Restructuring

Restructuring is the corporate management term for the act of partially dismantling or otherwise reorganizing a company for the purpose of making it more efficient and therefore more profitable. It generally involves selling off portions of the company and making severe staff reductions.

Restructuring is often done as part of a bankruptcy or of a takeover by another firm, particularly a leveraged buyout by a private equity firm. It may also be done by a new CEO hired specifically to make the difficult and controversial decisions required to save or reposition the company.

Characteristics

The management (sometimes with golden parachutes)

• Retention of corporate management sometimes “stay bonus” payments or equity grants
• Sale of underutilized assets, such as patents or brands
• Outsourcing of operations such as payroll and technical support to a more efficient third party
• Moving of operations such as manufacturing to lower-cost locations
• Reorganization of functions such as sales, marketing, and distribution
• Renegotiation of labour contracts to reduce overhead
• Refinancing of corporate debt to reduce interest payments
• A major public relations campaign to reposition the company with consumers
• Forfeiture of all or part of the ownership share by pre restructuring stockholders (if the remainder represents only a fraction of the original firm, it is termed a stub).

Results

A company that has been restructured effectively will generally be leaner, more efficient, better organized, and better focused on its core business. If the restructured company was a leverage acquisition, the parent company will likely resell it at a profit when the restructuring has proven successful.

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