I told them I'd only downsize once.
A short framework for leaders facing a hard announcement, based on one CEO's decision to make and keep a specific, public promise.
- The story of José Suquet's promise to downsize only once
- A three-question check on whether your next promise is specific enough to keep
- A this-week action plan and a quick-reference page you can pin up
Get the free guide
The Promise-Keeping Check · 8 pages · PDF
What's inside
Why one kept promise matters
How Suquet promised one round of downsizing and kept it through the financial crisis and COVID-19.
The habits behind it
Why specificity made the promise meaningful, plus Suquet's habits of authenticity and disciplined listening.
Is your promise specific enough?
Three questions to test your next hard promise before you make it.
This week
Three actions, from reviewing standing promises to naming one you broke.
Results and feedback from Velocity's leadership work
“Now associates understand themselves better, and leaders have new tools to support their teams.”
“Velocity challenged our team and brought us together in ways that have paid immediate dividends.”
Why trust erodes in hard times
People can handle tough decisions. What wears trust down is uncertainty about a leader's values.
Vague Reassurance
Promises to "do our best" are cheap, forgettable, and easy to walk back.
Quietly Broken Promises
Teams remember the commitments a leader failed to keep, even when no one mentions them.
Hire and Cut Cycles
Suquet says swinging between hiring sprees and reductions in force is "especially terrible for the people that stay behind."
From reassurance to trust
A specific, kept promise becomes the story employees tell about their leader for years afterward.
SPECIFY
Write the promise in one testable sentence before the announcement, then commit to it out loud.
KEEP
Hold the promise when circumstances get harder, and name any past broken promise honestly.
ALIGN
Velocity helps leadership teams lead with consistency and transparency through coaching, leadership development, and team workshops.
Make promises your team can count on
Download the guide, then talk with us about leading your team through hard decisions with transparency.