Heard from the SE Leadership that consultation emails at BDLK will start post 16th of September, people notified by November. Most people are decided upon already.
All the best.
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The new COO based out of UKI looks competent enough. I hope she takes a very good close look at the amount of attrition and erosion in business during the last 4 years and kicks out the SE “leadership” . I am beyond astonished at how they could survive so long just via empty pretensions . it’s a total shell game led by a con artist.
UK HR people love winning these Great Place to Work awards as it means an all-expensed trip to some daft awards ceremony.
The UKI mgmt don't care about business. They are more focused on profiling themselves on LinkedIn and paid TV shows while dedicated, loyal IC folks get LR. You cannot question anything they say, slightest hint of a sway from the "yes, Sir" culture and you get threats of PIP which they sue as we-pon. They randomly use local HR "consultants" as enforcers to bully people who don't do the daily bow to the upper echelon. It's a thoroughly corrupted, politicised and toxic environment, even mentioned in media coverage of late.
Best place to get gaslighted.
They should start laying off the management stack otherwise there won’t be anyone left to work in the UKI theatre. The Directors, especially the leader, does no actual work at all, just lip-service and hot air. The managers are Excel experts at best. Waste of spaces. Who’s going to talk to customers and get the business? DM? CP? Pigs have a better chance to start flying. .
The SEs and sales folks from the UKI team are celebrating the GSX on LinkedIn. Cheered on by the SE leadership. What sales? Where are they seeing the numbers?
Cisco has employees in the UK? Why?
I also heard the 35% figure from a Director today. Unsure if it's a rumour originating from here or if it's a new source.
BDLK is empty as it is and this is a Tuesday. Won't at all be surprised if they decide to shed it especially if the 35% cut rumour is true. No point in keeping this massive infrastructure just t show off empty buildings.
I also heard approx 35% UKI wide. I am an SE and have started sending my CV out to know.networks. I feel I desperately to change my employment status quo irrespective of what happens post 16th September. Job market is lousy as it is and likely will get worse before it gets any better. Every tech job on LinkedIn gets about 400 applicants a day.
I'm hearing similar percentages too, but not just at Bedfont. This is a right mess.
DM and CP have ki-led off all the energy, the tech community and positive vibes in the UK. Management is weak but vocal with the force feeding of koolaid. Toxic politics, nepotism and shunning of technologists have set up UK, not just BDLK, for an epic failure. I think back to the positivity of early 2019 and look at the situation now and it feels like a different company altogether. I was aghast when a veteran and industry figure like PG was pushed out in 2021 to hire a DEI airbag from Cap Gemini. A service sector manager for an MD position at a vendor? Really?!
I realised one thing while watching the GSX farce. The value of both CP and JP is comedy. CP amuses DM via his antics and JP does the same for CR. They are the court jesters. Other than that, I can’t find a single measurable metric based on which either of those two should be promoted above latrine duty. They look almost alike, share the same last name, narcissistic self promoters and make absolutely no sense at all. Won’t be surprised if they are even related .
35% ! If they really do chop off that much at BDLK then they won't need a separate office building. The offices at Finsbury and Meraki will be more than sufficient.
The entire SE and sales community had been begging for a change in SE leadership and managers since 2020 and all the appeal fell on deaf ears. Now, the ICs will hve to pay the piper for management errors ... again.
Now, the LR is looming, UK folks are losing sleep in anticipation of the dreaded consultation emails and the SE Supremo is at GSX , boozing it up and posting party photos on LinkedIn. The same guy posted that blog on the same day that folks got laid off in the UK last April, touting how refreshing "change" is. Many a consultation email that I have received in the UK have grammar mistakes, signed by the current VP. Then I read an interview of the VP where he was boasting that he never even finished high school. Only at Cisco! A Silicon valley company with a VP who never even went to college, forget having an MBA! That's when I realised why those grammar mistakes were there in those very critical and important emails related to people's career nd lives.
They should change the name from Cisco to Psycho. Where do they find such personality profiles?
I thought the lease on BDLK was up in 2025 (or there was a break point at least) and that Cisco was looking for smaller property in London. Smaller as in 20% the size of BDLK.
Heard rumours of a ~35% cut for those allocated to BDLK9 and BDLK11 and further closures of the campus.
@ewu+1ufbf9bS Because then life would slightly better for us, the UK folks. As you may have noticed, the local Management, including SE team lead, are focused on putting us ICs under their thumb always, and not too keen on making our lives easier, be that personally or professionally. Recall those days just a couple of years ago when we had to ask VP permission for a £18 train ticket to go see a customer. They were laughing at us while the likes of Juniper, Fortinet, Palo took our business as they hosted lunches with the same customers. Then, it's us who get laid off, and as an insult to injury, we get the token lecture about "change".
Soon there will be no one left inside BDLK. As someone else mentioned in another thread, there are more security and janitors than engineers here. I have a feeling that the SE team lead may start holding Kabaddi tournaments inside of BDL 10. There sure is enough space.
Why was consultation not already started? Extra long stress for UK people
Why does BDLK even exist? That is the real question.
BDLK = Bedfont Lakes
What’s BDLK?
Why do you believe what GS says? He's an executive. Stop looking at the ELT and thinking they'll lead the way to riches. Just jump ship...
Thought that GaryS said not enough SE and we need to invest in technical community???
I am G9 at BDLK. Applying for the position of a janitor at WFM following the constant preaching of change is the only constant. Do I need a referral?