While working at Exxon have you always bought in to the idea that you are/were working for one of the best and largest companies in the world? Every EM employee I have known seems to think they are the best at what they do on the planet and have a chip on their shoulder.
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Put it in a Wine context.
Long time adage: With wine - you get what you pay for.
And ExxonMobil has had that in mind over time.
Hire the best and pay them well.
Then store them in a cat-cracker and let them age.
Finest vinegar ever.
I joined the company as an experienced hire. The people we hire are fine and not much different than other companies, although screening for common sense does not to seem be a requirement.
Our culture and lack of outside perspective is our Achilles Heel. This stops people from considering if there is a better way.
Over time people fit their behavior to the organizations reward system.
Over hiring and never getting rid of employees (managers) who did not make the cut has put us in this position. We have clearly forgotten we run a low margin business with no future upside.
The company will be smaller, leaning and more effective or we will fail.
Not betting my retirement on a successful TA. The 1980s crisis went on for 5+ years. Plan on a rough ride.
@ykh As a contractor, I was excited for the opp but up for the challenge of trying to get hired as an employee. Regardless of my contributions and attaboys, I soon realized that the policies governing the hire of a contractor to employee makes it nearly unattainable. Even with 15 years of practical, real world experience but no degree would be "sub-par" to a college grad.
That realization didn't affect my work ethic, as far as feedback was concerned. But I understood that by staying, I'm allowing myself with skills, experience, and potential be undermined and will be considered a third-class citizen.
@jobo+17
If we had hired and promoted the most qualified, than we would already have had diversity evenly represented in our population and leadership-profile. Not ‘woke’....just pointing out the obvious.
When I worked at XOM, I encountered lots of smart people (yes even in management which apparently this board thinks every single manager promotion was undeserved and they are the true cog that makes the whole machine run). When I left XOM and switched industries, I encounter lots of smart people. There are a lot of smart people (and not smart people) at all big companies, there are perceived undeserved promotions at all companies. If you let it affect you, you're going to struggle everywhere.
In the 80s we had many Phds that were in the top 5 in their field in the world...these days not in the top of anything..
Imperial Oil, majority owned by Exxon, was Canada's largest and most reputed fully integrated O&G companies. It truly was a matter of pride to mention amongst friends, neighbors and family members that you worked for ESSO, the brand associated with the approx. 2300 gas station chain across the country. Prime real estate and the associated retail business was divested a few years ago to various groups like 7 eleven etc. - with the sale proceeds ending up with EM, in all likelihood to fund the annual dividends or ongoing fixes to the disastrous Kearl project.
Imperial today is a faint shadow of its former self. The company's market capitalization has plummeting by over 50%- a similar situation to that of Exxon.
The company is overstaffed by incompetent hires, engineers and accountants, whose main specialization is Exel and PowerPoint with zero commercial or financial experience. These groups are mostly engaged in corporate plan or other non-value added activity for a large part of the year. Employee morale is extremely low, the company appears hollowed out. These bodies/non-value added activities needs to be eliminated if the company intends to became a "for profit" organization from it's current status of "not for profit" entity.
@jbo+17q0ooeO So true! Every time I see a WIN sharing.. a part of me died.. knowing no one bothers about the content of what they did at home.. but it’s important for their rankers to know them.. one of them told me so!
We ceased basing hiring solely on the best and the brightest when the company overreacted to outside influences, got woke, and decided hiring the right mix of colors and genders was more important than basing the hire on most qualified. Promotions are now following suit.
Heck, no. But I’m cynical and told people that we don’t hire the best of the best; we hire the best of those who apply.
Yup. Someone posted a while back about EM being cultish. It is. Once you escape to the outside you can see it but while still inside it’s like being brainwashed.
Considering Exxon was ranked number 2 on the US Fortune 500 list and ranked something like number 8 on the global Fortune 500 list... yeah... I bought into the idea that worked for one of the biggest companies in the world. I don’t know about “best”, but the salary was high and we were one of 16 US companies remaining still with an active pension program (that we didn’t have to contribute to). I certainly don’t think I’m the best at what I do, but I did think the company was one of the best at what it did (make money and produce/refine fossil fuels).