If you are not happy with the way things are going, I encourage you to make your voice heard to those the CEO and his staff report to - the board of directors. CEO staff meets with the board next week. Share your thoughts on the job this leadership team is doing with them.
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Why is Ed no longer Chairman?
The Board essentially rubber stamps what State Farm executives want. Plus Tipsord is its Chairman. Unless the Board suddenly develops an independent streak look for Tipsord to stay until he's 65, for better or worse.
Caterpillar brah
Where is Rust?
Meet the State Farm Board of Directors
Dan E. Arvizu — STEM Evangelist and Chief Technology Officer, Emerson Elemental
Christopher C. DeMuth — Distinguished Fellow, Hudson Institute
W. Steven Jones — Professor of Organizational Behavior and Strategy, University of North Carolina
W. H. Knight Jr. — Professor of Law, Seattle University School of Law
Allan R. Landon — Former Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, Bank of Hawaii Corp.
Gary L. Perlin — Former Chief Financial Officer, Capital One Financial Corporation
Vicki A. O'Meara — President and Chief Executive Officer, Analytics Pros, Inc.
Paul T. Stecko — Director, Former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Packaging Corporation of America
Pamela B. Strobel — Former Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer, Exelon Corporation
Michael L. Tipsord — Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company
John D. Zeglis — Former Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, AT&T Wireless
Those were not bed bugs, they were chivatos.
I heard Tippy has 18 months to turn things around before the board lets him go. I say drop him and his crew now before another 18 months of damage. It'll take a long time to clean up the mess, sooner the better.
State Farm had an opportunity to buy Esurance and instead went the CDE route.
https://www.esurance.com/company/news/2011-allstate-closes-acquisition-of-esurance-and-answer-financial
Allstate to Buy Esurance for $1 Billion to Add Online Sales - May 2011
Allstate Corp., the largest publicly traded U.S. auto insurer, agreed to buy Esurance and Answer Financial for about $1 billion from White Mountains Insurance Group Ltd. to expand sales of coverage through the Internet.
CDE = Customer Driven Evolution.
It was an effort concocted by business and systems all the way up to the executive level that involved spending on a never-before-seen scale to restructure Systems. In actuality, all it did was drain billions of dollars while at the same time making systems larger, more complex, and LESS productive. It was the single biggest boondoggle I have ever seen in all my years of working for large enterprises.
They literally thought it was a good idea to pack so many consultants into Corporate South that the fire department had to routinely check to see if we were over capacity, and the building became INFESTED with bed bugs. They changed everything about Systems and then expected people to get things done -- and of course no one could get anything done because the business and technical environments had been rendered unstable.
Most of the roles currently targeted for elimination in Systems either didn't exist before CDE, or were effectively destroyed by CDE.
My understanding is that Chairman’s board meets only once per month. They have to approve the transition plan. That plan is seemingly suspended for the moment in so far as proximity is concerned. Stated in recent memos that opt in or opt out document will be given by mid-March. The chairman’s board will likely approve whatever is the final concoction. If you want to communicate with board members due diligence might include identifying them - where they currently work/teach and communicate to them through those locations.
Help me with two questions please. What is the acronym CDE. I’m in proximity 33 years-impacted and have not heard of it. Second, why did SMS get voluntary severance offered?
Our State Farm Board will soon realize top executive leadership will bring the company down after the EEOC files a class action lawsuit on behalf of 500+ employees. One way to get around this reality is offering buyouts or voluntary severances which was provided on the first round of layoffs.
The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) forbids age discrimination against people who are age 40 or older. It does not protect workers under the age of 40, although some states have laws that protect younger workers from age discrimination. It is not illegal for an employer or other covered entity to favor an older worker over a younger one, even if both workers are age 40 or older.
Age Discrimination & Work Situations:
The law prohibits discrimination in any aspect of employment, including hiring, firing, pay, job assignments, promotions, layoff, training, benefits, and any other term or condition of employment.
Discrimination can occur when the victim and the person who inflicted the discrimination are both over 40.
Age Discrimination & Employment Policies/Practices
An employment policy or practice that applies to everyone, regardless of age, can be illegal if it has a negative impact on applicants or employees age 40 or older and is not based on a reasonable factor other than age (RFOA).
https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/types/age.cfm
https://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/litigation/
https://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/history/adea50th/at50.cfm
https://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/meetings/7-15-09/index.cfm
Can anybody just show up at this meeting?
If so, and you plan to try to make a case with the board, it would be good to focus on the damage being done to the company rather than to its employees.
For example: the replacement of experienced employees with lower-paid workers and poor training in Claims has created a claims experience that is chasing away customers in droves.
For example: the fact that State Farm's culture may have been too lenient in the past, but this 180 degree turn has damaged the culture to an extent that whatever competitive advantage it had to attract and retain talent has been obliterated. In the future, they will need to pay top dollar if they want to keep people.
For example: Front line employees have ZERO respect for leadership and will never fully follow them, regardless of what ideas they come up with. They will get compliance, but no more. To fix this, the executives responsible for CDE must be removed (including Tipsord and Pettit) and replaced with people who actually know what they are doing.
For example, the fact that there appears to be NO CLEAR VISION connecting the current job cuts to an actual benefit for policy-holders. Ask them WHAT DATA they are using that shows anything more than a cost reduction. Ask them how these cost reductions will lead to a net increase in the bottom line. Because reducing costs doesn't help if it causes you to lose twice as much revenue.
There are quite a few rumors already surrounding this board meeting, the CEO and upper leadership. Should be interesting to see what comes from this meeting.