#costcutting

We lost a couple of great teammates. Neither makes any sense if they were going based on performance, so I guess for once the leadership didn't lie. This was all about numbers.

LSEG continues with layoffs and hundreds of people have been impacted. It seems the company even took down a post about it as it’s no longer there.
It feels like another move to cut costs and make the numbers look better while the stock struggles. It’s tough to watch, especially since there are so many great and knowledgeable people here. They’re really the main reason many of us stay.
But for those who remain, the workload keeps growing, and so much valuable knowledge has already walked out the door. Who knows when the next round might come. Maybe Q1? There’s always that lingering feeling that anyone could be next and that will continue forever until …

Hang in there everyone.

Why shed all that knowledge and let go of those who knew every nook and cranny of their area? Just to replace them with cheaper offshore labor that can’t possibly bring the same level of involvement or deep understanding of the organization and its specific issues. It looks like a plain stupid move from where I stand.

The vast majority of jobs lost today are just going offshore. And some of the work will be dumped on the people who remain, flooding them even more.

Accenture keeps saying they’re firing employees who “can’t learn AI.” That’s complete bullsh-t. The truth is, they’re laying off people in the U.S. and rehiring or contracting cheaper labor in Costa Rica and Colombia.
They’re using the “AI skills” excuse to distract everyone from what’s really going on — cost-cutting and outsourcing. Now a lot of former employees are suing them for unfair and deceptive practices.
Accenture wants to look like an AI-driven company, but what they’re really doing is replacing loyal workers with cheaper ones abroad.

DAE notice recent cost cutting on fairly inexpensive things? I’ve seen sw tools licenses being cancelled + a few other things. How long til we’re drinking Folgers instant, heh?
What have you seen?

Upper management in Bloomington was just briefed this morning by Atlanta and Dallas that due to high costs, low productivity, high absenteeism, non-collaborative local union and unfavorable politics for business, the Minnesota office will be announced 12/15/25 complete closure by end of first quarter for all orgs and work groups at that premise. Facilitating ease is that the current lease shall be terminated 3/31/26 as the new property owner has other plans for the site. All union workers will receive the termination plan per contract and management employees will be advised of their severance pay. Costs need to be cut and the Minnesota location does not align with the company's plans.

What is the ROI on this and how does it align with our strategic planning?
At a time where we keep hearing about constant cost-cutting, endless WFRs, hiring freeze, and rumors of no raises, I think leadership owes us transparency on the motive and expected benefits. This really makes me sick to my stomach and I cannot be alone on this sentiment.

A coworker was reimbursed $1k every quarter to fly to our office.

That is money that could be going into BF/JF/DF pockets.

There’s talk of more layoffs coming, although the last round didn’t address the real issues and was just a quick fix to cover overspending. Cutting experienced employees with deep knowledge of the systems has created gaps that are hard to fill. The company is losing people who understood how things worked, and new hires don’t have the same level of expertise. Until leaders make real changes, it’s unclear how things will improve.

“Making employees stew over the weekend is an unforced error by incoming CEO Michael Fiddelke. Forcing employees to spend five days in agonizing uncertainty is inexcusably cruel. This first major decision by Fiddelke is a case study in corporate tone-deafness.

Under current CEO Brian ‘Brand Ki-ler’ Cornell, Target's inexplicable pandering to the Trump regime—including the rollback of Target's exemplary diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives last January—has already sent TGT stock plummeting 33%, wiping out over $20 billion in shareholder value by mid-September.

Fiddelke, Cornell's hand-picked successor, has immediately embraced the same cluelessness that further damages the Target brand. The effort to secure $600 million by eliminating 1,800 jobs is cutting off your nose to spite your face.

Executing these cuts in such an unnecessarily cruel manner does absolutely nothing to dig the Target Brand out of the hole Brian Cornell put it in. It also does nothing to revitalize and cultivate the cultural and creative energy that is essential for long-term growth.”

Bob M. via LinkedIn

I liked JC, he obviously got replaced for someone cheaper.

Was there some other story there?

Investors had grown frustrated with Mark Barrenechea's ego-driven acquisitions that bloated OpenText, diluted focus, and buried the company in debt. His exit was overdue, and the board's failure to act sooner led to a loss of investor confidence. With new directors stepping in, the reset has finally begun.

Since the leadership change, the stock has rebounded roughly 13% and investor sentiment has shifted from scepticism to cautious optimism. The message is clear — the market believes a turnaround is possible.

The next CEO will have a mandate to streamline the portfolio, divest non-strategic businesses, and rebuild discipline. Expect a leaner structure, renewed focus on innovation and profitability, and tighter execution. AI-driven efficiency will help reduce costs, while those unwilling to adapt — or who feel entitled to a job rather than earning it — will be replaced.

OpenText's best days could still be ahead — smaller, sharper, and stronger than before.

Change of plan. Ford is pulling out of trying to make the F150 EV that they can't sell. Wall Street liked the announcement and Ford stock is up today. This is good for Ford.

Layoffs will start soon. Great cost reduction plan. Ford already lost $1.4 billions in Q3 for Model E.

Does anyone know?

In some orgs, not enough people took the "career transitions" package. Despite record margins and a good business environment, discussions are under way about how to (1) pay for the promotions needed to have a viable career ladder for individual contributors (2) bring in new engineers to the industry without growing the budget (3) bring WDs opex closer to Seagate's (4) pay for depreciation on capital expenditures which are needed

Where does that come from? You can just imagine.

Is that something that could happen? My mind keeps coming up with all the worst possible scenarios, and that is the one I cannot stop thinking about right now. It actually makes a bit of sense if the goal is to cut costs, since cutting payouts for those leaving would fit that goal. Please, someone tell me this has never happened.

Share price continues to decline after earnings and sales misses. Fiber deployment might be necessary for survival but its not a growth strategy. Fiber is mostly business related - with the economy slowing expect less growth or decline in fiber related revenues. Mobility sales might be a bit better with consumer segment holding up better.

There is no growth driver other than HC reduction in the near term so expect no significant increase in share price even after this sell off. The 16% share price decline since 9-15, which accounts for about four years of dividends, will not be reversed in the near future which is reflected in analyst downgrades. Given the very large decline in share prie prior to the earnings annoucement it is likely the word got out to selected individuals inside and outside the company. The share buyback program has also been a bust having little impact on the share price decline.

What does the future hold? - flat revenues, flat earnings per share, no recovery in share price, no increase in the dividend, a very slow reduction in long term debt (maybe), and a significant reduction in HC.

To be sure AT&T is a slow growth dividend stock that because of technology needs fewer employees over time but just think how much better it would be without $200 billion in long term debt, more spectrum, and better outside management. When Stephenson became CEO the share price was $39.47. When he left it was under $30. Now its under $25. Unfortunately, there is no hope of a change in top management and the BOD. No hope.

With continuing structural cost savings, what is the predicted future of our Spring Campus?

Continuous engineering cuts (yeah opex cuts) . But don't worry, the 'CPO office overhead is still comfortably expanding

Constant reduction in talent, structural cost reductions, feedback like we are going to squeeze until something breaks. How can we maximize shareholder value for the long term when we are just focused on the drive to the bottom.

stock jumps 10 pts!. every business unit did extremely well. top brass made lot of money on sold stock options past couple months and probually end of yr future bonus. Pretty sure management will still scream war on cost mantra even though the cat is out of the bag that company earnings doing well and projected earnings as well next year.

Let’s continue to pay for extra directors, extra seniors to work from home.

Then let’s talk about layoffs for the people who actually run the company.

The Comcast bloodbath has begun; knowledgeable and tenured employees are being slashed with no plan to capture or transition their knowledge. Many jobs are being cut, then re-posted with lower salaries and greater demands, or being moved to offshore sites. Severance packages are demonstrably stingier than in the past. Thanks to the "Big Beautiful Bill", Comcast has a windfall in tax breaks. Kudos to all the fools who still believe in "trickle down" economics. I wonder who Comcast. Amazon, Meta, etc. will sell to when the American working class is eliminated entirely?

Reposting for visibility. The original question was why address design structure in the wake of a 2 billion dollar loss on ev side of the business.

@ff I would say both. Studio for reasons mentions by a few people here. It's honestly an antiquated group within the company. Very old school way of thinking there. As the company evolves around them they are stuck in a bubble of arrogance. Way too top heavy on the salary structure, just look at the amount of level 7/8s there vs how many people actually do the work. Others areas at wtc might have one L8 covering hundreds of workers. Over there it feels the opposite.

As far as design when it pertains to production parts and process's I would say there is some bloat on that end as well. You start talking about DREs that "own" one or two widget parts on the car or maybe a couple models. They didn't design the part, there might not be changes to the parts, there might have been no issues since the part was designed but for some reason we need to have a whole group support it. That goes for almost every system and part put on the car. Leadership is scrambling trying to right the ship but they are cutting the wrong items out of our proven process's. Ask yourself why we still have multi thousand car floats that need repair at ALL of our plants... I'll answer for you... We didn't actually test anything like we used too because some out of touch boomer thinks AI and virtual reality will solve the companies problems. While we are at it why is so much money being dumped into battery development at this Wallace lab and the shuttering of mock up. The public has spoken, not many people want evs, especially without the tax credit. maybe Steve Jenkins can answer at the next Cole podium fireside lunch and learn brought to you by Starbucks

What’s the point of having all of them? If we really need to reduce costs, why aren’t we cutting some of those positions instead of the people actually doing the work?

I'm in New York this week and a friend of mine works at Goldman and said in their model they "departner" people every few years. That way you don't have someone with a nothing job making millions of dollars. If Jones is serious they will look at that. It would have prevented all the "retirements". Too many people without real jobs adding nothing who are millionaires off the backs of everyone else.

Has anyone heard any rumors related to 2025 bonus pool? There are a ton of meetings related to reductions of budgets, almost like a last minute scramble to cut costs. Maybe we should have subleased Frisco and ramped up remote work?

#1 - No severance if you’re fired for cause
# 2 - save money on payroll
# 3 - give them COBRA, but they will pay unsubsidized premiums for health insurance

I am thinking that all functions will be outsourced except those that are required to keep the network running and some bean counters. Eliminate overhead by eliminating headcount, make all stores reseller locations, no inventory carrying costs (already in progress), shut down real estate, outsource wireline techs, eliminate internals sales and offer a commission based structure to external companies selling on our network. Oh, and free up billions by not being involved in Formula 1, which is only around because Lowell liked race cars and execs like the VIP treatment at races around the world.

This is not going to be a regular rearrangement of deck chairs, something big is coming and I imagine it is not specific to VZ. Other Telco's will need to do the same thing as the wireless bo-m is over and our industry is now nothing more than people jumping from provider to provider to get free phones when their contract is up.

I have noticed that paying for the balance of remaining days off is something that they do not like
If you remember there was a strange shutdown in the middle of the year that they forced on us before doing that monster LR like an year ago.

It is highly probable that they will again do it in Jan/Fen and not in Nov.
Any thoughts ?

Want to save money? Get rid of the waste of time operation’s manager. He’s been working there for 35 plus years and a large salary. Xerox you are paying a director for doing absolutely nothing!
( except to make sure the North facility is being taken care of “)

The company appears to be cutting costs by encouraging resignations or creating performance-based grounds for termination, such as enforcing a four-day office attendance policy. Profitability challenges, particularly in the Optum business due to CMS V28 changes, are straining finances. Heavy investments in AI are unlikely to yield short-term returns, if any. Meanwhile, executive perks—luxury travel, corporate jets, security, double-digit raises, and millions in stock options—remain untouched. Instead, the company is pressuring its most vulnerable employees. This is a textbook case of mismanagement driving a company into the ground. Leadership is dominated by yes-men and yes-women, with dissenting voices pushed out. If you have alternatives, consider leaving this toxic environment. If not, make the best of your situation and be grateful to still have a job.

Well said, @2rc+1k6jmpfts.

How’s the increased dependence on offshoring technical and administrative positions working out for bp? Please share positive and negative impacts to corporate efficiency and profits.

FIS LOST A WHOLE DEPARTMENT BECAUSE OF HOW BADLY CS WAS LED. The client wants to do it themselves again. THIS IS CRAZY! The investors can feel the cost cutting as well when interacting with this company, the cs line must be awesome xD

ExxonMobil is trying to reduce OpEx by reducing number of engineers in North America (USA and Canada) and offshoring the jobs to cheaper countries like India.

But is it really working? I see BTC folks come here, work for some time in North America, and then go back to India and quit. They go to a competing company at a higher salary. All the time spent training them in North America is wasted.

How does that make sense from cost reduction perspective? And how will all the technical knowledge be retained??

….reposting a thread that was deleted for no reason…..

Shell is trying to reduce OpEx by reducing number of engineers in North America (USA and Canada) and offshoring the jobs to cheaper countries like India.

But is it really working? I see TAO folks come here, work for some time in North America, and then go back to India and quit. They go to a competing company at a higher salary.

How does that make sense from cost reduction perspective? And how will all the technical knowledge be retained??

Your attention, please! Very important. Tremendous discipline ahead.

Prepared for: Compensation & HR Committee
Date: October 2025
Subject: Proposal to Adjust Executive Benefits to Support 2026 Cost-Discipline Goals

Executive Summary

As the company advances toward its 2026 cost-reduction and efficiency targets, aligning executive compensation practices with these objectives will reinforce fiscal discipline, improve shareholder perception, and strengthen internal morale.
By modestly reducing discretionary executive benefits and tightening incentive structures, the organization can achieve both direct cost savings and stronger credibility in cost-management communications.

Implementation Path

1.  Amend the 2025–2026 LTIP design to weight free cash flow per BOE and cash return on capital employed (CROCE) more heavily than TSR.
2.  Revisit perquisite policies for NEOs (aircraft use, club dues, financial counseling).
3.  Announce executive pay moderation internally concurrent with cost-optimization updates to reinforce shared responsibility.
4.  Frame public disclosures to highlight “leadership alignment with shareholder discipline.”

Proposed Adjustments to Executive Compensation (2025–2026)
• Reduce “All Other Compensation” by 50% (≈ $0.26 million)
→ Symbolic alignment with workforce austerity.
• Cap annual incentive payouts at 80% of target for 2025–2026
→ Estimated savings of $3–4 million.
→ Reinforces a direct tie between cost efficiency and reward.
• Suspend deferred compensation match and non-core perquisites
→ Estimated savings of $1 million.
→ Immediate cost savings; signals fiscal discipline.
• Freeze CEO and NEO base salaries for 24 months
→ Estimated savings of $0.2 million.
→ Visible commitment to cost control and leadership accountability.
• Replace 25% of RSU grants with performance shares linked to Free Cash Flow per BOE (FCF/BOE)
→ Cost neutral over time.
→ Strengthens long-term shareholder alignment without increasing expense.

Total projected direct savings: approximately $5–6 million annually, with significant reputational and cultural benefits.

How in the world is ATC still open? It is nothing but a financial burden in a time when we are trying to cut money from everything. How much money could be saved by shutting this useless money put down.

Nothing of use has come from this place, except for expensive lunches and events. People bi--h about us being remote but don't care that this place is draining money from Nike.