Thread regarding AT&T layoffs

Fat Cat

I hope someone figures out that AT&T is extremely top heavy. Why do they need 5 levels of Vice Presidents? If they would just eliminate 2 layers it would save millions.

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| 2374 views | | 20 replies (last February 11, 2020) | Reply
Post ID: @OP+13nlhFjW

20 replies (most recent on top)

VPs and above are coasting ,pointing fingers and figuring how many lower people have to go so they can keep their jobs and perks!!

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Post ID: @5qfe+13nlhFjW

Stankey at the Oscars and Randall at Pebble Beach in the same week!! Those corporate jets are getting a workout!

No expense cutting at the top!!

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Post ID: @4ktc+13nlhFjW

MAGA.... Make Att Great Again get rid of the many layers of VP's.

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Post ID: @2ezt+13nlhFjW

I am not sure where that happened in Business? There are a slew of Assoc. Directors with one or two people under them and Directors with no one reporting to them and many doing the work of a Level 2 Most Directors with Teams are reporting to an AVP. In the old Labs we had an IC reporting sometimes into a Lead who was not a Manager and we all reported into a Director who reported into a VP in other situations there was a District Mgr but not always. A Director could have 50-100 people under them. The "Company" complains there are too many employees and we could do with much less. If this is the case then how did we end up this way and so top heavy in the first place? Why continue to promote so many into Director, AVP, VP positions when there is duplication everywhere? Makes absolutely no sense. I hate to see anybody lose their job in this economy but why continue to cut the actual workers and at the same time continue to promote Management up above. If you keep cutting L1 & L2 etc. workers who are all these 3rd, 4th and 5th levels going to Manage?

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Post ID: @2zdy+13nlhFjW

Goal is to have
Individual Contributor(IC) report to Director.
Director report to VP.

that is screwed up - how they chose IC is a joke. the directors are even more of a joke.
the whole system needs a fricken overhaul.

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Post ID: @2tmo+13nlhFjW

AT&T business underwent a massive revamp to remove layers.

Goal is to have
Individual Contributor(IC) report to Director.
Director report to VP.

However, the reality is that none of the Directors that had big teams reporting to them know how to execute and still have managers (though in papers appear like IC) manage people and work.

VPs are not close enough to know the programs not even at a high level. so layers are nicely hidden.

Good Job visionaries!!

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Post ID: @1lkh+13nlhFjW

Now they’re also pulling org “flattening”. So, for example, someone reports to an AVP, on paper, but truly there’s a Director under the VP, a peer of the AVP (but not really as they act like a direct report of the AVP too), that works side by side with the direct report and they’re responsible for all their reviews. Sounds like some smoke and mirrors for some reason.

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Post ID: @1okx+13nlhFjW

I’m trying to remember how many layers we had at BellSouth. Does anyone remember? I know it wasn’t as many as they have now. And Directors and AVPs were high regarded, as VPs are now, and had their own offices. I hardly ever knew the VP, much less the AVP, because they had WAY more direct reports than they do now. Now Directors and AVPs sit amongst their workgroup but end up commandeering conference rooms all day because of the type of meetings they attend. To me, AT&T doesn’t regard Directors or AVPs as highly as they used to because now there’s WAY too many more VP type (EVP, SVP etc) layers in between. Just goes to show it’s not run as efficiently as it should be.

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Post ID: @1lby+13nlhFjW

When I started 19 yrs ago I had 3 people between me and the person in charge of my organization. When I retired, I had 8 people between me and the person in charge of my organization. When I started we were a support organization with our own budget (deemed the cost of doing business - not much in the way of numbers to meet). We had 2 shifts and sometimes even a 3rd to support the work. We had plenty of work to keep us busy and plenty of professional people to do the work. Fast forward 18 yrs later and our budget was determined by the internal customers we supported (got to make those numbers), we rarely had more than one shift, had less work and had less people but strangely double the management layers. Through it all the layer I directly reported to was normally outstanding as were the people I worked with. Good professional people still doing the job...but these days most seem stressed and worn out more often than not. So not exactly rocket science to see what the problem was. But not my circus, not my monkey anymore. What a relief. Feel for my peers and their 1st layer of management. Hope things change for them but have a feeling it won't.

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Post ID: @1jko+13nlhFjW

Has been like that for a long time. Vp is the safe place.

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Post ID: @1sxz+13nlhFjW

All these extra added layers are called ‘management’, and that's where they practice 'leadership', because they, unlike you, are leaders, and they are leading the company through their super awesome style of management, something that you and I lack apparently. Have you not noticed how well they are doing with all these layers and extra added management leadership? Anytime I see where the company becomes top heavy with all these layers of leaders, and ignore or outsource their technical departments, I see a company that has become completely lost, if not drunk on their sense of conceited arrogance about their own sense of delusional greatness in leadership skills. Go interview and talk with our competitors like Verizon, T-Mo, Sprint, and the like, and hear what they have to say about any member of AT&T management that is L3/4 and above. They're all aware of this and entice and advertise to you how they are not any of that, along with them being an enjoyable and fun place to work while keeping the flat org model alive and well (unlike us).

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Post ID: @1vtd+13nlhFjW

Most of these VPs sit in status meeting understanding the product that we are developing. Not understanding what competitive layout is.

One of the reason we produce same product 3-4 after our competitor produce and after they gain the market share.

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Post ID: @1ocu+13nlhFjW

That is why Elliot Management bought into this Company ...Lots of waste to cut out to make the Company more profitable (Higher Stock Price)

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Post ID: @1nic+13nlhFjW

They have a whole departments that work full time at AT&T just administering perks for VP’s and above. Conferences at plush resorts, golf outings, payments for new cars, scheduling of the corporate jets for trips for personal use and payment for personal items!!

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Post ID: @1knb+13nlhFjW

At that level it’s a club and a lifestyle

Yup.

One of the ATT VP type creatures has pics posted to social media showing the personal chef she hired to cook Thanksgiving dinner. We all do that, right?

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Post ID: @1wod+13nlhFjW

At that level it’s a club and a lifestyle

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Post ID: @1oae+13nlhFjW

@dmj+13nlhFjW - problem is someone puked in the dip but they're still trying to serve it to you.

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Post ID: @1czh+13nlhFjW

But but if we outsource our first three levels to India or Slovakia or contract the positions out or simply just lay them off then we can afford to keep ALL our VP positions! Problem solved!

Everything makes sense in the Rethink Possible circle jerk.

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Post ID: @1inh+13nlhFjW

Listen, you can't have a VP without an AVP; you can't have an SVP without a VP; you can't have an EVP without an SVP, ….shoot I lost my train of thought. Lay off some more L2's

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Post ID: @1mqm+13nlhFjW

Because 5 layers of dip is tastier than 3

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Post ID: @dmj+13nlhFjW

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