Thread regarding ConocoPhillips layoffs

Being really good at what you do generally doesn’t get you to the hi-pot list. You are too valuable making the company money and you care too much. Being ok at what you do, never making waves, making your bosses feel good about themselves or even making them feel good physically, taking credit for the results of others while never taking responsibility for your failures is a good strategy for making the hi-pot list.

Did you notice how many high pots just upgraded their status to the Leadership Forum aka SGL 21+? Even the leader of the poorly performing JV squad made it in. Congratulations! With your $500K + salaries, your 50%+ VCIP targets and your 100% + stock targets, you are set for life. Great job. Now get to work on laying us off.

Did you notice how many high pots just upgraded their status to the Leadership Forum aka SGL 21+? Even the leader of the poorly performing JV squad made it in. Congratulations! With your $500K + salaries, your 50%+ VCIP targets and your 100% + stock targets, you are set for life. Great job. Now get to work on laying us off.

I wouldn’t trust those who pick hi-pots to choose wall-paper for a closet in my cottage.

If you are able to spend a s#@t load of the companies budget and gain little to no return yet justify the spend in your head while convincing others it was/is a good idea; or only think about yourself and can slash throats ( figuritively speaking) of even your closest friends without losing a wink or your daddy once worked for the company therefore you naturally should be elevated to the highest levels even though you’re completely incompetent......then and only then can you make hi-pot roster.

I think part of the problem is ConocoPhillips does not know a.) how to correctly identify a high potential and b.) what to do with those that are chosen.

I was told I was on the high potential list when working for the Canadian business unit several years ago. Perhaps it would be different in other business units but Canada was stuck in ancient methods of training and development. Instead of constantly challenging and developing these so called future leaders, management continued to place them in roles that they had done before and refused to give them leadership opportunities. To be clear as you all know, there are many ways to give someone an opportunity to showcase their leadership skills without putting them into a supervisory or team lead position e.g lead meetings, project manage an initiative, mentor a "junior" member.

Then when the time came to promote an individual into a team lead role, the high potential was overlooked due to "lack of experience". How on earth are they going to get the experience if you don't give them an opportunity to show case their talents and develop?

Yes you will get those who are arrogant and demonstrate poor behaviour but there are some who are genuinely talented individuals and are not nurtured. The latter are the ones who end up going to other companies and shining.

Getting 1 ratings get you points. Getting stock gets you points. Getting promoted gets you points. Getting large recognition gets you points. Getting lots of points help get you on high pot list. Being on high pot list gets you the best opportunities and exposure and ratings and promotions and stock. And round and round you go. If you you don’t make the list in your first 5 to 10 years then forget about being on the LF. The impact on lifetime earnings is hard to fathom.

Sadly many managers or people that have been around a while like to mention that a person is a HiPot. It totally demotivates a staff person who is working their axx off and gets no recognition. If you haven't heard a name, they are very easy to spot...your manager or another manage will forward a meeting notice and mention multiple times it would be a good idea for you to attend. I worked with a few of them (I had about 15 years experience and I came from a company where people actually worked hard and I was told on multiple occasions that I did the work of three people they had previously...and I never felt I worked that hard) . Anyway, I was asked by one if I had a bid package that they could use as a go by. I said of course (this was before I knew of this program and who this person was). About 2 months later my boss invited me to a presentation by this person and they presented my bid package almost as written other than changing the name of the project and the person who did the work to their own. I told my boss that was my work and he argued with me about it....until I sent him the email with the attachment that I replied to showing that I had indeed sent this person everything he just presented. Apparently he got a hand slap and came to my office and tried to chew me out. I invited him to a parking lot meeting and he quickly went away and reported me to HR. HR came and I when I showed them everything that had happened, the HR person sided with me but said they couldn't do anything to the HiPot because....they were a HiPot and who was promoting them - a VP. Anyway, sorry for the long story, but hopefully you found it entertaining. I smile every time I remember the look of surprise and fear on the HiPots face when I told them lets meet in the parking lot after work. Best of luck with these jerks. Our society as a whole went down the tubes when a good azz-whippin', when deserved, became frowned upon.

Don't transfer to the Alaska office, they have a serious hi-pot problem there, where the kiddies rule the roost and the senior people have to keep their mouths shut or leave. That's why that office has always under performed. Who wants to work at romper room with people who aren't technically competent.

Landing on the hi-pot list means you have been identified as a potential psychopath by current psychopaths. Don’t take this as the Hollywood portrayal of a psycho though; there are plenty of them among us who will never create headlines.

Interesting... I'm going to take a guess that these pampered prima donnas are the least equiped mentally to handle the severe financial challenges that are about to befall this company.

Also, good hair and an Australian accent helps. Or Scottish. Being mates w your good pals in elt helps. Fast talking, but kissing, schmoozing. Technical competence not required

The “High Potential” program is like all our programs and processes: a good idea gone bad. “Future Leaders” (ones expected to attain SGL of the Leadership Forum and above) are identified early in their careers and taken care of with RSU awards, leader mentors, constant new job assignments, juicy ExPat jobs, etc. Depending on how long you’ve been with the company they’ll have different categories for how high they believe you can go: country president, VP, and ELT and above.

In practice it’s a time-consuming practice of awarding those who look and present well and catch the eye of someone important. So you don’t have to be good, you have to look good and have a manager who takes a liking to you.

These Hi-Pots are often arrogant jerks to everyone except those above them, where they play games of humility and “I’m thinking about leaving to go back to school or start my own company or....” just to get the next promotion and new job assignment faster. Often when they don’t get that next promotion fast enough they quit anyway.

The program is confidential because the leaders know it will de-motivate the remaining 95% of the employees.

If you’ve not received a consistent “1” with an occasional “2” you’re not on the list. If you’ve not been consistently awarded RSU’s you’re not on the list.

Flying high with COP

Get rid of two of the aircraft, increase the dividend to stockholders, make them fly commercial through the travel dept. These changes will ensure that COP keeps its SPIRT VALUES by example. The I stands for Integrity with stakeholders. This would be a good start and set an example to the employees that we are valued and the the leadership is feeling the pain during these times. Action speak louder than words.

Identification of high potentials is based on the plus score system. Quite secretive and subjective.

Hi pots are recognized for having “leadership skills” meaning they’re arrogant, loud, and steal work from others to deliver as their own. Not the smartest or the most experienced. Just the most visible. Managers love them. Coworkers don’t like them. They generally leave the company for supposedly greener because they’ve been told they walk on water. Those that stay become managers real quick and screw their teams over through mismanagement, incompetence, and arrogance. Like what’s happening at a national scale.

Being a Hi-pot used to mean something 10 years ago. Now, it just means you're an a– kissing millennial who cries like a baby. whines like a hyena when things don't go your way, spends your day
chatting on the computer and social media with all your buds, and steals and presents knowledge gained or taken from other senior colleagues as you own. Saying you're a hi-pot now, doesn't mean
how good you are as a scientist or engineer, it says basically means that you're a grade A a– kisser and will do 'anything' to please your supervisor.