Thread regarding IBM layoffs

Bruh just leave this sh–hole

IBM still has a lot of deadwood that needs to get trimmed but at the same time it desperately needs to hire talent, those two times don't seem to match but they actually do.

IBM has reached a point where the really talented ones either have left or hanging around to close up and retire or are just loyal and wishfulyl hoping for success. At the same time, the weak ones, deadweight, know they can't get past an interview and if they did actually succeed at a good competitive company; therefore, the deadweight stays put. Then add in that IBM is no longer one of the places that the top talent are trying to get into like it was way in the past.

The results is that we are people short, talent limited and many lacking the desire because they don't feel how what they do fit into IBM's plan. Perfect world get rid of all the deadweight and hire in talented focused engineers/programmers.

I can attest to this...they really dont give a c-ap about raising salaries...in my time over here i used to put tremendous amount of time caring about my team and the work i did..in the end all i got was a thankyou and keep working hard. I kept persevering but in the end realized there is no point in busting yourself up for an employer that pays peanuts for tech skills that are greatly valued by other tech companies. I left for another company that increased my total compensation by more than 60%. So you can imagine how c-ap ibm salaries are..only a few little hand picked people get the rewards...plus consider this IBM has constantly generated less revenue and with mass budget cuts and layoffs you dont want to risk being the next victim..get out now

In final stages of interviewing at a FAANG and if I get an offer I am so gone.

Everyone is waiting for the big cuts and restructure. Any day now. Until then, it's like IBM is standing still.

I am working no more than 20 hours a week. My manager knows it and he doesnt give a sh– either. Everyone seems to be just waiting for something

"@ltq+19kSip8h if you have actually worked at ibm, you'd know that it doesn't matter how hard you work here. Even if you achieve all your goals it doesn't matter because they'll always give some reason to not give you anymore money. But can be laid off for any reason when business performs badly

Bad news travels faster at ibm because there's only bad news."

Sorry for the late response. Yes, worked at IBM for 13+ years. Multiple 100%/ Golden Circle. They gave me stock options, they gave me a retention bonus, they promoted me, they offered me a raise to stay (wasn't worth it) but I still left for greener pastures because I wasn't happy. Everyone has options. And every other company has layoffs when the business performs badly. If you are so unhappy, take control of your own destiny and get the hell out - you only live life once, so you may as well enjoy it. For those that are happy, carry on IBMing. Simple eh?

@1dqw+19kSip8h - Ever stood up and tried to fight cargo cults like "Agile" and "A New Way of Working" and Slack, etc... that didn't make anything better and may have made it worse?

LOL!

let me ask a positive question:

How do i switch teams?

It seems that every manager i contact through internal GOM asks me to "apply" for the job instead of talking to me and allowing me to talk to their team.

I take "apply online" as a no, so can anyone suggest any alternatives to switch teams?

Much appreciated

I have gotten raises/tiny bonuses most years and even the stock bonus last year but still there is really nothing much at IBM for me. I am at an age where I just need to hang in there for a few more years, hoping I get offered an early retirement in a few years. I have watched as peers are appointed to positions with no open competition for anyone else to apply for positions that open up. Also seen how folks that are not certified move into better roles with greater compensation while the person with the certification doesn't get promoted. I have watched executives with a bachelor's degree that is not even in a technology, science, or business area get put in positions that make you scratch your head and wonder how that ever could happen and folks with advanced degrees report to them. Does anyone actually put in a full day's work at IBM anymore? Does anyone really care? We are looking at a company with over a decade of RAs, I used to worry about it, but now I think it would be a relief to be RA'd as it would give me the incentive to do what I should be doing anyway and that is go out and get a job somewhere else that I would feel motivated to do. We all get comfortable and complacent and keep on showing up for work each day, rinse and repeat, day in and day out. Currently I am watching IBM lose the AI race that we once had a massive lead on over other major competitors, and we are losing cloud race as well, it doesn't matter how many times you say "hybrid" it doesn't seem to be translating into sales for IBM, at least not enough to close the widening gap between IBM and the other major cloud competitors. I am at a crossroads, do I stick it out waiting for an early retirement offer, wait to be RA'd as my chances for that increase every year I get older, see what opportunities there are with NewCo, apply for a position with another company? Time will tell. So am I motivated to work at IBM? HE_L NO!

Switch teams if you work for a manager who will not reward you for your hard work. Especially if you work for a manager who got their job via nepotism.
Good thing new co is breaking away from the darkness.

Am I frustrated?
Yes.

Am I motivated?
Yes.

But there's so much sh*t going on, why am I motivated?
Because when I entered the IT business, I would have been laid off if we'd live in the best of all possible worlds.

If you don't like the system, challenge it, professionally!
If you can, stand up, and communicate your concerns in a professional, still a$$kicking way.
Discuss with peers, stand up together - to improve IBM, to improve the culture.

I attended so many meetings where everyone were absolutely quiet, when I k n e w there were so much to be said by so many.

I see many problems, solvable problems, and my DNA tells me to participate in solving them.

That's how I find motivation within IBM.
For now.

@1xph+19kSip8h bingo!!

More i stay at ibm, more i feel like: am i working at Mcd?

The pay structure is so reversed it is laughable. For example new clg grads are paid more than developers with 3+ yrs of exp at ibm because of going rate at the time. Where's the motivation to work/stay at ibm.

They'll quote some ibm pay matrix when u ask for a raise which is completely bs as well. The whole study is pure bs

'...OR your family member is a high ranking exec at ibm."

Almost: Good friends with an SVP. I guess i just have it made. Sûcks for you guys.

I honestly don't work as hard as I used to. I remember Ginni standing up at an event here once and proclaiming "IBM is a meritocracy right everyone? We reward people who work hard". Next year I got a PBC 1 rating, that came with a 0% increase and my manager telling me she only had a very small pot to allocate, so she gave it to those who were the lowest paid. At the very moment my mindset changed. I still perform well, but at 5pm I turn off my laptop and don't turn it back on until 9am the next day. Since inflation in my country is 10-15% annually, I am literally getting poorer and poorer every year. I'm sorry IBM, if you want performance, reward people for performing.

@jwy+19kSip8h let me guess you think it's because of your hardwork but in reality you take credit for others work and because managers don't question you anymore you can put in whatever as your checkpoints to get a raise.

OR your family member is a high ranking exec at ibm.

There are VERY VERY FEW who actually deserve those stsm and de promos. It's all politics at ibm and who you know

"Redhat is just waiting its time to cut lose from the mothership. "

Yeah, that will be sometimes in 2022... by 2024, IBM will be no more (sold to pieces).

Trying to get off this sinking ship now. It's more backstabbing than ever before. Mangers and Leadership don't give a sh!t. They're collecting the most easiest paycheck ever and making bank.

Redhat is just waiting its time to cut lose from the mothership.

@ula+19kSip8h exactly, the chosen one gets everything at ibm. In every team or department there's only one such person. For rest everyone, it doesn't matter how hard we work or ho much we get done - no pay increases, no gdp, forget about stocks and obviously there's fear of layoffs every few months.

I have had solid performance for last xx years as well based on ratings but it just doesn't seem to matter at all!

Job market is very competitive right now, I will jump on first opportunity.

@jwy+19kSip8h please don’t dismiss the typical employee experience at IBM. Just because you are lucky you are your manager’s favorite and they get you the pay raises and bonuses that 99.999% of employees will never EVER unlock no matter what we achieve. I’ve transferred managers every other year trying to find a manager who cares but I’m convinced they don’t exist in my BU so I’ve given up.

"...if you have actually worked at ibm, you'd know that it doesn't matter how hard you work here. Even if you achieve all your goals it doesn't matter because they'll always give some reason to not give you anymore money..."

This is BS.
FWIW, I enjoy working at IBM. Been here 18 years and crushing it. Raise and bonus almost every year (including GDP stock last year). On a good 4-man patent team & have 34 patents (that's $). It's all about what you do and your manager(s) and how you work it.

You only hear bad news because it's only the unhappy ones that whine and complain and post about it.

@eoq+19kSip8h do you think there's turning around for ibm from here? Care to explain?

Also have your salary increased with experience at ibm?

Are you a manager or an exec?

Answer these questions first

Bro, then quit, please. IBM won't be able to turn anything around with terd like you working there. Make way for someone who cares.

"they'll always give some reason to not give you anymore money. But can be laid off for any reason when business performs badly "

Business does not have to perform badly for you to be laid off.
This is what you get when you're an at will employee without a contract.
Union > at will schnook

@ltq+19kSip8h if you have actually worked at ibm, you'd know that it doesn't matter how hard you work here. Even if you achieve all your goals it doesn't matter because they'll always give some reason to not give you anymore money. But can be laid off for any reason when business performs badly

Bad news travels faster at ibm because there's only bad news.

Devils advocate: Bad news travels faster than good news, and no doubt there is a lot of bad news. However to think that everyone is unhappy at IBM is a stretch. In any company, there is going to be a mix of opinions. Is it all doom and gloom? I was happy at IBM for a number of years, whereas others around me weren't so happy. When I did eventually become disillusioned, I quit and went to work somewhere where I was (and still am) happy. I suggest the unhappy currently at IBM do something similar. If happy, then carry on doing what you're doing - if IBM allows.

Haven’t worked a full 40 hour week in over a year and don’t intend on doing so unless we are getting meaningful raises and GDP again. Most of my peers feel the same. We’re a very senior technical team within GBS that some would know by name.

It’ s a waste to work at IBM... though I don’t want to leave without severance... so, I enjoy doing nothing for now and waiting for the 1:1 with the manager!

Would anyone bend the knee and work for one of those woke companies?

This reminds me of ending of Soviet Union: by then everybody knew the jig was up but continued pretending and going through the motions. The old joke: we pretend to work while they pretend to pay us.

Of course not. No one likes working for IBM (unless you get executive pay). Instead, focus on your life and do just enough to get by. Work the politics and manage up to play promotion game. Most important, always be looking for an outside job and take off ASAP.

IBM is a dead company and then factor in the worst executives to ever manage a company for the last 15 years. Their products are also becoming more irrelevant every year. They cook the books to make them look like they are actually worth something. You need to get out now and learn new skills. IBM IS DEAD