Thread regarding Cisco Systems Inc. layoffs

how are you doing?

Anyone LR'd recently from Cisco?
How are you holding up?
Got any plans for the weekend?

Let's chat.

Hang in there!!!

Don't let Cisco's hair on fire politics beat ya down!!

There IS life outside of Cisco!!!!

To all my friends suffering because they are leaving Cisco, or suffering because they are not leaving Cisco, chin up! I wish you all nothing but the very best in all things.

If you are LR'ed, don't look back. Don't give up.

Yes, LR su-ks and can lead to depression and anxiety, particulary if you are a victim of internal politics. It tooked 6 month for me (LRed in 2023) to recover mentally for me. Guys, there is a life outside of Cisco and plenty of goof companies with awesome people!

Thank you

To anyone currently employed @ CSCO:

Sorry to hear the slow drawn out process of LR's the ELT has decided to implement on their workforce. Instead of notifying those who are being LR'ed right away, they've decided to make people wait 2-4+ weeks. That is rubbish. It puts too much anxiety + stress on people. Whether you want to keep your job, or you are beyond burned out and wishing to leave it su-ks. It's no way to treat people, and it reflects poorly on CSCO as a so-called "Best Place To Work".

These type of conditions run workforce morale into the ground. They raise the rates of health issues. It puts additional burden and strain on people's lives, families, and other personal relationships.

LR's happen at companies. Politics happen at companies. But the specific CSCO branded LR's and politics are not humane nor scalable IMO.

Whether you believe yourself to be on the LR list or not, it may be time to quietly start thinking about going elsewhere. Do you really want to continue working for a company.
If you are feeling frustrated, do something to promote happiness and well being in your life. Don't let these corporate overlords control the narrative to your happiness. Yes I understand some of us have mortgages, families, and it becomes more difficult to jump ship in middle age. But that is no reason to let the decisions of ELT ruin your lives.

To anyone who downvotes this post or respond with some snarky comments, I challenge you to ask yourself this question: would you want to work for an employer who treats their employees this way?

#EmployeeLivesMatter

To those who have been LR'ed or uncertain if they are going to be LR'ed: Hang in there.
Whatever happens, you will be ok in the long run. Don't let the present day BS run you down.

Politics su-k. But you don't.

How is everyone doing?

+1

@uov+1u1HIc9G I'm not affiliated with Cisco, or any HR company.
I'm just a person who was once LR'ed and suffered greatly.
I was able to turn my life around and move on.

My only objective is to share my experience in hopes it can help others who have been LR'ed. You are 100% correct about the feelings of fear and anger. I had those too. Depression, anxiety? Absolutely.

This isn't some BS propaganda piece I just want to let the LR'ed know that you are not alone, what happened to you is terrible, but it isn't your final act. Things can get better. You just have to get your mind in a good place. Not going to deny, pushing 40+ or 50+ adds a whole new level of challenge. Let's try to help people where we can.

Let me explain. You ever had a series of job interviews where you keep bo----g and can't figure out why? Like your mind just isn't in the right place to be interviewing, or you carry anxiety from life, or a previous employer and you can't quite shake it?

IMO, we do our best when the stress levels are low, when you can keep a clear head, peace of mind.

Good luck everyone.

If I didn't know better, I'd say this post was written by Cisco HR. That said, I personally been laid off 5 times in my 46 years in the industry. The scariest time was in my mid 50s where you feel your too old to get a new job. Just writing about it makes my heart beat faster. To each of use, this experience is a bit different. What is next, what will I do, why me and the fear that we will lose what we have, not just for ourselves but our families. We are fearful, then angry. Please try to let go of the anger, it will not only hurt you, but those around you.

thank for a positive post. the impact of LRs is worst on people on H1Bs. they don't even have that option of taking some time off and prepare to find a job in this bad market.

They often end up taking huge pay cuts in their next job or pack up and move back to their home country often with kids who are US citizens have hardly spend any time in their home country and culture. Very very hard on kids

There's a lot of hate and negativity on this board.
If I worked at Cisco, I would probably be upset too!
But let's do something different. Let's try help people.

LR's are miserable. Especially when you suspect politics are at play, or you identify someone else on your team or within your BU who should have been LR'ed, and they missed the chop.
Or worse yet, you see others playing company politics and being kept around.

When you are marked for LR, it's not unusual for coworkers to ghost you. Treat you like you never worked there. Your colleagues ignore or forget your contributions over the years. They want nothing to do with you. It's almost like you are a diseased animal and they just want to keep their distance. It really makes the LR'ed feel terrible.

There's no farewell or congratulation e-mails, no farewell celebrations. No thanks for your service. Just the boot, and it's awful.

But there's hope. And there's a path forward. LR's are an opportunity to turn a bad situation into a positive life changing event.

I'm not just speaking marketing hype, I'm being serious. As someone who was once LR'ed, I genuinely feel for all of you who have been recently impacted.

keep bumping this to the top!!!!

#positiveenergy
#dontfearthereaper
#doyou
#fckcorporateoverlords

@uzo+1u1HIc9G I agree with you on some points, but I cannot stress the need to promote value in your job, wherever you work. Make yourself valuable to your employer. Look at what skills are in demand, and learn them. Don't be afraid to adapt.

Tech industry is always changing. What is in demand now will not be as such in 5-10 years. And no matter what you do, do not let your skills stagnate. This only makes you a target for LR's no matter where you work, especially for employees 40+.

If you find that constantly retraining and adapting to the current market trends is tiresome and overwhelming, consider a job in the public sector. You may make a little less than private, but the job security is far superior.

It all depends on what you want. Everyone's life use cases are different. Follow the beat of your own drum, and do not give up.

The problem is people making high income and overspending. If they lived within their means, drive cheap cats, didn't buy that $800k home, etc they would be better off. The issue is the job prudish are few and at much lower pay. Any where you go in tech is always layoff potential. With no severance moving forward, it's a dangerous game. People are looking at 25-50% pay reduction on new jobs. The older you get the lead likely of landing one of those jobs.

Yes, helpful..... until you lose your home and health plumets.

I got LR'd in my early career - not from Cisco. While it was a shock at the time, I now look back at it as the turning point in my career. I was free to choose a different direction and just went off and did something else I had never imagined. I'm actually glad it happened. Stay strong and realize this can be an opportunity and a blessing as much as a curse.

I was LR'd Mar 2024 in UK and what helped me was the old Stephen Covey line: "To Live, To Love, To Learn, To Leave a Legacy" and so to start living using a compass rather than a clock (i.e., giving true importance to our purpose in life rather than meetings & deadlines).

To those who have been LR'ed: Instead of focusing on the negative, focus on the positive for a moment. What do you plan to do with your time off?

Any fun non-Cisco, non-job related ideas?

(FYI I was LR'ed once too)