Thread regarding SAP layoffs

@ah Slaves should trust their board.

@cr Re: “ Nothing says “we appreciate you” like being reduced to a fraction where you personally sit in the denominator.”

Another fraction or ratio with two degrees of freedom that they can manipulate, just as EPS can be manipulated with share buybacks.

@cb “ the company set aside millions of euros to appease angered staff and make improvements to the system. SAP declined to comment on whether the improvements had been made.”

Dear Bloomberg:

• IMPROVEMENTS?? You mean CORRECTIONS*!!

Oh, I love this evolution. First we had “employees,” then “talent,” and now we’ve reached the final form: “cost units with calendar access.” Inspiring.

The logic is beautifully simple: if we’re not laying people off, we can just give them more work. It’s like discovering your laptop still turns on, so you decide it can probably handle running three operating systems at once. Efficiency unlocked.

And the “value to cost ratio” idea is a nice motivational twist. Nothing says “we appreciate you” like being reduced to a fraction where you personally sit in the denominator.

But my favorite part is the rebranding. Don’t say “employees”—say “resources.” Because once you mentally downgrade people to office supplies, it really streamlines expectations. No pesky emotions to budget for.

At this point, the strategy is clear: optimize the vocabulary until reality complies.

Of course, if I were a manager hearing this, I might start updating a different kind of resource plan—one where my own “allocation” gradually shifts toward an environment that still uses the word “people” unironically. Just for balance, you know.

@b8 not the OP but it sounds like an engineering department in Signavio

@cb she is just a DEI candidate. Her work and work ethics have been below average so far.

@c9 SAP SE has extended the contract of its Chief People Officer Gina Vargiu-Breuer months after internal criticism ofher department over what many employees described as a flawed bonus system.

Vargiu-Breuer’s new contract runs through January 2030, SAP said in a statement on Friday. Her current term expires early next year.

Vargiu-Breuer had overseen the roll-out of a new bonus system earlier this year that ended up rewarding underperforming managers while holding lower-ranking workers to a higher standard for their payouts. This prompted outcry from employees and leaders at the German software company, Bloomberg reported in February.

SAP’s Chief Executive Officer Christian Klein told Vargiu-Breuer’s team to rework the stock-based compensation after the complaints and the company set aside millions of euros to appease angered staff and make improvements to the system. SAP declined to comment on whether the improvements had been made.

SAP Chairman Pekka Ala-Pietilä said Vargiu-Breuer had strengthened “how we attract, develop and lead our people” and the company was “convinced she will further drive SAP’s transformation into the age of AI,” according to a statement Friday.

Klein is adapting SAP’s business model for the artificial intelligence era amid pressure from capital markets. He warned yesterday that the company’s AI transition would be as painful as its shift to the cloud.

Vargiu-Breuer joined SAP in 2024 from Siemens Energy.

They just extended Gina’s contract until 2030. Nice for her, as she’ll inevitably be fired for ineptitude and get a fat payoff!

Which LoB was this, this is demoralising

Even our esteemed toothbrushing CFO has continuously called employees the "third biggest cost" in every earnings call. These people are unhinged because they can get away with anything. There are no checks and balances anymore.

@a2 OP here. Our management is based mostly in Sankt Leon-Rot and most employees are based in Berlin or across Germany. If a colleague leaves or moves to another area, management will replace "these resources" with colleagues based at Sankt Leon-Rot or Walldorf.

Slaves should be cautious about criticizing the boss man.

Haha they don't even want to pretend they care anymore

@OP which region ? EU, US, MENA..