Thread regarding Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) layoffs

Nicely stated.. I saw the same thing while working for HPE. We had a new hire (who met three of the coveted hiring criteria) who did nothing for two years before they were WFR'd for being totally incompetent. It's not their fault, they've all had their values and opinions shaped by Zuckerberg's FB and other social network apps and fake news. I'm sure that person received plenty of likes.

Disclaimer- Former HPE employee left of my own accord in 2020!

I was an overlay who had to attend multiple recurring leadership meetings with various different district/BU teams in North America.

For one reason or another, most BU leaders will have open positions, and will ask that if you knew anyone looking for work, you share their information. The final comment was always, “But we’re not looking for any more fifty year old white guys, we need more millennials to leverage their way of thinking!”

TLDR - Rant slightly related to topic!

Yes, because hiring people who spend 18 hours per day with a smartphone glued to their hand, two while driving, have no idea what’s going on in the same room ten feet away from them, but have the ability to direct you via whatever corporate messaging platform you’re being forced to use, to the best place for a photo opportunity 6,000 miles away while you’re on vacation, is of great value.

I’m a father of four millennials, I could and should write at least one book about these f*s and their friends, the unbelievable statements they make, and the stunts they pull. Sometimes I honestly question if its their first day on the planet.

I would have been kicked up and down the street by my parents (rightly so) , for much less. Anyway - back to the topic!

One mid-level manager, an Indian dude who has been a US citizen for many years, openly stated the below at an in-person leadership meeting in Houston, pre-covid of course:

“You need to stop hiring people that look like you, and start hiring people that look like me”! Welcome to corporate America!

The HR lady present in the room congratulated him on his insightful point of view. Yes I used dude/lady/him in written English…..and now people everywhere are burning their dictionaries.

He has subsequently been promoted and runs a core BU, badly, but licks the right peoples a**holes, so will continue to rise through the ranks, while constantly reminding his underlings that they are working for the best company in the industry, that there’s never been a better time work there, and to remember to complete the “anonymous” best place to work survey. Great news, the deadline has just been extended!

I have had the pleasure of working in a truly great place, and I didn’t need my leadership team to tell me so, I could work it out for myself!!

Any semi-intelligent person knows that the more they have to feed you the “Great place to work” line, the further away from reality it is.

This kind of BS is unfortunately pervasive throughout the tech industry, and I assume the US in general, and is undoubtedly contributing to the downfall of many a company.

How about cutting out this s**t, hiring the best candidate for the job, and rewarding them well, with money and benefits, not with attaboys and self esteem credits, which although might look great on their social media accounts, are not accepted as currency when its time to pay the bills.

I’m convinced that there’s a direct link between sports jackets and reduced brain function. To simplify - “You can stick your digital badge up your a**, I prefer money!”

I’ve heard the same BS in other tech companies since, and was openly told during the recruitment process by my current employer, that they were looking to create a more diverse workforce, and I didn’t match the profile.

Ultimately, they offered me the position and I declined forcing them come back with a better offer. If I have to work in a culture like this, I’ll take everything I can get from them while doing so. The human race has lost its f*g way!

Success should be measured by results, and you only have to look at HPE’s results to determine if this strategy is working!

I’ve heard many people complain and compliment Neri in equal measure. But is he weak/useless, or is he Mr. nice guy who got the job he deserved?

I don’t think he has to care either way, but like most CEOs he is as detached from street level reality, as his minions are from board level shenanigans!

Let’s look at the reality in human terms, his only goal is growth via SG&A reductions, and when considering he is merely the face of the board and realistically has no control, he will eventually be perceived to fail, and be ejected with a payoff that has so many zeros in the number, that the average person couldn’t immediately translate into words, only to move on and pick up another similar role!

your age + your time with HPE
when that reaches 60 you are a candidate for redundancy.
it doesn't take a lot to figure out this is their formula and your role or function or your own perceived value means nothing. It's all an accounting exercise.
They cover it up by sprinkling in a lot of underperformers but they like to keep underperformers around so they can let them go in the next round of layoffs. Every manager needs to keep some fat on the team to trim when the time comes.

You may think it’s a victim mentality but it is not against the law to practice reverse discrimination against white males during the hiring process and all white males go to the bottom of the list in big corporations. Compaq HR told us that we HAD to hire a female engineer. Over three years, we made offers to several qualified female candidates but they wanted a lot more money than equally qualified males. Finally, we hired a hungry male engineer.
Also, It is against the law to discriminate against older workers but it is done all of the time which is why HPE pays out a lot of money for early retirement packages to prevent lawsuits.

Ge-z, Meg OPENLY said this was the plan. It's just now coming up?

Don’t let the new victim mentality fool you. I was 40yrs old, got laid off at HPE with an excellent work history and I am not a white male or female. This place will dump anybody regardless of your profitable contributions or skin color.

Unfortunately, age discrimination is quite common and if you’re an older white male in the tech industry, it’s three strikes and you’re out.