Resource Reallocations Influence Staff Attitudes in Public Organizations

This policy brief examines how internal staff reallocations in public organizations influence employees’ job attitudes. The study shows that staff reductions reduce support for organizational goals among the remaining staff members, while managers’ intention to leave the organization falls when their department grows. Employees and managers may perceive – and respond to – resource decisions as signals about their department’s value to the organization. These findings have important implications for the design, framing and communication of resource reallocations in public institutions