Thread regarding Cisco Systems Inc. layoffs

You people make way too much out of the yearly LR.

It's so cute you think layoffs are only done once a year at Cisco.

Cisco is doing them a favor. instead of putting them on a PIP and firing them (like they should) they just use the LR...

At my site they laid off teams at a time so many good people were let go. Cisco did do us a favor though. When my group was laid off we all got far better work and money at our next jobs. Quite literally, "go team!"

So stop acting like Cisco is some how different.

Yugos and Porches are both cars so they are exactly the same! /s

The reality is they act at vastly different rates. Cisco develops like a Yugo and lays off like a Porsche. Competent companies do it the other way around.

If I was approaching 30 (still earlier in career) I would be looking at companies in the AI space. There is a ton of runway for those companies and they will be growing at the expense of companies like Cisco that continue to miss market transition and spend less and less on R&D and innovation.

Leave, I'm doubting you have enough rsu's left on the table to justify a 2 year wait since the first year is the main stack anyways. One year maybe, not two. It's not worth staying for $20-25k. Work that into your cost model when looking.

Love the "Always have a Plan B" comment above. And another quote that comes to mind is "'You miss 100% of the shots you don't take' - Wayne Gretzsky" - Michael Scott 😂

Never hurts to keep your resume updated, network, and apply/interview to keep your skills sharp. Maybe there's nothing greener on the other side and you decide to stay. Maybe put more energy into other areas of life. Or, maybe you find a really exciting opportunity that more than makes up for the RSUs in pay and/or quality of life.

If you're not feeling inspired at Cisco, heading out is logical. It takes a lot of interviews, but it sounds like you're in a place in life where you would be ready for that.

If you are serious about leaving, make a plan, and go for it. You'll probably find a great next opportunity. Flexibility is nice, but it sounds like the LRs hold you back from comfort with the next phases of your life. And if that's the case, maybe you can find something that will propel you forward, rather than holding you back.

Who knows - you might find something you love :-)

You people make way too much out of the yearly LR. A lot them are people who are being managed out anyway. Cisco is doing them a favor. instead of putting them on a PIP and firing them (like they should) they just use the LR as an excuse to let them go. and now MR. Worthless_employee can collect severance and tell his next victim...i mean employer, that it wasn't his fault, he was just a victim of the big bad LR. Now there are exceptions to this obviously. But News Flash ANY EMPLOYER can fire you without cause...PERIOD. So stop acting like Cisco is some how different.

Not knowing the kind of work you do or where you live as starters it's hard to provide direct though speculative answers to your question.

My perspective comes from being an engineer in an area with a lot of high tech. Small companies were massive skill builders as you had to take on many roles, but they were poor for growing income. Big companies always had so much technical debt that everyone was singing "Tomorrow" from the musical Annie where useful work was always a day away, but they had deep pockets so you could raise your income quickly.

Bouncing between these two types of companies allowed me to grow both skills and income, and by living 30-60 minutes outside the core of a tech center I had a choice of jobs to choose from while saving many hundreds of thousands on my house, which I didn't buy until fairly late in life as renting smaller places while investing what I saved both paid for that house and eventually early retirement. I also suffered only one layoff when a company shut down the division at which I worked.

Beyond skills and income, make sure you are growing connections. Many of the most brilliant people will be taken out by AI filters before their resume ever reaches a human so you need those connections to have the best opportunity to interview. Those connections aren't just outside your company but inside as management chains that knows you both professionally and personally are far less likely to push you out in a layoff than people who are abstract numbers.

Always have a Plan B.

I stayed for a long time, I knew I would be eventually LR'd. I am an old-timer and had good old options and good RSUs. Once LR'd, I had another job lined up pretty much immediately, because of partnerships we had with a startup. Staying allowed us to pay off all our debt, max out our 401Ks and Roths, and retire in our mid 50s. This was only because of good planning and being in a group under a good protecting senior leader. Once he moved on, I was LR'd, but just went to the startup. I was able to do that because the startup used Cisco APIs and services, and I helped them scale by closely partnering with them while I was blue badge. Without the options, good bonuses, LR payout, and framework for going to the other company; I would not have stayed.

Always have a Plan B.

totally understand, you will need to level-up salary-wise if you want to afford all of that, and Cisco will simply never push you into the salary ranges other tech companies might offer

you've figured out what many of us geezers already know - Cisco is a great place to END a career, not a great place to START one

but you may be underestimating the state of tech hiring right now, so I recommend conducting your job search on Cisco time rather than leaving

What competitor?

Stay here. Find GF who works for either Meta, Apple, Google, Amazon, Tesla. Let her work hard and buy a home. You continue to enjoy life.

get out while you can. when they put you under a microscope and pip you it will be late

I've decided to move on and have accepted a job with a competitor that does not have a history of constant layoffs