Thread regarding Cisco Systems Inc. layoffs

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Spoken like a manager who is about to lay off somebody so they can bring over one of their crew from IIT

@UKJoPaT-fwdg - an ambitious person is not often a competent person. Just because they can BS their way into another job does not mean they are good at that job. And a competent person who like their job may stay there for a long time.

@UKJoPaT-flcf You missed the point, your scenario is exactly what I was eluding to in my post. Staying with a company for 20+ year is a big red flag, an ambitious person would seek out opportunities at other companies to grow and expand their skills. What is the value you could provide to other companies? It's not Cisco's job to prepare you for the future, that is your responsibility.

OP, you really don't know what you're talking about. Yes, you need decent, up to date skill sets, but at Cisco if you're over the age of 50, it makes no difference. I had 20+ years in at Cisco with good performance reviews every year, then got laid off in Sept. 2016. I was 60+ years old. It was all about age.

Skillset aside, one thing I'd recommend to those concerned about being laid off - hell, I'd recommend this to anyone - take a brutally honest look at your budget and standard of living, and do what you can to reduce costs. Reduce your debt load. Live below your means, and build some savings.

The more money you have in the bank, the less dependent you are on Cisco. You have a wider range of choices available to you regardless of what Cisco does.

As a successful person who was hit by LR, I didn't worry about CR's initial hit. Eventually, my team was decimated. I consider myself confident but I'm also very pragmatic and realistic. I'm 40+ and have an MBA. But finding work in my area is not easy. So to respond to the OP: easy for you to say if you're a developer with all the hot/latest skills in your tool belt. It's a bit different if you are fluent in the latest skills in marketing because the compensation rates continue to spiral downward. Only those who have managed up get to be strategists (KW is an example) and some of those types only know how to do a good presentation. Anymore, it seems the top dogs are like newscasters. Those of us who do the real work are the reporters. Newscasters get the big bucks. Reporters get scale.

Pollyanna and some Peter Pan advice

Wow....the original poster is totally out of touch with the real world. It is true that you need to keep your skills up and show value, but many times it doesn't count if you are caught in the middle of a political c-ap storm, which is very typical at Cisco.

Successful individuals are not afraid of layoffs because it has never happened to them (yet). Once the axe hits their head, they are some of the most blindsided people around. The original poster needs to go back to their HR cubicle.

"If you spent the last 20 years scheduling meetings and assigning CDETs to remote staff members,....."

I work with a project manager who fits the profile you just described above.

Been at Cisco for 20 years, have known many people that got laid off. About 90% of those laid off had it coming for YEARS, the other 10% were false positives but bounced back quickly.

Agree with your comment, to a point. Skills should indeed be kept sharp, and everyone should have a contingency plan. On the other hand, I completely disagree with people not worrying about layoffs; especially if the method used to select candidates to leave is not formally merit based. I was LR'd and had a job making 20% more base salary by the time the severence package kicked in; this was a true blessing. It's a bit of a stretch to recommend people not worry, because the LR process is something the individual has no control over. The company is wasting the true potential of many high performers, because they won't and don't give 100% because ultimately they realize they have no control. The process needs to be formally merit based, so that those that choose to give their soul to be true innovators can do so. There were years where people would stay on a P1 TAC case conference call for 24 hours, drive in at 2am to lab test and compile an Engineering-Special IOS release for a CAP customer, and managers would invite their whole group over for a BBQ/keg cookout around their backyard pond; on their own dime...but those days are over.

Thanks you, Mr/Ms "One-Size-Fits-all" pop psychology. Not everyone can move to follow employment. Not everyone likes to change jobs. Not everyone is young enough to avoid getting hit by ageism in the industry.

Perhaps you should try looking at the world through someone else's perspective before you mouth off about how they should feel.