I genuinely don’t see most people being around in 3 to 6 months max. Another wave of huge layoffs is coming and will wipe out alot of people.
The company is doing terribly , stock price is trash and no one really likes Ford products.
20 replies (most recent on top)
"… And if my management wasn’t happy with my performance, with what I was doing or any other problem,, why didn’t they TELL me so in any of the quarterly PRs over the last several years?"
This is how it goes at a certain level they are given the directive to trim X% from their budget. For this example we will use LL3. Now that LL3 will take input from all the lower levels on what hardware/software/purchased services/employees/etc. can be cut/shifted to LCC. All down the chain there is turf protection and FnF protection going on, and anyone who thinks the LL3 doesn’t know that the info he is being fed is BS —- I got a bridge to sell you. So lacking any solid data the LL3 will more often than not just red line all the most highly compensated non-FnF employees. The LL3 thinks all cogs are easily replaceable and the LL3 needs to protect FnF or they will come after his job.
So as you see your skills and job performance likely have nothing to do with your getting let go.
As an aside, one LL3 privately mentioned he regretted cutting two tech specialists as four years on not a week goes by that someone does say X & Y would know the answer / know how to fix this / know how to do that. He had simply red lined all the tech specialists who were highly compensated and since then has paid much more than their salary annually to bring in consultants and purchased services.
"… And if my management wasn’t happy with my performance, with what I was doing or any other problem,, why didn’t they TELL me so in any of the quarterly PRs over the last several years?"
As much sense as this makes, i think we all know that it very often doesn't make sense and logical processes that seem to mitigate these concerns are left for correctness or the manager's avoidance of conflict, ect. Maybe they had bigger fish to fry at the time...you'll spend more time worrying about that then is reasonable. Either way it made sense to someone at some level to let you go and there's a heck of a chance it had nothing to do with your performance. Never assume malice in these matters what can be reasonably written off as incompetence. Life will sometimes make a lot more sense and leave you with a lot less stress if you take this line of thinking. Works for me.
@2ugt+1pO8vetU "you shouldn't really have an issue finding work outside the Automotive" ... this is not true, in software at least. look at linkedin, there are typically 150 to 300 applications to each position, both simple and complicated jobs. not automotive. it is the most insane i have ever seen it in terms of "oversupply"... these are numbers you would typically see for kids lined up for "America's Got Talent" auditions.
@2tlc here again…
… And if my management wasn’t happy with my performance, with what I was doing or any other problem,, why didn’t they TELL me so in any of the quarterly PRs over the last several years?
Agism is bad out there. And it’s really bad at Ford.
I think I should have written, to make the point clearer, I kept my skills up to date, even more so than most other employees 20 years younger than me, yet I’m no longer employed at Ford, but they are.
Not a pleasant thing to say but I gotta say it. 90% of being unemployed if you have an in-demand skill is kinda your fault. Being middle aged is fine and I'm not saying there isn't some ageism out there. But seriously, if you were laid off in August or anytime last summer or summer of 2022 you really need to get some resume help or get with a career coach. Time to get moving. Now I don;t know personal situation or what and that might be a factor, but if all is stable you shouldn't really have an issue finding work outside the Automotive industry right now. Unless that's all you are comfortable doing in which case you are knee-capping yourself then.
“…the roadmap presented in the c-suite planning in 2020…”
Who has access to this roadmap?
"So most of the US GSR have a max of 2 years of employment. Keep this in mind before buying a house or making any other major purchases."
This is sound advice - as with any other employer (Ford especially) it doesn't matter if you are critical and have extraordinary knowledge. They will then outsource and blame your replacement - as long as there is a warm body to blame LL5's and 6's will be good with disturbing the ecosystem. If you are GSR - I'd start looking for another job outside of the auto industry after the New Year. If you don't you maybe have a year max depending on when you were hired. There maybe less of a chance if you are a GSR that's hasn't hit a year of employment yet. However, don't put anything past them if your salary is over 100k.
@1wwt - what areas were included in this GSR roadmap?
@OP if you are US GSR the roadmap presented in the c-suite planning in 2020 showed a 5 year plan to reduce US GSR to 15% of 2020 size. LCC and out-sourcing were part of the roadmap. The 2020 roadmap showed a three year transition period where functions were performed both in US and LCC / at out-sourcing company and increased staffing in LCC. Followed by massive reductions in US heads. Assuming things are on track, 2024 and 2025 are the bulk trimming of US. GSR years.
So most of the US GSR have a max of 2 years of employment. Keep this in mind before buying a house or making any other major purchases.
Those close to retirement pay close attention as if you are in one of the to-be-outsourced areas where you will be re-badged to the outsourced company you might not like your benefit transition, and yes the outsourced company will clip the majority of the transitioned employees within 6 mo-1 yr. Be prepared to retire from Ford when the pre-announcement is made.
I know people will say, oh they can’t cut that many US heads. Sadly it is in the works and the evidence is in plain sight.
“However, everyone can have safety skills that are transferable.”
I didn’t wait for Ford to make my career decisions for me. I went to night school and got a PhD in a field Ford has a real, desperate need for. And they paid for it. Took me almost 10 years, but that’s night school.
Then they fired me in June because they said my skills and abilities were inadequate for the company’s needs. I had a 4.0 GPA. If I was a young intern instead of a middle-age guy, I would have been lauded as a super genius. Instead, I’m just unemployed.
That is anyone’s guess. If you’re part of the F&F, it’s until you want to leave. If you aren’t, then it’s how long they want you based on age, pay and marketable skills or if you pi-s someone off.
How long? I figure we all have a couple weeks before the deep cuts. Maybe till holiday break at most.
Look at the people who lead this company and the HR dept, you know that this kind of thing is in them....
"The problem is greed, and it’s caught up to them. The top tier likes to hoard with ridiculous compensation packages tied to ambiguous metrics that they can change at will to suit their self-serving interests. They all think and act the same"
True. I think that the real power lies on the board that the big wall street players control.
They sit on the boards of many companies.
I also think they sit on the boards of a lot of media outlets so they control what we look at and talk about. Tomorrow's breaking news, trans rights in Lithuania.
The problem is greed, and it’s caught up to them. The top tier likes to hoard with ridiculous compensation packages tied to ambiguous metrics that they can change at will to suit their self-serving interests. Meanwhile the lower tiers get the chaff leftovers with false promises of a rewarding career. People have this misconception that other industries are not like this but that is the furthest from the truth. They all think and act the same.
I'm waiting to get my 30 years. A few more years and I'm outta here.
Not everyone can have a lot of safety cash laying around. However, everyone can have safety skills that are transferable. I see a lot of people on here dunking on Ford that it has ki-led a career. You career is your responsibility. Ford is just a job you have and if your career dies there it's your fault because it's your career not Ford's and it's what you make of it. Will it die at Ford? Maybe. But are you going to sit there and watch the life drain out of it or leave? Your choice....or if you stand around aimless for too long an LL will make that choice for you. I'd advise you be the one making that choice.
The car business has been heavily influenced by politics as in green politics that nobody wants and aren't scalable. That has caused a lot of expertise to leave, the indecision as to how to confidently go forward can be felt everywhere. I think that's the side effect of not being market driven. It's the same to lesser or greater extent all over. So as the previous poster said, look outside the auto industry if you want to escape it. I agree with hmy, a lot of customers still like Ford products but quality is the issue. Quality is a complicated story, suppliers own some of that too and they're caught up in the green sponsored indecision that questions which technologies will eventually prevail. So they cut corners, save on spend etc., because they don't know what next quarter looks like. In the end it all gets assembled into a car. The badge owner gets the blame.
BS, plenty of people like Ford products. The company needs to get its quality up to par to keep those customers.
Aside from Toyota, Honda, Hyundai, ect...I'd always be ready to bail. Better yet...train yourself to work outside of the industry. Auto industry is just a stepping stone as is any other job. Always be prepared for them to let you go at anytime for any reason or no reason.