Attrition is intensifying for multiple reasons and while those in charge are happy to see people walk away without having to pay them severance, they're missing the big picture. There's a major difference between the usual attrition and losing the majority of your top talent at once. One is expected and easily mitigated, the other can sc--w us over for years to come. It's not hard to see that lately, we've been seeing more of the latter.
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I am simply shocked by people who are still saying the top talents are staying while I counted that I have seen 8 friends who left in the past 2 months are all in Outstanding to Excellent categories. Maybe it all depends on the group, though.
G people! Everybody travels business class internationally for business trips and has limo service! Hate to break your bubble!
The global travel in business class with car service on the ground was great. The 401k match was divine, the pension was fantastic. All GONE. The only thing left in Houston is a long a-s commute to an unstable company that wants to be the best ‘O&G’ company rather than to lead the evolution of energy. That’s why people are leaving…
Management is only concerned that with the attrition - 10% total, 15% on the really working population, after layoffs - work now is not being done. Of course sometimes “work” means useless powerpoints.
If you look at the attrition from management perspective, we are NOT losing top talent. Top talent has been already identified, they have been moved in supervisor and management positions as well as senior technical/ advisor positions. These people are NOT leaving. I do not know anybody that has. So, all is good. We are not losing top talent. Sure, we have lost a few people with potential but these have been here for only a few years and the plan was always to move technical work overseas.
All is good folks.
What you see in LinkedIn has no relation with reality. Of the 10 or so people that I know they left on their own, no one on ounces it in Linked In. In my greater organization we had 10% attrition in the US, post layoff
It's the vast opportunities outside of XOM that are so tempting. In my case, I have been interviewing and close to getting at least 3 offers, hopefully next week. I did not know that my skills are so much in demand outside and I am so excited of the future.
At ExxonMobil, the criteria for moving into non-technical roles is simple:
have a complete lack of knowledge/practical intelligence and an abundance of greed for self.
Spot on! Most managers failed in engineering or their respect craft. This has been my observation. If they couldn’t be successful in their discipline they sure as heck can’t make good management decisions. Micro manage, steal employees ideas, misrepresent the truth and present others ideas as their own?
I bet they are worried.
Once they get canned from Exxonmobil they will never be able to hide the sad reality that they are worthless and incompetent.
I agree that there is clearly a difference between normal attrition and what is going on now. With that said, does anyone actually have numbers on what the attrition is in different parts of the organization? Middle management in my part of the company seems to be concerned, but per usual they are holding meetings and can’t figure out why people want to leave
Management is not smart or operations savvy enough to appreciate or drive accountability for any issues that may be caused by high attrition. Those who understand the business are leaving. How is a manager supposed to know that a bad decision that cost millions was totally avoidable?
Correct. Attrition by itself is not as big of an issue as the quality/type of people that have been leaving this company. At the current rate, if all good people are gone, we are left with Darren Woods and people who are like him. Imagine working in that stu-pid environment.
Request for managers reading this post :
Open and candid communication
Trust
Do what you tell
Pleas show us the attrition data (not here) : we are a data driven company.
FYI : there is an easy way for each of us to calculate it.
20%+ attrition at GBCs
Long term career prospects no longer exist …anywhere. Houston will continue to shrink (salaries are magnitudes higher than any other location, except Canada).
GBCs are at high risk of outsourcing.
Dallas is in control and not aligned with Houston leadership. Trust issues?
New CFO recruitment, much needed, is a clear indicator that Darren does not trust his staff. He may well be right, but that does change the career value proposition- listen to Kathy’s interview. She’s clearly surprised we even have long term careers!
It’s a new world.
OP is right, this is not regular attrition, just as what EM does with the oversized, extended PIP-offs is not regular downturn downsizing. The best people are figuring out that the “deals” that kept employees in place (reasonable job stability, a real shot at full retirement) are gone now. Not only that the best are leaving now, some to restart careers in brand new fields, but when/if the job market improves we’ll see a mass exodus that will dwarf current attrition.
Couple that with a chronically underperforming company, a management who is structurally incapable of any significant changes, and an industry that’s going through an existential crisis and you can figure out where we’re heading.
Like all the managers like to say - now we have to do more with less
And we need to be competitive vs our competitions...
Every single day - resignations on Linked In. Many are regretted. Imagine how many others don’t take the time to share on linked in. No signs of slowing down as those who have moved on post success and happiness.
But why are people leaving, if all the recent Linked In posts by current employees say how glamorous and out of the world experience it is working at ExxonMobil? Some are saying how lucky they are having 40 year career, opportunity to travel worldwide on business class, visit terminals in other country, etc. Then why would one leave? I guess mgmt. must be confused and still cant figure it out ha. No one is saying anything about sourcing to MPSs nor sharing what to come in future.
Unethical sleaze-bags may not realize it but there are still intelligent people who do not want to work with unethical sleaze-bags. They were exposed and wonder why people want to jump ship.
Well, it's reaching the late rounds.
What would you expect from the best and brightest?
Maybe they mu-f a social interaction, but they can read a bus schedule.
It will settle down soon.
All good.
I agree that there is clearly a difference between normal attrition and what is going on now. With that said, does anyone actually have numbers on what the attrition is in different parts of the organization? Middle management in my part of the company seems to be concerned, but per usual they are holding meetings and can’t figure out why people want to leave