Thread regarding Chevron Corp. layoffs

I've had more supervisors than I can count during my time at Chevron. Only a couple are what I would consider good leaders, thankfully one of them is my current sup. He'll probably be moved on to another position soon and replaced with a diversity quota airhead.

When management decided to drop stage gate for this agile process, I knew it was time to go. I took the EOI and found better pastures.

Ok, so it’s another war of attrition on MBAs. Yawn

Obviously special people rants here that have no actual relevance. Rant on, and on and on… how’s that working out for you?

MBA’s destroyed US manufacturing. Look at the two successful developed countries which have retained a high tech manufacturing base: Germany and Japan. Both countries with non-MBA cultures.

“ They already pay good money to people who can identify opportunities, determine the risks and make a judgement on direction”

Sounds like General Electric

2hvv+1eISrLd8: very basic MBA view of the world only works for cost basis get in or get out decisions. Does not add much the real world job of getting in and making it work to add real value.

They don’t want to know whether employees think the company is going in the right direction. They already pay good money to people who can identify opportunities, determine the risks and make a judgement on direction. Sometimes they sit on the board and that’s why they don’t always come from the industry the company is in. Their value is understanding business.

The problem with the employee surveys is most folks quite like their direct reports, but the real f$$&-ups are higher in the chain of command. When Sr. management rolls out yet another stupid MBA idea (“wouldn’t it be super if we were agile like tech companies”), I am generally not mad at my direct report, as I know he is just as d-mbfounded as I. There needs to be more questions on the survey like “do you think Chevron is heading in the right direction” to … make things simpler, help me focus on getting the job done, and find some damn oil”. How about has DELFI made your work easier, has agile improved your focus on the prize, or is your career path within Chevron clearer than last year? Problem with the most recent transformation is we were promised simpler and instead the $hit show got piled twice as deep and three times as wide as before.

the only thing visible about their thinking is its no longer there. It’s more like a PR show for the public and investors

There’s one good way to turn the tables on management and if you don’t know how by now you’ll never know.

Seems to be a lot of disgruntlement about executive performance. The question is: what are you going to do about it except whine. Executives can be removed but you need to know how to do it in a system that favours majority vote. As a minority shareholder, you can also exert influence on company policy but again you need to know what you’re doing. A large corporation can crush you with expertise, politics and legal fees but if that stuff between your ears is grey and not brown then what’s stopping you or is it the fear of being smoked.

You know our executive management is lying when their mouth is moving. Its all political BS in every communication they have to us. We are held accountable for things we cannot control but they are never held accountable for anything like the terrible transformation that has damaged the company.

C suite used oil money to build an ivory tower. they are no longer in touch with employees but more so with shareholders

Chevron makes money in spite of itself, just by the luck of owning a lot of legacy oil and gas assets built by true visionaries and leaders decades ago (TCO, Permian, Australia, Africa, all the refineries) and slowly employing the same techniques as industry or whatever contractors and consultants suggest. Management looks furiously for any metric, no matter how obscure, that shows us favorably whole burying those in which we lag. We will slowly, painfully disappear along with an increasingly irrelevant industry. Like climate change, we will have more violent swings in the weather internally, as we near the precipice and management tries every option in desperation.

Sadly management is not competent and fair at Chevron. They are never held accountable for the value they create. They are paid royally to just lay people off to raise the dividend instead of actually try to pull other levers. Their job should be to try to do well for all their stakeholders like prior to Reagan's administration. Instead they only care about shareholders. The management at Chevron is broken.

The Chevron way is about values, which haven’t changed. What has changed is the over emphasis on low consequence incidents. Thank God for stopping the BBS observations, we needed to focus on real risks, hoping the ergo break software is next to go. Chevron is holding people accountable for value added from each initiative. There are fewer slogans, more focus on actions that deliver tangible results, and empowering the frontline.
I don’t have any love for management, they’re doing their job, as I do mine. We need management to be competent, fair, and trusting. Employees are not children.

There really is no Chevron Way any more: We are now Microsoft Petroleum. I was never very fond of Microsoft in general, as I think their management and business strategy has long been toxic, so it is double sad to see us try to follow that path. With a bit of work we should now be able to displace Exxon as most hated a$$ho-e corporation.

Executives are completely out of touch. Their compensation is extraordinarily out of proportion. They aren’t held accountable for their terrible business decisions. It’s obnoxious to look up and see their hypocrisy and opulence. JG’s “victim mindset” encapsulates how the execs see us.
Yes, I trust my supervisor. But I have zero faith that anyone in the c-suite is looking out for the best interest of Chevron or its employees. MW would sacrifice us all at the altar of the dividend to appease the almighty analysts.

Direct supervisors on the lower levels are liked but executive management not so much. No trust anymore for them.

Well they should have a duty to care about their employees its another reason the US is falling apart and has so much anger. The people at the top don't care about the average joes. If we don't want to become a thrid world country it's time for that to change.

Executives do not have a duty of care to their employees but there are some exceptions. That is based on English Law (US law is based on English Law). Directors’ conduct is regulated by statute so they can’t just do as they please.

well... based on the chevron employee surveys, the supervisor leadership scores are always among the highest. so at least at the employee to supervisor level, it's all good. executives have direct reports too. there's just some kind of a gap between the individual contributors and those who are 5-10 PSGs away. stop rating your supervisors highly if you don't really think so. and yes, these surveys are anonymous, particularly if you don't leave any comments that can be interpreted and reveal your identity. unless your supervisor has 20+ employees, your comments won't even be read.

Executive management is completely out of touch with their employees. They just don't care about them at all. The massive layoffs during a pandemic and the awful mess afterwards are proof of that. If the poor raises are true it adds gas to the flames. We need leadership thats not laser focused on the dividend and has a small bit of care for employees. MW is a layoff addict who will pull that lever constantly to raise the dividend.