Thread regarding Chevron Corp. layoffs

My junior supervisor from Day One has gone around frequently promoting his presumed abilities to get attention. But he has not gone around promoting anyone’s position or salary yet. I’m still waiting.

I started with the company at 21 PSG (experienced hire), and after 16 years, I am 24. Along the way, I had supervisors who didn't care to help promote me and only cared about their achievements.

As others have said, it is who you know in your network instead of what you know. Build your network and keep in touch with them. If you have the right personality and can get along with people, you should be able to move up.

What's a "frenquency? Is this another Chevron made-up term?

If these numbers being quoted are what you guys think are the PSG ranges no wonder you all are camping out in the layoffs boards.

I was at a PSG for almost 15 years. 2000 - 2016. Mostly due to lack of career ladder positions, management support and being much younger at the time and unaware of what was happening. However, I've always been a strong performer. Once I was transferred into a BU with a career ladder opportunity, leadership was still a little stagnant on promoting to the next grade UNTIL a new manager came in and reclassified the PSG to a higher grade. Within the following 4 years, I was promoted 3 times. What I have learned over the years is, if you aren't recruited, apart of a program or not a favorite of someone, you will have to fight for your promotions depending on the management in place.

I’m a PSG25. Been in this pay grade for 13 years and counting. Don’t be too surprised to read this because there’s less room at the top pay levels, and besides that, I really do not want or will post for a PSG26 job or higher. I’m quite happy doing what I do for the excellent pay I receive. I’m comfortable knowing the job I do at Chevron is very secure and not going away. It’s a federally required post and nobody else here can handle the job the same way I’ve been doing. Nope, I’m very content being in my a 25 pay grade. Just another 8 or 10 years more and I’ll be glad to pass the baton.

All this talk about being stagnant at PSG25. Many would be thrilled to reach that. An average PSG 25 is making a darn good living in US, even if just all VCs & no LTIP.

An "average year" for an "average PSG 25" is like $240k + $60k CIP.

Umm, we haven’t had any 1s or 2s for a while now. What are we talking about? Old history?

@3pbk, unfortunately yours is not a unique story. People switch jobs/BUs, and get caught in a layoff round before they have a chance to establish a new network, regardless of their competency. We all know in the past there were two types of expats: 1) those looking to broaden their career +/- getting the premium, and 2) those who were either high-pots needing 'training', or BU high-pot failures the BUs were more than happy to ship off somewhere else. Unfortunately the 2's have always been 'protected' on their return, either getting a managerial promotion (if good), or getting a CTC or other peripheral BU position (if bad). The key is that Chevron favoritism perpetuates incompetence.

@4gco, @3frq, the only people who consistently get 1's are the high-pots, and that's because of their favored status, not their performance. Changing jobs that frequently (especially if you've been with the company <20 years) gives away that you are being groomed for management, not for technical accomplishment. Even Chevron HR training tells you that if you switch jobs you cannot expect to receive consistently high rankings.

Thanks @ 3frq. I take your comments in the right spirit …

… maybe it is not the whole story but it is definitely part of the story

I have never seen a single person thats been getting almost all 1s in his years with cvx. seen some got many 2+ and a couple 1s though. are you in a BU or function?

Performance and expectation management is what company says regarding promotion, however it applies to the employees' perspective too. If company recognition does not meet your own expectation, I recommend to take action as PSG directly affects your take home pay whether or not you are in an assignment. So you need to take a hard look at where you are and think through if you are okay with stagnation. Majority don't seek other opportunities outside of cvx, due to career inertia and uncertainty. There is nothing wrong with that, it is a good company that pays well. However if you believe you will be sad and bitter doing so, you need to be brave and look for other opportunities.

@3pbk. Its unfortunate this happened to you. Being this forum anonymous, ill take the opportunity to provide some feedback that probbaly noone has provided when you share your rationalization on what happened. It may be harsh, but could be beneficial too.

• I have changed change jobs within Chevron 5 times; only once received a 2+, the rest I was rated 1. There is not such a thing as what you mention that you get a 2 by default. You received a 2, that is a different story, and its ok.
• its not about the results you have produced in the new job of 8 months. You should have a network of former bosses so and leaders in your org that have seen your work. If you had a strong track record of delivering results, your organization would know and not let you go.

Again, hard thruth but may be good for you to not blame system or circumstances and be more accountable.

A cautionary tale regarding expats:

I repatriated in 2019, I barely had 8-9 months in my new job when COVID hit. I did not have much time to make relationships or a mark in my new US based job and got laid off in 2020.

My grades were never below a 2. Of course in the year you are between jobs they give you a 2 by default.

In previous years the company made an effort to find places for returning expats but all that went down the drain in 2020. I know atleast 3 more people who had a similar experience to me.

I know here that a big crowd from TCO will be repatriating in 23-24 …

@2sxp, about ten years ago when MK (many may not recognize those initials) ran ETC (now CTC), they were losing experienced people fast and furious. MK worked out a scheme to get the more valuable ones (in his opinion) into PSG26 sort of as a 'retention plan'. The vast majority of those people (Boomers) were booted out in the 2020 purge. Now, a much younger CTC probably only has a handful of 'experts' who are > PSG 25. Many of those at lower grades got that 'double promotion' around 2018, what they should now be realizing is that may have been their last promotion.

@2uyn that's easy for you to say, right now there's not too many places hiring. Or I am just an undesirable chevroid, lol

Where you stall in promotion obviously depends on your role. Most petrotechs rise to 25 before reaching 15-20 years (or they get laid off) and most rise no higher. I am sure those in other roles hit the ceiling at lower grades. When you hit your plateau grade most need to move to management to rise further, but that is a risk because when your technical skills atrophy in middle management you risk having no where to go if laid off during a downturn.

The standard is every three years. If they make you wait, better to look for work elsewhere.

When I first started and for the first 8 years I was promoted very frenquently. Since then the promotions have been no where near as frenquent.

I keep reading folks here taking about getting stalled at PSG 25. Some of us are stuck in 20/21/22/23 for five to ten years or more!

Expectations might be growing out of line for some younger employees: I know some field managers who are only 25 and a couple of GMs who are 27-28. Exactly how much value do you think you add as an individual contributor: No matter what your specific area and level of technical expertise?

Yes petro- tech’s hit a ceiling at 25, except for tech experts in CTC or other roles viewed to be company critical. Many go-getter tech folks do leave for smaller companies when they hit 25, where they can add more direct value (albeit with potentially more risk). Expat assignments were previously also an option to juice retirement saving, with hardship location bonuses in some cases over 50% and lots of other add ons (housing and travel home assistance), but those positions are becoming much less abundant over the last decade. Unconventional experience is currently the ticket for advancing with a pay jump to small companies, but I am not convinced that will last much longer. Happy that I retired, as I no longer have a clear idea as to how to get ahead in this industry. I wish everyone well!

@agy, very accurate portrayal. Regardless of what age you reach it, ordinary (not high-pot) tech track people stagnate at PSG 25 (i.e., before all the big benefits kick in), it's Chevron's way of telling you they appreciate your experience and skills, but you're starting to get expensive. It's wryly humorous to hear of these younger employees bragging about their frequent promotions, not realizing they're about to hit the PSG wall, and then it's just spreadsheets and powerpoints the rest of your career if you stay at Chevron. The 'smart' Chevron employees work up to PSG 24 or 25, gather in all the experience, then jump ship to another company where their well-honed experience is valued and their career upside is still tangible.

You can double or triple your take home pay as an expat. It is much easier than getting promoted.

I’ve never seen a system more intentionally designed to prevent promotion. For those of you without much external experience, this many barriers and hoops to promotion doesn’t exist outside these walls. We have the most blatant caste system I’ve ever seen - it’s clear this system is designed to sky rocket the chosen class.

@ 1uhz: expat roles are becoming rare compared to years past, and more often reserved for HPo management or very skilled technical roles (with, in many countries, a hard age cap). These days there are more mid-level nationals trained in western universities to fill basic bread and butter petrotech roles, so expats are not needed (or even if “needed” are not selected).

I am 25 now, started at 22. From 22-24 promotios every 3 years, to 25 it took around 5. Inexpect another 5 before getting a 26. Also, keep in mind that everybody has a different ceiling. Its not based ln time only. I know I wont be a psg 28 even if i had 20 years left

Most people get to a level where they're very technically competent, and struggle to get into management for a variety of reasons. That is when they either move into an expat role and get paid, or find a job outside CVX.

I know some people moved to 26 from 24 in 4 years. of course, there was a double promotion at 23, without staying on 24 for a single day. truely happy for people's skills that won the promotions.

Several trusted people I know and I have filled out and submitted the 'promotion form' year after year and have been given dozens of conflicting reasons for being turned down. Seven years and counting trying to move from a 21 to a 22. Very demoralizing. Others have gone 10 years or more.

The room where the decisions are made is a 'black box,' and there is no transparency as to even if the promotion was, in fact submitted.

Highly variable. When I started 30 plus years ago petrotech’s (geology & geophys) started at 21 with a masters or 22 with a PhD. Typically you would raise one grade when you graduated from “horizons” and then about every five years after that until you hit 25, which was your terminal grade unless you switched to the management track. These days there is grade inflation and a few folks raise to 26, 27 or very very rarely 28 on a straight technical track, and the advancement rate is also more variable. Management tracts have always been different, with some chosen early for a fast track and the rest frozen climbing slowly up through middle management positions maxing out in the 26-28 range. The advantage of tech track folks is more job security, with real skills that transfer elsewhere even if you are laid off during some downturn. Middle management folks not so much. The faster rising tech folks generally hop companies a few times, so there is also that.