Thread regarding Xerox Corp. layoffs

If xerox wanted to be a tech powerhouse, we wouldn’t have sold off so many “next big thing” concepts which we all know about. That’s the past, but we are still in the same mentality- printed electronics really not being monetized, an area where in theory the “we only know how to sell printers” drivel doesn’t fly. Digital paper was a more recent mistake, and the list is long.

The common thread through much of this is a failure of imagination. Age reduces it, some never had it, but the culture prevents it. Managers with no management skill or technical competency don’t want to appear so, which drives either:

1. Squelching of ideas

2. “Credit taking” behaviors that exclude the idea makers/thinkers, resulting in failure to properly communicate and promote the ideas up the ladder.

I’m old. I will never forget offering an idea for increased MFD revenue to be told that Xerox features are driven by what surveys of customers suggest, and there is no mechanism to include features that customers don’t realize they want. The features now being touted by competitors, the same ones showing up on surveys and being rationalized by xerox as “new customer demand”. I should have left back then, before I was old. It will be harder to find something now, but I still have imagination and want to work for a company where that matters. It’s clearer than ever that isnt going to be here.

Xerox is an old vampire in a coffin and all it took to slay the vampire was Carl and a nail gun.

Angry but proud, I love your comment! Love it! But I, a 30+ yr employee with an end date.,would never consider coming back. This company has completely slaughtered my spirit. Personally, I hope it tanks with stocks spiraling to single digits, leaving Carl dazed and confused.

I strongly dislike ageism but the truth is, almost every time Xerox hired a youngster in my area, the employee didn’t last. For one, they didn’t like the culture. Two, they were frustrated with people saying they value innovation but claimed lack of funds when it was time to invest and take a shot at a new idea, and finally and I hesitate in sayin...many of the younger employees lacked the grit required to work at X. X is a terrible place for early career professionals. It hasn’t always been that way. It was a fantastic place to be 20 years ago. In my opinion that changed.

Having worked at a startup, the average age (and it was successful) was around 50, the youngest at around 40. So go and put that ageism away, and realize you are after dynamic people of any age that want to not just collect a paycheck and count down the time until retirement, but people who want to go out there and make it happen.

If you are marking time until retirement and are just trying collecting a paycheck, you likely aren't what they are looking for at this point. Hard truth.

But also a big element in tech companies is giving people a piece of the action that has a chance of turning into some serious cash. Without that, you can't attract and retain the folks you really want to.