Thread regarding Cisco Systems Inc. layoffs

Look, kids.

@ 1rpe had it right. Remember how the rumor was 14.5k and then Cisco only did 5.5k? They did that because they couldn't do 14.5k layoffs and call it a "restructuring". So instead, they are going to do multiple LR's back to back. The bloodbath isn't over, not by a long-shot. They skipped a year to help keep Chucky from looking bad. That just meant a delay of what was going to happen anyway, and they have catching up to do.

@ 1yzd had it right. GIS/IT in general is screwed. Internal application development is dead. Internal innovation is dead. Design and development folk are being moved to ops or just outright ejected. Long-standing solutions are being burned away in favor of push-button IT, the sort of IT where a fresh-out-of-college kid could do it with their eyes closed. So, if you aren't that, then you're a target for replacement as Cisco buys half-arsed solutions and spends the next two-to-five years converting all of IT to McDonalds style, push-button services. Great for the deadwood folk who don't have an interest in innovating, creating new solutions, or doing cool stuff.

@ 3sqt had it wrong. There were plenty of layoffs tail-end of September. Last day for most was Sep 19. Overseas, it hasn't stopped yet.

Get out while you still can.

I heard layoffs are coming soon as well. Not sure when "soon" is though but my guess is before the end of the calendar year.

Keep covering your ears but LRs are coming in the next month.

Second round Layoffs started in France and stains. L1 and subordinates will be out soon ....

A few weeks ago, someone wrote that there are layoffs end of September. Bummer. Did not happen.

Layoffs will happen in September 2017. Everything else is FUD.

Next round to happen in December time frame to help with financial engineering.

Yes....Q2 and beyond it will continue in phases...to get to that 14K/15k number...group after group will be slowly closed...Someone mentioned power point presentation...Very true...i get amazed how much effort the senior directors and directors put into creating mind blowing presentations with any real strategy work....Very few directors or senior directors even open a simple excel file to do some basic analysis...Absolutely not hands on...I heard VMWare even VPs build their own excel analysis model...Here as soon as you become a senior manager, people get an ego boost and will tell only managers to work on real hands on thing...Most mid-to-senior manger will never find any job anywhere else once they get out of Cisco...Good for others though who understand the real things...I have a senior director who never hires below 12 and that too the 12 does the work of 8....It is one of their ways to go up to VP level by promoting the 12 to Director level....This is a typical game.....But guess what, take a look at the Cisco top line, if it is growing, good for everybody, else sh-- will hit the fan soon....Most growth is coming as Cisco is buying many companies with the cash to show growth to wall street...So legacy business and people should leave Cisco...Q2 is going to be very very bad....They will lay off in pockets so that they don't have to tell the street...because the street freaks out and stock crashes to which most executives comp is tied....But isn't that right way to manage the fools sitting on Wall Street?

I'm hearing the same thing from my colleagues that are still there. I'll give you the same advice I give to my former team members:

1. You've gotten your bonus.

2. Start looking now while you have negotiating strength.

3. Show as much loyalty to the company as they've shown to others.

4. View it as a question of when you will be impacted, not if.

Seven managers 80% non-technical in my group reporting to another manager just sitting down in meetings all day playing hot webex passing the presentation status around pretending to being productive. All they are producing is smoke and will fling themselves to any non-work related activities just to say they volunteered and put that in their reviews. When it's time reduce head count they are quick to cry and say how they are running a skeleton team and can't afford to lose anyone. The real truth is if they lose head count they lose power so they do not care if 1 person is doing all the work while 9 do nothing as long as ten or more people are listed as reports. Just by reducing half of those managers will save Cisco close to a million dollars. One million does not sound like a lot but when you spread it across the board, we are talking in the hundreds just on salary not including bonuses, insurances, and stock. There are those good managers maybe not the best talkers but are truly selfless, hoping someone who is high enough reads this and start eliminating this major problem costing shareholders significant losses.

Yes, I hear the economy is booming! Bullshit.

Rumor : Institutional Investors got worried at the 14,000 number that was leaked out . Solution announce a number that is acceptable, go deeper, again the number is close to 10,000 this round and do the rest after Q2 based on: we are seeing a softer than anticipated market , instability in emerging economies, EU uncertainty , moving from cyclic hardware to annuity based software , blah, blah ! The market will lap it up and and share price will go up 2 bucks because Chuck is being prudent.

I'm hearing the same sh*t! God I hate this damn company... but I'm staying and milking this POS for as long as I can...

I heard from reliable internal sources the next round is in January / Feb (Q2)

Heard the same.

Three lists of names, per group were asked for:

1. Layoff NOW

2. Layoff if the $hit hits the fan and we are asked to go deeper

3. Move to another org if that person provides a service that benefits another group more and they can pay

I'd be nervous if I was in IT. EVERYTHING and EVERYONE is being seen as a commodity there. If they can subscribe to a cloud service provider to get it done, they will. If they can structure your FTE position as a managed service, consider it done.

In 2 years, IT will be a skeleton of what it is now. Very few FTEs, most of the headcount offshore contractor/Managed Service types (hopefully in Prague, Mexico or Costa Rica for the company's sake) and a constant cycle of sweat shop labor. Training, layoffs/quitting, re-training, layoffs/quitting, training, layoffs/quitting, re-training...wash-rinse-repeat.

It'll be the 21st Century version of a mid-west machine shop or a Bangladeshi sock factory.

I thought this was cr*p until we started hearing rumblings from our director today. "Cut discretionary expenses NOW". " We're gonna reduce our contractor count.".

Uh oh.

Trouble brewing.