Thread regarding Cisco Systems Inc. layoffs

SEMs

As an experienced professional with multiple CCIEs and many years in the industry, I'm concerned about the quality of hiring and management decisions being made in our region.

Our one-on-one meetings with the manager seem to lack focus on professional development or addressing business challenges. Instead, they often revolve around personal matters. This lack of meaningful engagement from leadership is concerning, especially when critical decisions like hiring and firing are being made.

Sales figures indicate that our region's performance is declining, likely due to weak leadership and poor hiring choices, not only the economic slowdown. We risk losing valuable talent if these issues persist. Highly skilled and qualified engineers tend to leave organizations not because of the work itself, but due to ineffective management.

Collapse the management layers, retain talented engineers.

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| 1590 views | | 11 replies (last ) | Reply
Post ID: @OP+1siqGCid

11 replies (most recent on top)

LoL
Sorry man, but as an employee, you’re not the one call the shots and we can give a rats behind what your thoughts are on this specific issue.
Please learn who makes decisions in companies.

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Post ID: @1kzw+1siqGCid

To be fair SE have become so comfortable in there roles. They don’t want to learn new and not ready to involve. SEM can only do so much when the SE gets comfortable. Also, SE are so not
comfortable taking about business and or asking for help. I am glad Marcus brought CCNP requirement back.

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Post ID: @1oou+1siqGCid

@uhx+1siqGCid
Those who can't do manage
Those who can't manage, manage at Cisco

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Post ID: @daj+1siqGCid

I'm a manager and what you folks wrote is total bologna sandwich.

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Post ID: @uhx+1siqGCid

SEM's are the most useless people @Cisco .....You want to meet them, check out Global Enterprise SEM's (dont even dare SP segment)

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Post ID: @dhz+1siqGCid

„ Cisco is spending $28B for splunk. It is only worth few Billions. Bad decisions are being made at upper level.“
That’s the Game. Not everybody will participate in the deal. Think about NDS …

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Post ID: @egl+1siqGCid

Cisco has no need of talented Cisco engineer certified people, least of all ccie. It needs lots of PPT skills, frameworks and AI references. You need to learn to refer to AI in as many sentences as possible. It does not need experienced staff that ask lots of difficult how and why questions. It needs people who do as they are told without experience and who are cheap to hire.

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Post ID: @paz+1siqGCid

I would add that the lack of the ability for managers to make a human connection through in person team meetings is a contributing factor to bad team management. Many teams are geographically dispersed and can’t travel and meet in person due to the previously mentioned bad decisions and the resulting Opex pressures. I also think closing so many offices especially in smaller markets hasn’t helped. Charlotte, Minneapolis and Southfield are good examples that come to mind. Last, as everyone says on this site repeatedly the quality of Managers and Leadership is terrible. My hope in this next round of layoffs is that they clear out the clutter of VPs and Directors who have made moving forward an impossibility.

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Post ID: @mmv+1siqGCid

Equally so the quality of people coming out of CSAP
Some entitled lazy hires

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Post ID: @cjc+1siqGCid

Main reason for poor recruiting are:

Cisco is spending $28B for splunk. It is only worth few Billions. Bad decisions are being made at upper level.

Cost cutting : Laying off thousands of employees in USA and outsourcing jobs to Asia. So many openings in Asia after the Feb layoffs.

Decisions are being made by people who do not understand the whole networking domain. Promoting people within a tribe and not hiring good senior engineers with good skills.

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Post ID: @vyt+1siqGCid

Having multiple CCIEs and outside industry certifications, I totally agree with comments here including quality of one-to-one meetings. Many long timer managers and directors have got accustomed to mediocre skills and leaderships as their jobs stay safe, and lowest technical folks get sacrificed every time. It’s a classic Harvard business school case study of d-mb getting d-mber.

What ELT needs to understand and execute is a middle and upper lever management “flush” that is long overdue. Middle layer is the weakest link in business growth and must be purged. Clean it out and Cisco could be on path to growth again.

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Post ID: @hac+1siqGCid

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