{"rendered":"

As team sizes get smaller and employees are tasked with doing more with less, adopting a purpose-driven company culture can be a changemaker for engagement, productivity, and morale.\u00a0<\/em>
By Maggie Mancini
There\u2019s\u00a0no question that AI acceleration and adoption have fundamentally shifted the way work gets done\u2014and\u00a0who does\u00a0it.\u00a0With large\u00a0employers\u00a0increasingly\u00a0<\/span>cutting out\u00a0managerial\u00a0roles<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0research from ADP\u00a0indicates\u00a0that work teams are shrinking, too. Recently,\u00a0<\/span>HRO Today\u00a0<\/span><\/i>spoke with Amy Freshman, senior director of HR at\u00a0<\/span>ADP<\/span><\/a>, to discuss how HR\u00a0and business leaders can adjust to this leaner world of work as team sizes continue to get smaller and more\u00a0consolidated.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>
HRO Today:\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/b>Research from ADP<\/span><\/a>\u00a0finds that the average team size has shrunk from 7.4 people per team in January 2019 to 7.2 people per team in May 2025, with larger reductions in some industries. As team sizes get smaller and managers are tasked with doing more with less, how\u202fcan HR and business leaders continue to build and lead high-performing teams?\u202f\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>
Amy Freshman:\u00a0<\/span><\/b>The trend of declining team sizes creates an opportunity for HR and business leaders to double down on people-centered leadership and reinforce the value of connection. With fewer direct reports, the capacity to build deeper relationships, understand individual\u00a0strengths\u00a0and what their people love to do at work may be more available to managers. Leaders can also take the time to understand obstacles their teams may be facing and find ways to help them overcome which will enable them to build trust and connection with their team and across the organization.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>
According to ADP Research\u2019s\u00a0<\/span>Today at Work<\/span><\/i>, when a team leader is not fully engaged, their teams are less than 1% fully engaged. But when a team leader is fully engaged, their teams are 65% more likely to be as well. Regardless of team size, high-performing teams are built from the top down, and by taking a thoughtful, people-first approach to people management, the newfound time spent with your team can be a powerful driver of performance and help bring the best out of your people.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>
HROT:\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/b>How can purpose-driven company culture help organizations navigate the \u201cleaner\u201d world of work?\u202f\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>
Freshman:\u00a0<\/span><\/b>A purpose-driven culture becomes even more\u00a0valuable, because\u00a0that culture helps anchor the organization with a shared sense of responsibility and meaning in their work. With a deep understanding of an organization’s culture and what inspires and motivates its team members, business leaders can align more closely with their team’s key values, driving\u00a0connection\u00a0and engagement.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>
A positive culture is a core factor of performance within an organization, and while it may be hard to focus on as team sizes are getting smaller, those values are\u00a0ultimately what\u00a0helps\u00a0attract and\u00a0retain\u00a0employees for a long time. Employees want to know that\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0a part of something bigger than themselves, so showing that your organization\u2019s culture and values are a business imperative will provide your people with a greater sense of purpose.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>
HROT:\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/b>How can HR leaders redesign and redefine employee roles and responsibilities in the wake of these changes?\u202f\u202f\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>
Freshman:\u00a0<\/span><\/b>As business teams become\u00a0leaner, leaders have a unique opportunity to rethink the roles and responsibilities of the employees on their team, while also providing clarity. When organizational changes occur without\u00a0a clear vision, employees can feel uncertain about their direction,\u00a0ultimately affecting\u00a0their engagement and performance at work.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>
Transparent communication about how roles may evolve and how the organization plans to support, upskill, and\u00a0retain\u00a0its people, helps build trust and\u00a0reduces\u00a0employee anxiety. Promoting mentorship and offering stretch assignments are great ways to promote growth and development for those employees who have\u00a0interest\u00a0in going beyond their day-to-day responsibilities.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>
There\u2019s\u00a0a significant opportunity for employers to provide these resources as well: ADP\u00a0Research shows that only 17% of employees strongly\u00a0agree\u00a0their employer invests in the skills they need to advance in their careers.\u00a0By thoughtfully\u00a0thinking about\u00a0the employee\u00a0experience, organizations can ensure alignment with their people and strengthen their team, even as team sizes shrink.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>
HROT:\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/b>How can HR and business leaders\u00a0m<\/span>aintain\u202for\u00a0improve\u00a0employee engagement, morale, and well-being in a work environment where employees and managers are being asked to do more with less?\u202f\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>
Freshman:\u00a0<\/span><\/b>At their core, employees want to know their organization is actively investing in their growth and getting to know them as people and at the same time want to feel connected to a purpose larger than themselves. Leaders should build meaningful relationships with their team members and recognize their accomplishments in\u00a0timely, authentic ways that work to build their people up.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>
Offering continuous opportunities for skills development also signals a genuine commitment to employees\u2019 long-term success. When leaders communicate intentionally and provide consistent support, teams feel more confident in doing more with less and can develop an even stronger sense of trust and belonging.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>
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As team sizes get smaller and employees are tasked with doing more with less, adopting a purpose-driven company culture can be a changemaker for engagement, productivity, and morale.\u00a0By Maggie ManciniThere\u2019s\u00a0no question that AI acceleration and adoption have fundamentally shifted the way work gets done\u2014and\u00a0who does\u00a0it.\u00a0With large\u00a0employers\u00a0increasingly\u00a0cutting out\u00a0managerial\u00a0roles,\u00a0research from ADP\u00a0indicates\u00a0that work teams are shrinking, too. Recently,\u00a0HRO […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":192966,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-192965","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world","8":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/192965","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=192965"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/192965\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/192966"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=192965"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=192965"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=192965"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}