Revue de livres Book Reviews Strategies for Retrenchment and Turnaround: The Politics of Survival Cynthia Hardy, New York: Walter de Gruyter, 1989. 222 pp .

The issues of cutbacks, downsizing, and rationalization are among the ”major challenges facing contemporary mangers” (p. 1) Hardy refers to these phenomena collectively as strategies of retrenchment, which are “activities that reduce the scope or scale of an organization’s operations” (p. 1). For Hardy, the critical aspect of retrenchment is its role as part of a longer-term strategy of turnaround; an “investment in survival” (p. 1). The strength of this text stems from this long-term orientation. Hardy argues that the survival of the enterprise “will depend on the cooperation of the various interest groups affected by the cutbacks” (p. 5 ) . The need to consider these interest groups introduces a political element which is the hub of Hardy’s analysis.

The book is divided into two major sections, with a short introductory chapter preceding the first section. “Part I: The Organizations” discusses the nine case studies on which the book is based, with a chapter for each. Included in the nine case studies are public and private, and Canadian and British organizations, ranging in size from 195,000 employees (ICI) to 650 employees (Ville Marie). Each of the Chapters begins with a summary of the organization and its retrenchment situation, followed by a detailed description of the retrenchment process and the reactions to it by the various interest groups. The level of detail and the clarity of Hardy’s writing allow the reader to easily grasp the dynamics of these situations. Despite the rigorous detail developed for each case, the most severe problem with this study is methodological. Because the author is interested in providing “an opportunity to learn how retrenchment can be successfully managed” (p. 16), the gross under-representation of unsuccessful1 attempts is a serious flaw. This problem is exacerbated by the uniquesness of the one unsuccessful attempt. The analysis is strengthened, however, by Hardy’s balanced account of each case, indicating the successes and failures within each.

Part I1 consists of four chapters: 11 - 14. The first two offer advice on the management of retrenchment, with

supporting examples from the nine organizations. Chapter 11 develops guidelines for choosing a retrenchment strategy contingent on the level of economic and political pressures. To aid in the success of the chosen strategy, chapter 12 presents a set of implementation issues for management and a discussion of the human resource manager’s role. Hardy argues that it is important to promote human resource management in order to adequately prepare for retrenchment and offers several valuable suggestions to accomplish this.

The last two chapters constitute the most theoretical section of the book. Chapter 13 examines the relationship between retrenchment and resistance. A discussion of unions and the public sector trace patterns of resistance to cutbacks, advising that this represents a “viable course of action”, but there “are some pitfalls” (p. 174). However, a manager’s “more common role is one of implementing retrenchment decisions” (p. 174).

The final chapter integrates the preceding discussion into a more general model of strategy and political constraint. Hardy develops a typology of four “Political contexts” and discusses them with respect to the research organizations and examples from other empirical research. From this typology and the case discussions, several “Implications for Strategy Making” (p. 192) are drawn, including: “Strategy making will involve a political analysis”; and, “Strategies will be negotiated”. Although none of the maxims are completely new insights, their support with empirical and theoretical grounding is appealing.

For those interested in retrenchment and turnaround strategies, this book is required reading; the consideration of the political element adds an important dimension to this discussion. For the general CJAS audience, this study will be most valuable as a teaching aid. The detailed cases and prescriptive analysis would be a strong basis for lecture and class discussion. The “analytic realism” (p. 198) Hardy has strived for is an ideal balance for teachers of strategy, human resource management and general management. From a research perspective, however, the level of theoretical development is only sufficient to hint at future directions and the empirical analysis is hampered by the biased sample. Finally, the practicing manager will find the presentation of the cases too sterile, although the generous use of quotes from managers and others provides some relief.

TOM LAWRENCE Ph. D. Student

University of Alberta

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