Thread regarding Cisco Systems Inc. layoffs

@1ftb: "....he was quick to point out that performance isn't always linked to metrics but also perception, which is a formal way of saying how chummy you are with your senior"

And there lies the problem. Its has become a popularity contest not a merit-based system. Once that happens and is apparent to everyone up and down the chain, all trust has been eroded. It's over.

@1ftp: Same here. Refused to play the game.

When he said "low performers" he was quick to point out that performance isn't always linked to metrics but also perception, which is a formal way of saying how chummy you are with your seniors. Unfortunately for me I had little respect for my seniors as in my opinion they were poor leaders and I'm not very good at hiding my opinion.

A lot of the folks getting LR'ed these days are NOT low performers.

I hope this holds up and she gets to take this publicly to court. It's sad how a company like Cisco uses redundancy in such a blatantly illegal way and gets away with it!

I know someone who is very close to one of the C-levels at Cisco, and he has told me that, that persons goal before he retires in 2 years is to lower the average age of the company substantially.

I had an exit meeting not long ago. I said one of the reasons I'm leaving is because you have no control of your destiny at Cisco with the way LR's are conducted and the declining revenues. The response I then got from the VP was "off the record, Cisco uses LR's to sack the low performers, it's illegal, but that's what they do." He went on to say he prefers PIPs etc, but it was odd and a little shocking that a VP would openly say this. I even have the recording, as I started recording every meeting and call I had at Cisco about a year ago, in case I ever needed it and suggest others do the same.

Hearing that layoffs have begun again quietly this month (Jan 2017) ...

All the best to those that may soon be impacted

How can an individual fight with Corporate America and win?

Because she found an ambulance chaser willing to take on Cisco. She's suing for court costs & legal fees, so it's not going to cost her anything if she wins. I'm guessing that she found a lawyer who was willing to take nothing if they lost and take a percentage if they win above & beyond the costs.

Reading the details of the lawsuit, it looks like the old dog knew tricks the puppy didn't and Ann kept good notes/proof.

I recall when I was suddenly getting poor performance reviews immediately after getting a new manager. The previous manager who managed me as a contractor managed to get me the equivalent of CAP awards while I was a contractor, but then he quit shortly after my mid-year performance review during the first year I was an employee. My mid-year review was that I was doing great. Suddenly, under a new manager, my performance was in the bottom 10% and no bonus. The following year, at the mid-year review, I was told that I was moving down towards the bottom 5% and was being put on a performance improvement plan or PIP. During my weekly 1-on-1 sessions with the manager, it was no surprise that no matter what I did based on his suggested improvements for my performance, there was always something else that was below expectations.

Someone on the team who was going through a similar issue with the same manager advised me to document EVERYTHING. Keep all e-mails between me and the manager. Document every office conversation immediately after the meeting. He opted to quit & take a new job while I opted to try to wait out the new manager, although I did interview with one company. I didn't like their corporate culture & thought Cisco was better even though I was being singled out by this manager.

When Cisco announced the huge layoff in '11 in April of that year, and I had my year-end review in July that said I was in the bottom 5%, it was no surprise that I got laid off in Aug. Especially when my manager just happened to re-schedule our weekly 1-on-1 from Thurs after lunch to first thing Tue morning of the first day Cisco was supposed to notify the impacted employees. I packed up my personal stuff from my desk Mon night after work. Everyone was wondering why I was standing around an empty desk Tue morning while I was waiting on my manager who was 20 min late to the meeting he scheduled to terminate me.

Rather than fight it, I took the severance package and treated it as the bonuses I'd been denied. I found work within 30 days, so I had 5 months wages plus 5 weeks accrued time-off to keep as a bonus. Unlike Ann, my manager didn't make any age related comments, and he was about the same age as me, but I was definitely targeted. What bothered me the most was that by putting me in the bottom 5% and preventing me from all internal transfers, this manager effectively cost me career advancement and bonuses at Cisco. If he didn't like me, why not let me transfer out and be rid of me and get someone in new that would kiss his a$$? This manager replaced 75% of the original manager's team inside of 18 months. This was a team that had very little transition during the previous 5 years. Makes you wonder doesn't it.

Ann, best of luck to you. I hope you win big.

Cisco will appeal and win the case eventually. How can an individual fight with Corporate America and win?