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Planning and Managing Layoffs

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Re: Planning and Managing Layoffs

#81

Post by bartread »

tomnj wrote: post #33
paxys wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Like you point out in your second paragraph, some percentage of employees are automatically going to start looking for a new job and treat their 80% salary as a severance package. Being in a competitive job market, this is going to be pretty much every above-average employee at your company. With layoffs the company gets to choose who gets impacted, and the process is immediate rather than drawn-out. The reality is t…

> Being in a competitive job market Are we in a competitive job market still? For whom?

I thought the same thing. If I'm running one of the only companies making layoffs the advice about paycuts rings true, but what about the situation we find ourselves in now where almost every company in the whole UK economy, and many beyond that, are in the same boat?

Of course, this piece has been written to provide advice in the face of the current situation, so I'm not simply dismissing it: just asking the question.

Re: Planning and Managing Layoffs

#82

Post by Klonoar »

stickfigure wrote: post #38
Klonoar wrote: post #12

>You can say “I know this is a lot to take in, but you will get through this.” >Do not tell them they will be fine. In general, a very good article, but these two lines really seem contradictory. It might intend to mean something else, but in practice it's pretty much doing what is outlined as a "do-not-do-this". Edit: typos.

I hear what you're saying, but I think the difference is pretty important. you will get through this acknowledges that a significant hardship is being imposed on them. you will be fine trivializes the hardship; the subtext is "this is no big deal, you worry too much".

The point I'm making is that you might see that distinction, but the person hearing those words in that moment will not.

It's a moment in life where you just keep your mouth shut.

Re: Planning and Managing Layoffs

#83

Post by biztos »

> Offering less than two weeks severance pay is outside the norm, as is offering more than eight weeks.

Is this a norm for startups?

The norm for BigCorp is to have your tenure-based severance actually map directly to tenure, so if someone worked for you for 10 years she gets 5x what someone who worked for two years gets.

(Granted there might be a baseline, like $M + $N * $YEARS.)

And that's just talking about the US, but the article definitely implied they're talking about the US and in particular California. If your startup is domiciled in, say, France, you probably don't have a choice.

Re: Planning and Managing Layoffs

#84

Post by mrtksn »

whatever1 wrote: post #57

These posts bring me to the realization that you should never go above and beyond for a company that you don’t own. Just show up, do the bare minimum to meet expectations, finish your 8 hour shift and go home and enjoy quality time with your family. This way when you get laid-off there is nothing to cry for. You can always find an occupation, but you cannot get back the time that you dedicated to fulfill someone else…

That sounds logical until you actually tried it. Jobs that you don't care about are getting an order of magnitude more consuming that all these extra hours or attention you put in in jobs you care.

My approach is to demand being properly compensated and appreciated for all the extra attention I put on. Unfortunately, that's also not easy.

Re: Planning and Managing Layoffs

#85

Post by TsomArp »

lnsru wrote: post #78
whatever1 wrote: post #57

These posts bring me to the realization that you should never go above and beyond for a company that you don’t own. Just show up, do the bare minimum to meet expectations, finish your 8 hour shift and go home and enjoy quality time with your family. This way when you get laid-off there is nothing to cry for. You can always find an occupation, but you cannot get back the time that you dedicated to fulfill someone else…

I was intern in 2008 and working very hard. Doing not only mandatory things, but also taking care of lab equipment and helping neighbor labs. Very loyal, no distractions, sitting in the lab until late and working probably 1,5x or even 2x more hours I was paid for. And then boom! My manager came and told, they must throw away all the interns to save the costs. Throw away me and the other intern who worked in kitchen w…

I can understand you working 100% and no more. And I can live with it if I was your manage.r But no loyalty, no team spirit? No way. For me it is a two way road. I give you flexibility to work remote some days, to arrive at 10 some days, to leave earlier others, but in exchange I expect that you some days will work more hours, arrive earlier or leave latter, and maybe work some weekends. It should be a balance.

Re: Planning and Managing Layoffs

#86

Post by rusticpenn »

xapata wrote: post #72
tyre wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To the latter criticism, this has nothing to do with governments pumping up stocks. It’s a pandemic that could put a third of workers out of jobs because everything is shutting down and the economy is coming to a halt. It’s not like 2008 when complex financial products f—ed it all up. (Yes there are still bad policies, yes there is corruption, yes, yes etc etc etc but the point is that this isn’t “part of the boom an…

We could have been like Taiwan and Japan. Seems like a mask mandate and diligent testing with quarantine of infected only is sufficient. Would have saved a lot of headache. And lives.

I heard the opposite about Japan. Are they really doing exhaustive testing?

Re: Planning and Managing Layoffs

#87

Post by rubidium »

jbkiv wrote: post #30

Different point of view: I was a Founder and CEO during the dot com era. The company survived and became successful ($2B revenues today). It may be unpopular, but I will give you a different view, the one from a Founder/CEO. After the dot com crash no VC could figure out the good from the bad in their portfolio companies. I was starting to get conflicting opinions from my board (4 VC’s and me, the Founder). “Become a…

I appreciate you sharing your experience, but if I was in the room I’d be upset that you didn’t handle it better for the sake of the remaining team AND the departing employees.

The approach detailed in the above blog post is more appropriate for any situation with more than 10 employees.

Re: Planning and Managing Layoffs

#88

Post by blub »

TsomArp wrote: post #85
lnsru wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was intern in 2008 and working very hard. Doing not only mandatory things, but also taking care of lab equipment and helping neighbor labs. Very loyal, no distractions, sitting in the lab until late and working probably 1,5x or even 2x more hours I was paid for. And then boom! My manager came and told, they must throw away all the interns to save the costs. Throw away me and the other intern who worked in kitchen w…

I can understand you working 100% and no more. And I can live with it if I was your manage.r But no loyalty, no team spirit? No way. For me it is a two way road. I give you flexibility to work remote some days, to arrive at 10 some days, to leave earlier others, but in exchange I expect that you some days will work more hours, arrive earlier or leave latter, and maybe work some weekends. It should be a balance.

Then good luck identifying that in your interview. :) OP probably won't brag about it and instead try to come off as a normal employee.

Re: Planning and Managing Layoffs

#89

Post by lnsru »

TsomArp wrote: post #85
lnsru wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was intern in 2008 and working very hard. Doing not only mandatory things, but also taking care of lab equipment and helping neighbor labs. Very loyal, no distractions, sitting in the lab until late and working probably 1,5x or even 2x more hours I was paid for. And then boom! My manager came and told, they must throw away all the interns to save the costs. Throw away me and the other intern who worked in kitchen w…

I can understand you working 100% and no more. And I can live with it if I was your manage.r But no loyalty, no team spirit? No way. For me it is a two way road. I give you flexibility to work remote some days, to arrive at 10 some days, to leave earlier others, but in exchange I expect that you some days will work more hours, arrive earlier or leave latter, and maybe work some weekends. It should be a balance.

No remote before pandemic offered, 8:30-15:00 must sit in the office. Constant micromanagement. How to save €200k with cheaper hardware proposition rejected, integration test design forbidden, IDE migration middle in the project despite my protest started. My current place does not offer any balance. Edit: if I can solve my own errors on weekend I’ll do it for sure! But I am not liable for management fails.
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