Thread regarding Chevron Corp. layoffs

The PMP's are a joke, and so your previous rankings mean nothing to me...but sorry to hear that you are getting screwed.

7wmp is right. HR takes the side of the manager. If your managers want to crucify you, though you be an Einstein, they can. Just accept this and move on.

It doesn't offend my sensibilities. It hurts my pocket book.

You can't fight it with a floor of lawyers, unless you can hang some kind of discrimination on it, (and you can't) private companies can pretty much do whatever the heck they want to, without asking if it offends your sensibilities.

If your supervisor screws you over on your PMP, get even by planting something in his desk or work area that you took from his/her manager's desk or office. Something small and non obvious that your supervisor may not notice, but his/her manager will when he comes over to ask a question or visit.

don't bother. you will get cut if you do. YOU become the problem. And they have the power. just stay calm and try to get the maximum severance and not risk losing it due to belligerence

You can't fight it. Remember Jesus who as a sheep led to the slaughter opened not his mouth. Learn about the grace of yielding.

OP, put your family first, tuck your tail between your legs and move on to another company. You will waste your money paying an attorney (cost is 30-40% of the settlement IF you win). You will receive more in severance and be on to a new job faster if you give up early.

#rankandyank is so 1982 - most companies (eg microsoft, accenture, deloitte, etc) have discontinued it

@1pnd, let's face it - the forced ranking sessions are nothing too far away from a farce. It's a way to keep the friends and family bunch reaping the highest salaries. Somehow the company has to spread the money around. The object is to be fair, but instead, politics and favoritism comes into play

@zhb - you nailed it - a #gold post

This company will never learn from its past history. For one, it fixes it failed processes with new processes that are also failures. It moves it's management around instead of firing it's failed managers. Hardly anyone in a leadership role stays in the role long enough to effect change or to advance the processes that promote stability and confidence. A pervasive problem noted by many employees is that their direct supervisor or manager is not attuned to the tasks that their subordinates are doing. They don't have a sufficient grasp to understand, influence change or control processes that erode our company. We desperately need qualified management running all aspects of our company. Many need to be replaced quickly.

Once upon a time, many years ago, Management did acknowledge that the then existing ranking method was counterproductive, the old seriatim (sp?) ranking where the roses and thorns were slotted top and bottom while the rest of us landed somewhere in between. That was the beginning of the 1,2,3 groupings. Alas, most of those men are gone and another generation is in place having failed to learn from past history. Well, back to snoozing by the fireplace.

As an objective outsider (now retired) I can only say if management doesn't overcome the perception of unfairness in PMPs or in forever ranking sessions, morale among the employees will worsen and lead to deeper problems for this company. No solution or speech made by the CEO or HR Manager will instill trust right away. It is human nature to slowly adapt to trust again. Management better be cognizant of the damage they do when they mishandle sensitive processes that directly affect the employees.

OP, back when you were getting the ones and two pluses, were you thinking that the PMP process is a joke? Was it all fair and objective to you back then? Did you look down upon your peers who were placed on PIP for landing a two minus? I know I know, you're the same star... Only these new idiotic managers fail to see it!

@1pnd, let's face it - the forced ranking sessions are nothing too far away from a farce. It's a way to keep the friends and family bunch reaping the highest salaries. Somehow the company has to spread the money around. The object is to be fair, but instead, politics and favoritism comes into play.

Maybe I can provide a little experience. I have been in those shoes getting a 2- after getting 1's and 2+'s. Until you have seen the low ranking I wouldn't worry as it is the managers responsibility to gave you balanced feedback regardless of how you rank. Your ranking is relative to your peers in that grade. It is also by committee. It is possible to not play nice with others outside your team and have that come back to haunt you as in my case.

Until you have the sheet in hand you shouldn't be worrying. In my situation the PDR was in the ranking session where they set the ranking and HR explained it was it was up to him to change the ranking or a very long appeal process pitting me vs the fairness of my manager. FYI, fighting your manager is a career limiting move. So, I took some advice from some old timers to keep my head down and the rankings returned. Hope this helps.

Actually,... these latest remarks smell like HR rats,... none of them are very bright, anyway, so the punctuation and grammatical errors shouldn't come as any surprise. Neither should the vitriol.

From the looks of your punctuation and grammar, you need "Hooked on phonics" a very remedial English language tutorial for pathetic individuals like yourself.

The previous poster gave me a wonderful idea. Instead of slipping in a aisle at Walmart, best slip and fall in the lobby at the Chevron office. More money to be had.

Cry babies, boo hoo hoo, how bout some cheese with that whine. It's all clear now, you are a victim? Hiring an attorney for financial gain? Talk about stereo type, way to go tar baby.

Are you f $#king kidding me? Hire a lawyer because of a possible below average score on your PMP. Affirmative action at its best. Another reason this company is doomed. You should be run off now. Can't deliver or perform your duties, well there are others who can. Go find some other ambulance chasing, piece of shit lawyer after you fall down in the Isle at wal mart for financial gain. This behavior sickens me, knowing that better, more qualified individuals are looked over so you spooks can shuffle around and suck the life out of this company. You best watch your step and get your ass in gear, because every dog has his day.

This whole posting is ridiculous. You haven't received your pump yet but are paranoid and for some reason think you will now get a 2-. Based on history you will probably get another 2+. Chill out.

What a f'ging TROLL, get a life Hitchcock!

OP - Of all the crap I've read on this site, yours is the first post I've seen to receive what appears to be honest, and sincere attempts to help. You should consider each person's input, particularly those of posters biy, and zhb, because, in the end, the more YOU can do for yourself, within the boundaries of the company's processes, the better your odds of achieving some semblance of resolution and/or satisfaction (with any chance of holding on to your job). Poster grh offers good insight, as well, but beware,... the odds of the company settling with you are extremely poor, and even should you be so "fortunate" as to be offered a settlement, know that it will take years to "get there". It will require: a) a solid case, and b) a great deal of investment in time, energy, emotion, and money. Sometimes, it's better to put the bitterness aside and move on.

I was in a very similar situation: at my year end PMP I received criticism for the "how not what" aspects of my performance, even though they could not provide any specific examples. I have a lot to say on this subject and will try break it down into the steps I took. The ranking is not going to change, but you can make the perception of it change and eliminate the problem from coming up again.

I would advise you to start with some serious soul searching and decide if the criticism has any validity at all. I think you already concede that to be the case because you admit to being blunt. I suspect that you are like me, smarter than your average bear, that you have a quick mind and you can get to the logical conclusion faster than most people around you, and you sometimes feel impatient or frustrated when they can't get there at the same speed. Maybe not. I finally realized that no matter how right I was, I wasn't going to be able to achieve results in a team environment if I left people feeling shitty about themselves. They weren't going to hear me or want to cooperate with me. They aren't going to want to give me their input and they almost always had something to add that I did not think about. This isn't about politics, manipulation, or brown-nosing. It's about being diplomatic. It's about holding other people's human dignity in at least as much regard as the content and results of the work.

The extent to which I was able to genuinely acknowledge and take responsibility for my part in this in a mature manner was critical to the next steps. In my PMP discussion I acknowledged that the feedback has some validity, that I know I can be blunt, but I did not realize that it went beyond an issue of minor personal quirks to an issue of performance. I pointed out that this feedback had not come up during any of my interim reviews so I had never been given a chance to improve, that it was not an explicit performance goal other than some boilerplate reference to the Chevron Way, and that it had never been part of my training and development planning. I explained that a complete lack of specific examples or any coaching other than "be nicer" doesn't begin rise to the level of SMART goals which set me up to succeed. You basically use their process against them and they kind of have to agree. I summarized this in my PMP employee comments. I also did some quick searches for relevant books and classes and suggested that I make these part of of my training and development plan in the coming year.

Bottom line, my ranking didn't change and I didn't expect it to. But my manager's closing comments changed to something much more complimentary. I never went to any classes, never read any books. During my interim reviews I brought it up, "Have there been any problems I need to know about?" About all I did was challenge myself to listen a little more and speak a little less. And I NEVER got that feedback again, not from that manager nor any future manager.

OP, if you are going to get a lawyer to help you, be as well armed as possible. Have your last 5 to 7 years of signed final PMP records, your annual reports stating your new pay and ranking, any awards and citations given to you over the same period, etc. If handled correctly through an attorney, you may at best get Chevron to "settle" with you by paying you off to go away. Your chances of success will depend on what happens after you are laid off from the company (if that is what you meant by saying "your exit"). If another person less qualified took over your former position, including one who is paid less, this information would be helpful in your case. Be aware Chevron will defend itself vigorously, so be prepared to lose. In the end, though, just trying may be of satisfaction to you. Good luck.

Just have yourself moved to a new position with different superiors. Don't fight this if you plan on staying with chevron - you'll be digging your own grave. Sorry, I know it sucks. I got an undeserved one in the past few years. Just move on and keep up the good work.

As requested,... the name of the law firm is Rosenberg Sprovach (google the phone number), on Travis St., Houston. I highly recommend Ellen Sprovach. (But, I suspect you're embarking upon a very difficult and possibly futile journey.) Nonetheless, as they say in France,... bon chance!

Thanks for the great and valuable guidance and I will try to answer in an orderly and positive fashion.

• First of all I am not negative at all. Actually I am at peace and I sleep well at night.

• I am exiting anyway so yes I will escalate and undo the wrong. Is a matter of principle and nothing personal with CVX or may idiot managers.

• The PMP paper work is very poor as far as the manager and HR goes. During the mid year PMP there was no verbal or write warning about having any issues with my performance. So if one have to go back in the process they will find out that there is no evidence to sustain the ranking. At the closing PMP my manager dropped the bomb and told me they will punish me for my "how" not the "what". Just like anyone in CVX my manager does not like "blunt" but yet constructive feedback for which I am accused of. Basically I did not behave in a Chevron way, typical CVX BS. I asked for concrete examples and write evidence and it couldn't be provided.

• For the person who advised to get a lawyer I would like that contact please. I plan to take this as far as I can. I have both PMP sessions (mid and final) recorded and I will use them if I have to. In Texas there is no need for both parties to consent to the recording so I hope I am covered.

• Lastly, yes I really have a stellar performance and I am not worried at all. I can survive just fine outside of CVX. But given the current climate I want to exit in my own terms and find the best job for me. One way or another I will exit.

PMPs are primarily used by bigoted supervisors to retaliate against an employee they don't like. Its a forced ranking system that thinly disguises work place victimization as legitimate performance reviews. Its generally and widely criticized, but serves its aforementioned purpose. I myself received nothing but positive reviews until I got to GOM, then the bigoted team lead I reported too decided, after a number of years of successful performance at Chevron, that I should never have been a Chevron employee. It all comes down to the hate and bigotry, which is rife in a place like GOM.

Your PDR is your only hope.

Your problem roots from "my manager is incompetent" statement, once you put yourself in that frame of mind there's no going back... You cannot win that battle, it shows in your attitude, it shows in your performance, it shows in your body language, that becomes you...

The poster, izi, provided good advise - don't confuse the PMP process with the Forced Ranking process. Both are separate and different processes. And another poster who said "don't look for resources inside the company to be of help", also stated his advise correctly.

I take OP at his word. If he has a family to consider, save the sniping and bluster and, if possible, provide the advice requested. Is that too much to ask for?

I concur with the previous poster. The OP is only stirring the pot for attention. If I'm wrong, then I'll impart some advise to you. Don't make matters worse by trying to escalate your protest if the PMP process or outcome. It will do you more harm than good. The only thing you can do, is to have the best discussion with your supervisor (and if possible, your group's manager) before your final PMP. Make sure you cover anything of mention in your comments, after your supervisor has made his/hers. Your PMP is one thing and the ranking session is another separate process. The PMP documents your performance and your supervisors assessment of your work, but the annual ranking sessions is a whole different process. Try not to mix the two together.

First, let me say I truly sympathize with you,... once you recognize that your future is in the hands of weasels, it's a bitch. I hope others are able to offer you some useful advice,... here's mine: While you're entitled to your feelings, don't let them lead you into anything foolish or non-productive (I probably didn't really need to say that, but your anger, while justified, is pretty obvious). Any resource, within the company, is not going to protect you. Certainly, not HR, and given the nature of the situation you probably can't count on anyone in management, but, if there's someone higher up the food chain you trust, it wouldn't hurt to discuss your situation/concerns with them. Assuming that isn't feasible, I would contact a local employment attorney and ask for their advice. Chevron's pretty good at covering their bases, but every situation can be different,... short of an overt act of discrimination, I suspect any reputable attorney will tell you that you may simply be in the wrong place at the wrong time, but sincerely hope that's not the case. You didn't offer any info as to which state you're employed in,... if it's a Right To Work state, unless they violate EEOC regs, the company has the right to terminate you, pretty much at their whim. As I read your post, MY "plan of attack" might center about a class-action (assuming you can find others with proveable grievances to join in such action). Based upon my own experience, I can tell you it won't be easy and it may get expensive, although I know of one attorney in Houston who is excellent and who I would trust, completely. If you wish, I will provide her name, herein. As a layman who's been screwed over, in much the same manner you describe, I would be looking for any tangible evidence available to support a potential case,... emails, for sure,... recordings, you'll need an attorney's advice, here. Good luck to you.

OP, for an employee like yourself who has had 3 1's, a promotion, and a 2+ as PMP rankings, why are you so worried or concerned? The PMP process has always been what it is today. If in fact you have been so stellar, as any employee would be with that track record, do you think things will change for you now? Obviously, you have been doing things right. Just keep on doing whatever you have been doing and you will fare better than most. My personal opinion is you are not the high ranking employee you purport to be. Successful employees don't manifest the negativity you write in your post. Just my opinion.