Someone here says voluntary buyouts will be announced November 4, ahead of December layoffs. I haven't seen anything official, so I'm trying to sort out what's real. Has anyone received an actual notice? Which teams, locations or job grades would be eligible? If you volunteer, can FIS turn you down? What would the severance, benefits and unused PTO terms be? And if too few people volunteer, would involuntary cuts follow?
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I’ve been hoping and praying this rumor is true and proactively reached out to TPO to express my interest if that was the case.
Of course they could be feeding me a line, but according to them, there is no such thing occurring.
“FIS does not currently offer a voluntary buyout or voluntary separation program for colleagues to participate in, and we do not have plans to announce such a program at this time.”
At this point, I’m just crossing my fingers that since I put it out there, they will add my name to the list for an upcoming RIF.
@OP In 2025, some cuts were based on teams and salaries. The cuts were based on money, not performance. Look at posts from other Fintech companies and you’ll see very similar comments. The rate of outsourcing is unbelievable.
Please note that buyouts are often offered to people who are on the chopping block anyway. If the buyout is not accepted, these people will likely be laid off later with a lower severance, but will then be untitled to unemployment in the US because it was an involuntary layoff.
@bh Microsoft relaxed the tenure floor during their most recent buyout solicitation. I suspect FIS will as well.
Remember, FIS had a voluntary buyout a few years ago for those who were at about retirement age based on tenure. Fewer people took that than what they had hoped for.
@jd absolutely. They either had to go with it or leave with zero severance.
This is another example of FIS positioning itself to be bought and spun off for parts either before, during, or after its own buyout.
My guess is FIS exists as a "name" under either PE or ceases to exist as an independent brand (like Metavante and SunGard and others did when FIS acquired them) within the next 2-3 years. The course was set back when the current CEO forced the acceleration of her takeover from her predecessor and the activist shareholders that supported her coup without a real plan to improve overall direction.
So many bad investments wound up having more money thrown at them as well time and time again during this time period (D1, looking at you both as prime example) instead of taking a step back and pivoting approaches instead of trying to make Fetch a thing (enjoy the Mean Girls reference, folks).
Most of the current direct leadership to the CEO - along with the CEO - should have been gutted much sooner than some of them leaving organically to greener pastures when they realized things were going south (I'm looking our former CTO along with the former president of Banking Solutions as examples 1 and 1A here).
For those who are still with FIS: Look elsewhere now and with a sense of urgency. Do not take the buyout unless you have accepted an offer elsewhere and have not yet given your notice.
Yes, the people that were forced moved to Cognizant got the worst deal of anyone.
@OP If this is true and comes to pass, the morale of the folks that were moved to Cognizant will plummet - IF that is even possible. Their severance has already been taken away and after next year, their vacation time will be adjusted.
To all the people considering retiring in the next few years, I hope you have this option! This would be great for many people.
Most voluntary buy outs or VBOs are offered to tenured employees of specific years such as fifteen. An offer is made to eligible employees in writing. They have a specific period of time to accept or decline. What the offer might look like is individual but usually not that different from the current severance structure: a number of weeks salary per year of employment. Whether other benefits are offered for a certain period depends. As with everything else, time will tell.
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