- Dear Colleagues:
As a follow-up to Ryan’s email on the COST Project, it has been determined that of the positions being permanently eliminated, more than 500 of them will be in Houston.
We are required by the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1988 (“WARN Act”) to provide affected employees with 60 days advance notice of workforce reductions as well as notify the Texas Workforce Commission and others of our plans. As such, you are receiving this notification because you are in a role that could be affected by the reductions.
We expect employment end dates to occur between Oct. 30, 2015 and Nov. 13, 2015. There are no bumping rights – in other words, seniority will not be a factor in the staffing process.
The following Houston-area locations will be affected by the reductions: 600 N. Dairy Ashford Road; 550 Westlake Park Boulevard; 580 Westlake Park Boulevard; 900 Threadneedle; 14701 St. Mary's Lane; 16340 Park Ten Place; 16290 Katy Freeway; 330 Barker Cypress Road; 16901 JFK Boulevard; and 3000 Post Oak Boulevard.
Should you have any questions, please speak with your HR Business Partner.
- Dear Colleagues:
Teams across the company have been working to define and implement changes resulting from the COST Project. These changes are likely to affect all ConocoPhillips’ employees in some way; however, the impact on individual jobs will vary depending on several factors including, but not limited to, changes in work processes, work elimination and/or organizational design changes.
An important part of the staffing process is to ensure the Company has the talent needed to meet business needs, while considering employee preferences. As such, an Expression of Interest (EOI) process is being implemented to provide U.S.-paid employees the opportunity to express interest in being considered for severance.
This EOI is optional and should complement ongoing discussions between employees and supervisors. It is strongly recommended that you discuss your individual situation with your supervisor regardless of your intent to submit an EOI or not.
This information will be considered, along with business needs, as staffing decisions are made. Again, participation in the survey is optional. Expressing interest does not guarantee you will receive severance. Similarly, not expressing interest does not exclude you from the possibility of severance. The Company will make staffing and severance decisions based on business needs.
The EOI site will remain open until midnight CDT on Sept. 11, 2015. Please click here to submit an EOI. You should only submit an EOI response if you would like to be considered for severance. The intention is that those selected for layoff will be notified and released from the organization (with severance) before the end of the year. Please reference the FAQs included in the EOI tool for additional information.
If you have any questions, please contact your supervisor or your HR Business Partner.
- You have received a considerable amount of information in the last two days about decisions and projected impacts from the company’s COST project. During this period of change, I know there is considerable uncertainty, which is impacting everyone. Our commitment is to be as transparent as we can when decisions are made and to treat everyone respectfully and with compassion as we implement changes necessary to meet our new business environment.
The Lower 48 target was to reduce our overall costs (both G&A and lifting) by at least $182 million through sustainable changes including philosophical shifts, process improvements and organizational changes. These changes will position us for the low commodity price environment and allow us to powerfully move forward when the time is right to develop our Lower 48 assets at a pace consistent with their potential.
Our recommendations were approved by the ELT last week. At the conclusion of last week’s meeting, I directed Lower 48 leaders to begin implementation of our plan to meet the expected timelines and deliverables.
Some specific decisions that will affect our business:
• A new organizational design will result in a change from four business units to three in the Lower 48. The primary change will be the merger of the Rockies and San Juan assets into a single business unit called the Rockies Business Unit. Not only does this offer cost savings, but also the opportunity to join a significant base resource business like San Juan with developing assets like Bakken and Niobrara. While leadership decisions will be announced at a later date, we do expect the VP, RBU to be located in Houston with an Asset Manager responsible for San Juan located in Farmington.
• Beginning in October, layoff notices will be issued to approximately 16 percent (about 600) of Lower 48 employees, affecting all locations and all levels of the organization. These numbers do not include impacts from potential asset sales. Notifications are expected to take place by mid-October.
• The company will adopt a number of changes, including a shift in accountability from corporate to the business units in the areas of HSE, audits and Operational Excellence. I’m part of a new ConocoPhillips team on Change Management, which should provide me with much more to share with you on this subject in the near future. This is really about working to be more efficient while putting accountability where it belongs.
In light of all the change and uncertainty, it is important to remember that the ConocoPhillips SPIRIT values and our commitment to them have not changed. Our primary focus and number one goal is still improving safety, both process and personal. Please continue to give full attention to your work and how to safely accomplish it, with an eye toward becoming more efficient and effective in the application of all our values.
I said I would share new information with you as early as possible to make you aware of actions in the coming days and weeks that will impact Lower 48 employees and business activities. I realize you will have more questions than we have answers, but we will work to keep you updated as decisions are made.
Thank you to everyone in the Lower 48 for your hard work and contributions to ConocoPhillips.
Don