When a company operates with a skeleton staff, it is functioning with only the bare minimum number of employees. Synonyms for this term include "short-handed," "understaffed," "minimal staff," "limited personnel," or "lean crew." These phrases imply that the workforce might not be sufficient to complete all necessary tasks and responsibilities, and often leads to increased workloads and pressure on existing workers. Other synonyms could include "sparse staff," "meager crew," "minimum manpower," "handful of employees," or "limited workforce." All of these terms share the same idea of a workforce operating under an almost bare-bones structure that requires absolute efficiency and high productivity to accomplish tasks and maintain operation.