Provide me with financial details on how the IPO will benefit me, or publish an early retirement plan or employee retention program that is highly motivating.
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LOL!
"The time they can commit isn’t sufficient to advance fast/far enough to make transitioning to a new company probable. I0W – they need activity from the other 40 working hours a week to help advance their skills and credibility."
You are asking for "principles over personalities". SAS is a personality-based company. Principles don't apply here. If they did, the workforce would be much, much different.
There isn't anything you can do to change that within SAS.
You're also asking for workforce development. SAS doesn't do that. Their Acapella, or whatever it's called, educational assistance smacks of mediocrity and a lack of investment from SAS. You're going to have to do something on your own, on your own dime.
(If that dude is so heavily into NC State, why isn't there some sort of deal with NC State for continued education, other than interns as replacements?)
Being over 50 doesn't mean obsolescence. Old animals in the wild still have to hunt and find things to eat, it's just tougher for them; they have to be hungry enough to get out there and do it. We aren't any different. Commit to taking a class a semester outside of SAS. Do something to move skills forward instead of simply being a cog in Jim's feature factory.
There's something you can take from your experience at SAS. Look hard to find it and develop it for outside. It won't be appreciated on the inside unless you are one of the top personalities.
How Is your suggestion helpful To an over 50 engineer who can only dedicate 10 hard hours a week outside of SAS to learn/build new skills?
The time they can commit isn’t sufficient to advance fast/far enough to make transitioning to a new company probable. I0W – they need activity from the other 40 working hours a week to help advance their skills and credibility.
"Does anyone else think working to become star/hard-core at SAS Is a workable risk mitigation strategy, even for those over 50?"
Yes, for those who don't work at SAS.
"It has worked for others who not only rose to the top of the technical hierarchy at SAS and were eventually able to matriculate to even higher paying positions at other companies."
SAS is a personality-based company. You are either a big personality, or you serve a big personality. Work hard on stuff outside of SAS, and then switch trains when the end of the line arrives.
Does anyone else think working to become star/hard-core at SAS Is a workable risk mitigation strategy, even for those over 50?
It has worked for others who not only rose to the top of the technical hierarchy at SAS and were eventually able to matriculate to even higher paying positions at other companies.
In most cases this will likely involve adding 10 to 15 hours of very focused work/study per week to your current schedule. If you were already doing some flavor of this and your SAS work involves relevant technology/skills to the outside world then just keep doing what you’re doing and maybe kick it up one notch.
Don't wait for SAS to motivate you, instead motivate yourself now to learn new marketable skills to be able to survive and find another job once SAS lays you off.
This is imperative if you are younger than 50. If you are 50+ you also need to tighten your spending and save more for rainy days when SAS lets you go before you want to leave SAS, because it will be hard for 50+ something to get another tech job unless you're a star hardcore.
"Offer now retirement package that goes into effect later in the year - that will motivate me to push harder, seeing a finish line."
SAS most likely won't do that. They're too cheap now to even offer a package. They certainly would not announce any package so soon for later in the year knowing employees will most likely just cruise from now until they get package and not working any harder. Would anyone work harder if they know they are being pushed out?
As @ylf+1qC7Evdt says, SAS wants people to "wander off the payrolls". SAS has reduced headcount by about 15% over the past three years. This improves the profit-per-employee metric, making SAS more attractive for an IPO or sale.
In other words, your motivation is that you have a job, with a nice office, gym, cafes, healthcare, and other benefits. But if you decide to leave, SAS will be just fine with that.
As @nqr+1qC7Evdt says, this situation should motivate employees to upgrade their skills and prepare for life "beyond SAS".
Offer now retirement package that goes into effect later in the year - that will motivate me to push harder, seeing a finish line.
You are asking for something that isn't possible, unless you want lies :)
They can motivate you to build up your "beyond SAS" skills so that you don't become one of the statistics mentioned in a previous post. Ride that train until the end of the line, and then switch trains.
Any of that would be amazing, but I don't think it will happen. SAS wants people to continue to wander off the payrolls. While the IPO may be talked about, no details on employee benefit will be mentioned. I think early retirement won't happen again. I think SAS will wait for the buyer (no IPO) to take care of any nagging profit per employee issues.