Where is your organization in terms of its current employee growth trajectory?

Our reader poll today asks: Where is your organization in terms of its current employee growth trajectory?

• We’re in hyper-growth mode and hiring tons of people 11.26%
• We’re steadily growing at a reasonable pace 36.80% 
• We’re staying even with departures pretty much equaling arrivals 32.47%
• We’re shrinking slightly 16.88%
• We’re rapidly reducing our workforce 2.59%

Is growth coming? On balance, the majority of you are staying flat or even contracting a bit in terms of headcount but there’s a strong segment demonstrating growth. There are obviously cautions in all directions. For those of you who are staying even, be sure your benefits and the way you take care of your people stays ahead of attrition. Growing companies will poach your dissatisfied employees if you’re not careful. For those contracting, be wary of cutting too deep because when an upswing happens or an opportunity presents itself, you may not be in a position to take advantage of it. For those of you growing, don’t get too excited and let your hiring get ahead of your growth. One contraction could cause your business to screech to a halt and cause emergency reductions. Whether you’re growing or shrinking, the advice is the same – think longer term and make choices that best position you for steady, continuous growth and profitability.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

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These results were originally a SmartPulse poll in SmartBrief on Leadership which tracks feedback from more than 240,000 business leaders. Get smarter on leadership and sign up for the SmartBrief on Leadership e-newsletter.