Thread regarding Cisco Systems Inc. layoffs

I expect lots of promotions to DE in place of money. Just like they did 2-3 years ago with PE. Sure enough, yesterday I receive the first DE announcement.

expect little to no raises/IPF

I am definitely not expecting it, as I’m 99.99% sure I’m going to be laid off next week.

Yes, we're being squeezed hard. I need to apply months in advance for a simple 2-day trip, which will cost less than the SVP uses in salary time to approve. Most travel is already in the "don't even bother to ask"

I don’t have a lot of first hand info, but I feel like this next earnings call is going to be bad. It’s been radio silence from my management about rewards budgets and promotions. All the while we are skimping on everything else. Absolutely no travel, virtually no hiring (unless you are from India), etc.

I wonder if we might see the stock hit the high 30’s?

I would expect lots and lots of RSU's going out. Reason being that layoffs are coming and they do not have to pay that out when they let you go. Last year my boss said I did great, gave a really good bonus, then only stock. February I was on the LR list, so they did not have to pay a thing other than last year's bonus. It really saves them a lot of cash with the LR scheme they run with it taking so many years to start vesting and fully vest the RSU's.

Budgets haven't been released, only thoughts as to what it will look like. Bonus - if we come in at 50% of target consider it good. Merit, low for sure and will probably target lower grades. Stock - still in the air but with minimums per grade it won't go far. Add that the dir + hold 5-10% back from the budgets so they can reallocate it. No matter what is put in, they can AND DO come back asking managers to give back some. They also have a tool that "recommends" allocations. The sr leaders "recommend" that the managers change if they make a call to give more or less. Also remember, we probably won't meet the original forecast for the year. Changing that number during the year, lowering expectations does not change the original commit number. csco may slam the lowered number and still be down 40% against what investors expected so everything revolves around that original number. If you haven't been doing your job previously expect that to be reflected in raises and stock allocations. You might even need to be worried about your job too as there is going to be an impact that will touch everywhere this time through,

What was your initial grade level? RSUs are for grade 10 and above. Promotions don't happen automatically and take longer for senior roles.

My manager keeps saying RSUs are reserved for "higher pay grades", but I got a small COLA raise last year and a huge (to me, anyway) sum of RSU's. I'm not a grade 10 (or higher). Cisco's stock has dropped ~$10 since they were granted, so I'm losing some of that money. I'll be curious to see if this year I get a bigger IPF and COLA raise or if they're smaller and I get RSU's again.

I call bullsh-t on this post. Decision on bonus and pay raises comes after Q4 closes and the books are settled. That won’t happen until mid august. If your director is saying this, they are lying.

Raises? Some won’t be here to collect

to get promoted after 4 years, with a 8% pay increase. Otherwise, not one change in base salary, no RSUs.

What was your initial grade level? RSUs are for grade 10 and above. Promotions don't happen automatically and take longer for senior roles.

You should get 3 - 4% raise per year. You need to discuss that with your manager and not here.

Seriously? You get raises at Shitsco? Worked there for 6.5 years, being only tech worker on the team, started with blank, supported multiple PMs on multiple projects with clean and crips reports, automated reporting, saw atleast 20 PMs, team managers going in and out of the team, saw team name changed multiple times, but never got raise for 4 years. I had to complain and fight to get promoted after 4 years, with a 8% pay increase. Otherwise, not one change in base salary, no RSUs. Quarterly review process was totally absent except for the first year. Only friends and family from India get all the perks, hang out in team parties, drink and dance and spend company dollars. Anyone else joins them by mistake, you don't see them next time.

Totally cr-p culture. Friends and family from back home are the only ones hired into management and director levels, or jobs given to their friends and make them as part of CrapGem and TCrapS teams. :)

SBG is the pizza party BU.

I’m in SBG and my “raise” last year was embarrassing. I’m going to be really annoyed if it happens again this year. Especially with my manager saying I’m “doing great”. 😂

In what BU? There is no blanket budget allocation across Cisco. One BU could get peanuts while another gets chests of gold.