Thread regarding Cisco Systems Inc. layoffs

no way you can actually be this d-mb

Kettle, meet pot. You make a completely false assertion and when you are called out on it, this is the best you can do? You must be beyond stupid.
Access (hint is in the name) is actually a fairly low-margin business so we have to choose our target markets carefully. For instance, this is why we don’t do PON.

@3cho+1g0W9GPL

what what? You’re kidding, right? Everyone knows this. It’s not some secret

I worked in access switching for years. If everybody knows that access switching is where we make all our money, then everybody is wrong.

Post from TheLayoff.com

What? are you kidding? C2E may need improvement, but its not toxic. Nathan IS toxic! I already feel sorry for those people who are going to report to him at his next job.

LOL! He was very great? who are you? you sound like Nate himself! At best, people tolerated him because they had to. Those that tolerated him, knew that he would take his diversity status and move on. Those who didn't tolerate his abusive attitude left. Just look at the massive turnover under his oppressive rule.

I agree that the senior director was indeed horrible at that position, from my prior observations. I can't comment on how he performed in his prior roles, but as senior director, he ran people off. He didn't support Cisco's culture. He demanded people under him to be absolute yes men. If you said yes, it was expected. If you didn't say yes, you were under his watch for being a poor employee.

Something happened. He went from being his normal arrogant self one week, to a meeker version the next. Happy for Cisco to lose him. His replacement has a challenge to get things back on track after the damage done by him.

To add to that discussion, the GES DC Senior Director posted the replacement for the West coast RM job; they went through the interview process, and they had the finalists. I can confirm that internal candidates were asked to stack rank their peers!

He announced on a call that he was making the call on who was going to lead the RM role of the GES DC in the west last week. However no announcement was made. I received a linked in notice this morning, that the RM posting is now available and re-open.

So this manager was making the call on the RM replacement, but didn't. Now interviews are starting all over again.

He has been running the team since the departures, and I can say he is horrible to report to even temporarily. Glad he is moving on. Cisco needs real leadership in that role. Not a box checker who doesn't value people and their contributions.

@4xeu+1g0W9GPL - Not a chance it was woke culture - several of those who left, were from woke California! He IS a poor leader, who only looked out for himself and was happy to step on anyone or anything along the way.

You are either him, or a crony of his who knew him prior to promotion. He was a diverse promotion who was totally unqualified to lead anyone or anything.

@4xeu+1g0W9GPL

I cannot speak to your experiences. I actually report under him until he leaves. When I look at the numbers, it shows a YoY decline in revenue for the 2 years he was there.

Cisco is a great company and always taken care of its own. Blaming someone else for his failures as a leader isn't a valid excuse. It's just an excuse. Excuses are like noses, everyone can have them. Excuses are easy. It's easy to 'blame someone else' for a failure. It takes personal fortitude and a strong mental constitution to accept responsibility.

He was blaming everything and everyone under the sun for his failures. Its COVID, its Woke, its supply chain, its C2E, its blah blah blah. He was a poor leader who had low personal integrity. Cisco DC will be better with him gone. He is a poor leader who demands cronyism, and Cisco will be better without him.

@3akh+1g0W9GPL no way you can actually be this d-mb

@3qdw+1g0W9GPL - You heard wrong. He actually presided over the highest data center sales numbers ever. Enterprise and data center had massive blow out numbers that saved the business units bu-t. The PSS's and RM's that left were due to Erik Knipp's C2E disaster, not being paid because nothing is shipping and the woke culture that chuck is destroying the company with. He was a good director that stood up for the data center team and did right for those under him. I know because I report under him and have for years and he was a great leader. He was driven out by Erik Knipp from upcoming changes.

Post from TheLayoff.com

Maybe highest profits are from access switching, that I cannot say. but in terms of revenue, its all datacenter. Datacenter the bulk of Cisco's top line revenue.

I heard that he presided over the largest decrease in enterprise revenue in Cisco's datacenter history as a leader of leaders as well as leading a massive exodus of first level managers and numerous direct sellers. He then tried to go for multiple different new promotions and after being repeatedly denied he realized his diversity status was all done as he had a bad reputation and he needed to leave for greener pastures and a new company.

@3dpt+1g0W9GPL what what? You’re kidding, right? Everyone knows this. It’s not some secret.

Wow, some spirited debate. When I see some name calling like disgruntled I think, sure. Wouldn't be posting if they weren't disgruntled. When I see more personal name calling like loser I think this sounds like a person with direct involvement. Sounds like the alleged bully manager posting.

wrong we’ve always made the bulk of our money from access switching.

What??

Well I had a few interactions with the senior manager in charge, and I can say in my current tenure at Cisco, most in that role have inflated egos. Was he a diversity promotion? I don't know... but I can say, that for the past 20 years, all were white, only one was female. So him being the first person of color, was a first.

Did he have an inflated ego, like the rest? absolutely. The only real difference I saw in him, is he was a bully. If you agreed with him, you were "ok". If you disagreed with him in any way you were "wrong". So the biggest fault I can say with him vs the others, is he wouldn't ever solicit feedback that was contrary to what he "knew" was correct; and if you weren't with him, you were against him.

@1ipq+1g0W9GPL wrong we’ve always made the bulk of our money from access switching.

sour grape

I don't think the show is over, but there is a lot of writing on the wall. Its well known that in any technology company, your large enterprise customers drive more sales revenue than any other segment.

its also no surprise ,that datacenter sales is the #1 sales revenue generator for Cisco.

So if you take your #1 source of sales dollars, sc--w up the technical people, then
start losing first line datacenter sellers, lose most of your first line managers, and their second line manager and rapidly recover that base? From sales, its easy. Just put more pressure on those who remain to perform... and change their second half sales comp plan... which causes more to quit. Excellent idea ELT!

Then if you cap it off, by having poor TAC support, the loss of the datacenter SE to be there for the customer, and the loss of their sales rep... Wow. Leadership at its finest, right?

Wonder how long before this translates to earnings warnings. They've lost, what 100+ years of enterprise management experience recently, how do you replace that expertise?

Customers need technical engineers who know the accounts, and the products, and the solutions for the business. Ever since Cisco closed all the offices and the office labs, the technical expertise of the SE's have decreased dramatically.

10+ year US-based SE, CCIE here. As one of those SE's that's been affected by office closures, lab removals, etc, I couldn't agree more. To be honest, I've always been passionate about the technology and worked hard to keep my skills updated, top notch, etc. Many of my peer SE's are in the same boat. Once upon a time, earlier in my tenure, I'd have fought to the death in defending Cisco's products, roadmap, features, etc. Ever since the push of C1 and eventually DNA and EA's, its been less SE focus on technology and more focus on licensing/business value. I think there is definitely a morale issue in the sales side, especially with recent comp changes in Q3, and we're just now starting to see the outcome of that. Couple that with several years of missteps in product development and downward trends of TAC support, and it becomes a really difficult problem to fix. I can't say the show is over (yet), but it's getting close.....

I can't speak to how the guy was hired, but I can speak to a way the guy was promoted... I interviewed for that position - after Chad moved on. I was told that the ELT needed to add a diverse candidate to that slot, of which I'm not.

It is good for companies to hire from outside, and to bring different perspectives into play.

What's not good, is tons of training on inclusivity - that enables people to exclude the non-diverse pool. Lots of training to make sure that the diverse people feel included - and I totally agree that that. Cisco is actively changing its culture to embrace diverse, over experience, and to take diverse over non-diverse - but to a fault. Adding diversity for the sake of diversity doesn't benefit anyone... and puts potentially brilliant people into a position to lead where they have no idea how to do so.

He might have known some of his stuff, but his arrogance and his belief that he was "always" right, and he "always" knew what was best, and if you challenged him - you were going to be managed out.

Later, I interviewed for the RM slot that was open on the west coast. I was told by him I wasn't qualified - because I wasn't diverse. (I have had previous management experience at Cisco, and other companies... but I'm definitely not a diverse hire) But I can verify that he did ask me to do a stack rank of my peers on the team... so that part is actually valid- at least in the first level leader role.

the C2E thing sounds great on paper. And I think even in practice it could make sense - if it was C2E "specific specialist" but not C2E your datacenter SE. Customers need technical engineers who know the accounts, and the products, and the solutions for the business. Ever since Cisco closed all the offices and the office labs, the technical expertise of the SE's have decreased dramatically.

You don't sound like a customer though. You sound like a disgruntled employee.

Don't worry, ACI will save it!

What a pile of bs.

We are supposed to believe you are a customer with inside knowledge of a hiring process which hasn’t even begun yet?

Sorry, bruh, not buying it.

You sound like a disgruntled loser.

And the diversity hire comment was a real cheap shot.

He might have checked a diversity box but he was great, he could have been green but he knows his stuff. He was never a fan of pooling and in GES that entire model is largely ignored, yes some play the game but Agile TSA doesn't work in GES and above. He will do great in his next role. Now DC sales has a huge ho-e in GES.

He was not a diversity hire. He was very great since coming over to that role from all calls I've joined with him. Eric Knipp drove him and others out from what I've heard this week. Eric Knipp, his d-mb pooling and his toxic C2E are the problem.