After two years of widespread downsizings in the region, the majority of Midwest companies foresee virtually no more staff cutbacks in the year ahead, according to a survey by Right Management Inc.

Right Management surveyed more than 750 firms across the United States, including 148 in the Midwest. The regional data closely mirror the national findings. In the Midwest survey, 57 percent of the companies surveyed said they expect “practically no staff cutbacks,” and 19 percent indicated fewer staff cutbacks in 2011.

Just 2 percent of employers both nationally and regionally anticipate significant cutbacks or restructurings, said Joanne Stroud, Right Management’s regional leader for talent management for the Midwest region.

“For the past couple of years, organizations have cut costs and laid off staff. Most organizations have very little, if anything, left to cut,” Stroud said in a release. “They’re at a point where they need to make a greater investment in talent to ensure strategic viability. An organization’s people are, in the end, the only differentiator that may be sustained.”