The news of major U.S. job losses in March is ominous for a number of workforce management reasons.

The U.S. Labor Department said Friday, April 4, that the American economy lost 80,000 payroll jobs in March. That was worse than expected and the biggest one-month loss in five years. Payroll employment figures also were revised to show greater job losses for January and February, and the unemployment rate rose from 4.8 percent in February to 5.1 percent in March.

The first problem with these numbers is they suggest companies are ignoring the sage advice to try to weather the economic storm by limiting layoffs or avoiding them altogether. Instead of taking a near-term hit to profits and investing in long-term growth, companies seem to be cutting jobs heavily.

Such short-term thinking could come back to haunt U.S. firms. Jettisoning talent and potentially damaging morale for remaining workers can cripple companies and their ability to bounce back in better times. Stanford University business professor Jeffrey Pfeffer says companies tend to give up people too easily in downturns only to pay a steep price for talent during good times. “You should not do what most companies seem to do, which is buy high and sell low,” Pfeffer says. “There’s an unwillingness for companies to behave counter-cyclically.”

McGill University management professor Henry Mintzberg argues that the U.S. penchant for axing workers gives Europe an edge in recovering from a recession. “Europe is better prepared. Much better,” Mintzberg says. “The soul of the enterprise is much more intact in Europe. There’s much more respect for the idea of collective effort there.”

Then there are “tragedy of the commons” concerns about widespread layoffs. Each job cut can help push the overall U.S. economy into recession—or deeper into one—as consumer spending and confidence suffer.

U.S. stagnation in turn threatens to tip other parts of the world into economic trouble. Asian companies and economies depend heavily on the spending of U.S. consumers and businesses.

A vicious circle can come into play, as foreign countries’ woes afflict U.S. exporters and further depress the American economy.

To be sure, some companies can’t help but lay off workers in dire circumstances. And economic turmoil requires government leadership in addition to smart actions by businesses. What’s more, there are some enlightened companies that behave “counter-cyclically.”

But are there enough to keep the U.S. economy from sliding further?

A new study from consulting firm Hay Group echoes some of what we learned last year in a major report on China: Premature promotions and related salary hikes can hurt companies.

In its study of the Chinese operations of more than 300 multinational corporations, Hay Group found that when Chinese employees are lured away from their current job, they not only get a promotion but pocket at least 40 percent more in base salary. This compares with averages of 24 percent and 21 percent in Singapore and Hong Kong, respectively.

The report also found that if employees move to a position that is two steps above their current role—a “Champagne” promotion—their base salary jumps by 91 percent. That compares with a 48 percent increase in Singapore.

On average, Hay Group says, Chinese senior managers are five years younger than their Asian counterparts, and the gap widens even more in comparison to the West.

In our report on China’s “Too Fast Track” in March 2007, we found that a rapidly growing economy combined with a dearth of leadership talent added up to many overly quick promotions.

Edward Tai, an executive with Hyatt International Hotels and Resorts, offered us a case in point. He told us that Hyatt often creates elaborate four-year plans to groom up-and-coming execs to head a department in China. But feverish competition for managerial talent means the plans can go awry.

“By the second year, we do not think he is quite ready,” Tai said. “But the other hotel chains, or other places, thinking he is from a Hyatt or a Grand Hyatt, say, ‘He’s ready,’ and give him double the pay and then bring him over.”

Hay Group recommends that companies develop long-term pay-for-performance programs. Multinational firms “must stop the current ‘Pay now, worry later’ compensation programs,” Hay Group’s Sean Joo said in a statement.

We found in our research that some major multinationals were attempting to solve the immature-manager puzzle through a focus on employee development and careful attention to corporate culture.

Have you heard of companies in China handling this issue wisely—or unwisely? I’d like to hear your thoughts. E-mail me at efrauenheim@workforce.com or leave a comment below.

Here’s one explanation why software firm SAP has become one of the world’s leading technology companies over the years: it is a great place to work.

SAP recently was named Germany’s best workplace in the category of companies with more than 5,000 employees by the Great Place to Work Institute Germany. The award marks the fourth consecutive year the Walldorf, Germany-based firm has taken top honors in the contest. SAP, which is one of the biggest sellers of HR software in the world, also was honored as one of the 25 best companies to work for in Japan this year.

If there remain doubters that a positive work climate corresponds to sound business results, consider a recent study from a University of Pennsylvania researcher. Finance professor Alex Edmans found that companies cited as good places to work earn stock returns that are more than double those of the overall market. In particular, companies on Fortune magazine’s annual list of the 100 Best Companies to Work for in America between 1998 and 2005 returned 14 percent per year, compared to 6 percent a year for the overall market.

SAP has its critics, and it is locked in a fierce battle with Oracle in the business software market. But over the long haul, it seems to have learned how to adapt. For example, SAP’s old reputation for arrogance (as in, SAP means Shut Up and Pay) has faded and the firm has become a much humbler organization in tune with today’s business focus on collaboration.

Part of SAP’s software success involves learning from its own experience. In an interview a couple years ago, SAP HR head Claus Heinrich told me his operation acts as a lab for the firm. Heinrich has pushed SAP software product managers to include features ranging from a 360-degree feedback process to online pay stubs.

Another key, it seems, is treating its talent as a top priority. As long as SAP keeps winning prizes as a great place to work, I wouldn’t bet against it remaining in the top echelon of the tech world.

Signs keep pointing to a global economic slowdown. But big companies are poised to do a better job of managing their talent during tough times than they were in recessions past.

The latest gloomy news came Friday from research group the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. The OECD said a measure of leading economic indicators suggests that a slowdown in economic activity lies ahead in the OECD area, which primarily consists of developed nations. China isn’t a member country, but the OECD said data points to a potential downturn there. Continued expansion is ahead in Brazil, India and Russia, the OECD said.

Those bright spots in the forecast aren’t the only good news, though. There’s evidence companies have grown smarter about handling their workforces amid shrinking sales. The mass layoffs of the ’80s and ’90s and of the dot-com bust may have saved money in the short run, but those sweeping cuts probably cost firms a good many excellent workers able to create value in the long term. And companies seem to get that. Recruiting and retaining the right talent has become a priority for executives. What’s more, there’s a growing sense that layoffs can backfire for individual firms and erode the quality and even the mental health of the American workforce.

Ideally, companies constantly are taking stock of their talent and offering volunteer separation packages to workers who don’t fit, says Wayne Cascio, a management professor at the University of Colorado who has studied corporate restructurings. Cascio expects to see some involuntary layoffs ahead, but he thinks companies will make more targeted job cuts based on employee assessments.

“They’re really going to do everything in their power to retain pivotal employees,” he says.

Software systems for employee performance management and succession planning should help. Large firms have been investing in these applications in recent years partly to identify and groom key employees in case of talent shortages. The same software tools should be able to help firms pick out the people to preserve amid any job cuts. For example, the products make it easy to compare employee performance and potential ratings. Decades ago, with annual reviews stored in file cabinets, such talent analysis was harder to do.

“Corporate America should have a lot more data than they had last time they did layoffs,” says Rick Fletcher, president of technology consulting firm HRchitect.

What do you think? Do you expect firms to take a wiser approach to the workforce should times get tougher? E-mail me at efrauenheim@workforce.com.

Look out for leapfrogging Malaysian HR professionals.

That is to say, HR officials in Malaysia appear to be embracing cutting-edge ideas about people management. And thanks to a fast-growing economy and related talent tussles, their expertise in fields like recruiting and succession planning may eclipse the chops of many HR pros in the West.

At least that’s the impression I get looking at the announcement of an HR conference planned for next month in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia. The backdrop to the four-day Malaysia HR Congress 2007 event is an economy that grew more than 5 percent each of the past two years and is forecast to rise at a 6 percent clip this year.

“With Malaysian companies expanding to global markets and entering a knowledge-based competitive marketplace, the pressure is on to identify the right people, develop and motivate, and lastly to retain them,” the organizer of the conference, All Events Group, said in a statement.

Among the topics to be covered at the Kuala Lumpur confab include succession planning, talent management, “HR Shared Services & Outsourcing” and “Strategic Human Capital.”

Malaysian government officials are expected to be there, as are heavy-hitting global companies, including General Electric Malaysia, MasterCard and Oracle.

Earlier this year, I saw firsthand how a crucible-like business climate in China is pushing HR leaders there to learn fast. In some cases, HR programs with roots in China are being used elsewhere on the globe. A similar steep learning curve appears to be under way in nearby Malaysia.

I wouldn’t be surprised if next month’s conference is full of smart people and conversations.