Thread regarding State Farm Insurance layoffs

Non-techical Systems employees

For those of you who are non-technical employees working in Systems, how do you think the IT Transformation will impact us? Think we'll be out of jobs?

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Post ID: @OP+RKHVV8C

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They brought in this genius Fawad meanwhile the other two have been around for years. Contributing to all of the problems. Wouldn’t you wipe the slate clean in Leadership before wiping your slate clean within ET? Just another dumb move with no path and no direction. We are so lucky that our investments have protected our fumbles for so long.

So we think these are the right decisions? He is the only new brainiac on the scene and what is his successful track record look like elsewhere?

This is CDE all over again. Except instead of new systems it will just be new people.

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Post ID: @7fdl+RKHVV8C

Specific to IT transformation: Has anyone heard of people or personally experienced being given less than 90 days from the time they learned they were losing their job to the date they would be officially severed? ..regardless of voluntary or involuntary severance

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Post ID: @6cgd+RKHVV8C

I am hearing that March 5th or 6th will be the announcement regarding the ET overstaffed roles. And ET first line mgr alignment being shared 2.22

Affirmative on the second point; unsure on the first. The hallways were full of "wait until Thursday" whispers today.

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Post ID: @6qep+RKHVV8C

ET is Enterprise Technology.

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Post ID: @6paa+RKHVV8C

ET? Estimatic Trainers?

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Post ID: @6yyc+RKHVV8C

I am hearing that March 5th or 6th will be the announcement regarding the ET overstaffed roles. And ET first line mgr alignment being shared 2.22

Anyone hearing the same?

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Post ID: @5rmf+RKHVV8C

The real world is coming to Bloomington and State Farm. Where on Earth has any business stayed at the top of their industry for 10 years, much less 70 years as SF has. There are times when you have to change A LOT. The entire Agency structure shrunk and a significant number of high paying jobs were cut over a decade ago. Regional office and other locations are started up and shut down over time. It's how business is done. Ironic that SF stays in Illinois. If it were run by Illinois government, they'd continue just being overstaffed and inefficient. But you can't stay in business this way. Unfortunate that the executives who made all the bad decisions leading up to this over the past 10 years are not impacted professionally or financially. But isn't that how all Fortune 50 companies work? This is the toughest situation for loyal soldiers at SF in Bloomington have ever had. Not their fault, but it's becoming real. God bless and good luck to all. The best revenge is "living well" so if you have to leave, find your passion elsewhere, be wildly successful, and never look back.

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Post ID: @3ktr+RKHVV8C

I prefer vivifried....

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Post ID: @2dga+RKHVV8C

LOL ... vivifired. Probably why they changed the name to IT transformation.

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Post ID: @2oid+RKHVV8C

This is just the start, my friends. Earnest and Young are vivifying other areas. No one is immune. A moderate but stready collapse of the company like Kmart. Good luck to all of us. So sad

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Post ID: @2dhm+RKHVV8C

They should have froze JOPs day 1. It's making an ugly situation uglier. People jumping jobs into other jobs that are at risk just to stay in their location. It's like trying to nail jello to a wall. It's a preview to the next year.

Non technical jobs are most at risk..just look at the over staffed job list..

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Post ID: @1wth+RKHVV8C

Geez. Get it right. It's vivifired, not vivified. #vivifired.

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Post ID: @1okx+RKHVV8C

What would have been nice is if the executives hadn't bloated systems with people who didn't belong here and who, by and large, thought they were being good soldiers for cooperating. What would have been nice is if the executives responsible for CDE were canned.

Seriously, who can take this new re-organization seriously with the CDE execs still leading the charge?

The last billion dollar debacle didn't work, so let's go do something else totally half-assed.

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Post ID: @jeg+RKHVV8C

It would have been nice to know that having more technical skills was going to be needed in the future.

Yup, that would have totally taken a crystal ball and wasn't obvious at all.

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Post ID: @gud+RKHVV8C

Not true. I know someone who accepted a JOP just this week and they are not moving back to their old area.

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Post ID: @jdw+RKHVV8C

I even heard they are rescinding all offers, even accepted ones, that were made after a certain date.

If that's true, they may find themselves in legal difficulties, especially if prospective employees relied upon their offer of employment to make personal financial decisions, like starting a relocating process, putting in notice at another job, etc.

Not that it would surprise me one bit.

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Post ID: @ebm+RKHVV8C

Don't plan on being able to post for other jobs, since they have frozen all Systems/ET JOP's. I even heard they are rescinding all offers, even accepted ones, that were made after a certain date.

Looks like there will be no escaping the axe for those unfortunates, at least not in Systems/ET. You might be able to post into jobs in other areas of the company, IDK.

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Post ID: @apz+RKHVV8C

State Farm hasn't had decent planning since CDE destroyed the planning process and chased our best planners to other organizations. Now we have the equivalent of throwing darts at a dartboard.

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Post ID: @dfv+RKHVV8C

Post ID: @RKHVV8C-jqu Thread voice sounds familiar- like a possible plant to bully others, to cause doubt in abilities to try to get them to leave early to avoid company paying severance ... I may be wrong.

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Post ID: @ktl+RKHVV8C

P.S.

My comment about it taking "18 months" has no relationship whatsoever with the amount of time I take to do my work on projects, nor with the reason I was "vivified."

I was vivified because I don't work in a hub. Pretty straightforward.

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Post ID: @rud+RKHVV8C

Regarding this: Not sure why the guy before me thinks the first implementations from the new model will take 18 months.

Answer: I don't really. I expressed myself improperly. I am, however, allowing 18 months for the impact of the lack of strategy to reach critical mass. We've now got entire infrastructure areas where no one wants to own the governance because they're essentially providing these environments as PaaS (Platform as a Service) but they aren't doing anything to keep the users from interfering with one another. This is not a "strategy" that will work. Hell, it's not a strategy at all. And I'm thinking it's going to take 18 months for projects to start colliding with each other en masse in these environments, isolated problems withstanding.

Not that it really matters to me, as I'll be long gone and not looking back.

So if it's as you say, and the problem is evident from nearer the beginning, then you're a better prognosticator than I.

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Post ID: @ctm+RKHVV8C

It would have been nice to know that having more technical skills was going to be needed in the future. I always had an interest in the technical work but didn’t feel that a certificate or degree in it was necessary. it’s hard to believe that all of the sudden it’s necessary.

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Post ID: @rat+RKHVV8C

Not sure why the guy before me thinks the first implementations from the new model will take 18 months. My team was implementing customer facing applications by 2-3 months after being assembled into an agile team, and now have multiple implementations a month. If it takes that long real realize things are screwed you're doing it wrong.

If you're taking that long to produce, that's why you're being vivified in the first place.

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Post ID: @jqu+RKHVV8C

I'm not non-technical, but I am already laid off (per March 31st) so I sympathize. My advice is to take a good look at the roles that they are reducing. Notice how heavy it is on BAs and other roles that don't have mastery of a particular technical toolset?

That tells me that not only will those roles be reduced (as promised) but that a displaced employee from one of those roles will have a very difficult time competing for the jobs that will be available.

I am aware of one particular team that's a bit ahead of the curve on restructuring, and they currently consist of like 1 project manager, 1 other non-tech role (I forget which) and like 16 developers. If you want my opinion (and I understand if you don't), that's closer to the new normal than many people would like. That's because the leaders in these areas will be responsible for getting all the technical work done with whoever they have allocated per their budget, which means they can't have people sitting around idle. That means the more tools a person can use, the more valuate he is. It really is that simple, at least that's what they think. The truth is there is a storm coming to Bloomington in the form of a strategy-void. That storm won't hit the IT department until about 18 months from now, when the first round of implementations go in with this new employee model. But by then, of course, anyone waiting for that bubble to burst will be long gone.

If I were working in Bloomington in a non-technical role slated for reduction, I would be applying for jobs elsewhere right now. Because when the lay-offs hit the analyst level, the job market will become oversaturated and whatever severance they offer won't be enough for many to ride out the storm. Some people are simply going to have to relocate.

Just my two cents.

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Post ID: @uay+RKHVV8C

ISD guy here. Technical background but working as a BA. I bet it'll look something like planning and management layoffs last October.. 'this particular role is over staffed, we are targeting xx% reduction.' Let some leave voluntarily then cut more based on progress towards their target #. But, it's really anybody's guess at this point. Plan as if you'll lose your job. Then, be happy if you don't (assuming you enjoy what you do -- don't hesitate to consider mixing up your career path a little)

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Post ID: @iif+RKHVV8C

Unfortunately that is my fear. I am hoping that we will be able to be up skilled/reskilled or the voluntary severance with being able to post. I am very nervous

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Post ID: @onj+RKHVV8C

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