To meet expectations, you either increase revenue or cut expenses. There is no other option. Growing revenue requires the cap to be removed. Charlie is wholly (and obviously) incapable of doing that. So Charlie's ONLY play is to cut. That is why he brags about it. He claims it to be his idea, when in fact, it's only because he's a failure in getting WF out of hot water. And that's exactly why he downplays the impact of the cap. He recently said the cap hasn't been damaging. Who in their right mind agrees with that?
I don't know how a CEO could be more embarrassing. What's even more pathetic is that the Board of Directors is complicit in this incompetence.
Is WF inefficient compared to peers? Yes. But cutting tens of thousands to a headcount with no real strategy is going to make a terrible situation far worse. Let's be honest, there is no future for this company. How do you destroy any and all morale, require more of your employees to cover the lack of headcount, limit your talent pool to a select few cities and still live under a cap and consent orders. Worse, the problems haven't slowed under his leadership. The problems continue. WF is in a death spiral. It's just a matter of how painful it will be before the death knell sounds.
Bumped from @drg+1q0Kyp0j because the OP hits the nail on the head.