I’ve only been at Pearson a few months. All the layoffs scared me and had me searching for another position and I got a job offer. Should I take it? I didn’t get laid off this time so I feel bad because I’m obviously screwing my team over by leaving so soon. But I don’t want to get laid off next time and then have nothing! I’m the breadwinner and have a family to support. What should I do?
23 replies (most recent on top)
OP you may never see this but I hope you took the other offer.
Be more concerned about the fall out from business dealings between Pearson and china. When it comes to American children, parents are going to go apeshit when their kids suddenly have communist china social scores. To many weak leaders at the place selling out for a quick bonus. Then moving on to the next company.
I have been out of Pearson for 10 years. Not being super negative but big companies only care about their own well being, not yours. You are not screwing your team as you really have to be proactive. If you have a solid offer, take it. You owe it to yourself. The company has no guilt letting people go so you should not in leaving.
My unconscious bias is firing on all cylinders triggered by your post. My message will hopefully reflect my intent. If not, perhaps our editorial team will take weeks to review the medium-high level of risk associated with possibly creating an environment of unacceptance with this post, not being heard and lack of diversity. I'll have to consult the San Francisco State study to be sure, however. Lord (sorry, the non-binary electron in the sky that may or may not exist in a physical, metaphysical or mystical form) What I think doesn't matter because it's bound to offend someone/anyone/everyone/who really knows these days, and we simply can't have that. Now, back to making sure my living room is inclusive and comforting no matter who decides to show up and watch a gender neutral game of tiddly winks. Good luck, human being.
@8mkb+1kgiSA14 That’s my point. You may not be stuffing the channel but trust me, someone is.
Can't stuff the channel anymore bc we're paid on net now. Not sure what some of you are talking about. The cards are stacked against us. It's a shell game + three card Monty + Russian roulette + shuffling the deck chairs on the titanic. But at least we're all DEI experts now. That and $8 gets you a cup of coffee at the JW while waiting in line for an hour trying to stay awake for the absolutely riveting morning session.
Our own executive team won’t be sticking around long. Why should a new rep?
@7mlb+1kgiSA14 Totally! There was (and almost certainly still is ) shady stuff happening everywhere, though today the scale isn’t what it used to be.
As long as there is physical product, it will happen. The easiest is channel stuffing via distributors. Pearson Custom were masters is this.
I’m sure there are ways to do it with electronic products to enterprise buyers too.
The business has always been dirty, masked in feel good bs around education
@5sat+1kgiSA14 You are spot on! I’d add that Pearson only enabled that behavior by giving its sales teams commission on GROSS TOP LINE REVENUE only!
Gross sales bonus? Defined fiscal dates?
Not a recipe at all for striking deals with distributors to oversell and return the next year. I’m sure no sales reps made boatloads of money that way (I would have tried).
The whole higher Ed content marketplace is a microcosm for the “hot-hand-fallacy”. Except no one’s told Pearson the “good times” are over based on the tone-deaf drivel they put out there.
@4wqp+1kgiSA14 General Electric was once a great company. So was Westinghouse. Remember the Yellow Pages?
Pearson’s current reality has happened over the last 30-40 years. It’s all been smoke and mirrors since the glory Days of Campbell Biology or Keady Bittinger Math.
All higher Ed publishers operated same playbook.
- Buy up best of breed publishers
- Package together for scale
- Rely on demographics
Most new products have been complete flops over the last 20 years.
The internet destroyed the closed distribution model that kind of worked, even with used books because publishers could raise prices. It allowed rentals to proliferate and gave voice to students.
And the obvious. All the bluster (which is purely self serving) that education is a growth market, is a lie. It’s basic arithmetic. Fewer people are entering this world. So fewer will go to college.
Execs today are no smarter or d-mber than they have been since the 1980s. They are arrogant now. Guess what? They were arrogant 20 years ago. Replace todays crew with from 20 years ago and you will get the exact same results.
It seemed like the culture was great or “management cared” because everyone was seeing success….deserved or not.
It’s like a sports team. When you are winning, it’s because you have a great culture. When you lose, it’s because you have a bad culture. It’s all buzzwords.
The business was built on jammming unwanted, unnecessary expensive textbooks down uniformed students throats via lazy professors.
I’m sure the Yellow Pages was an awesome place to work back in the day.
But let the echo chamber that is the education business continue.
You first have to ask yourself, Are you too legit?
As the all the prior posters have said I recommend leaving as soon as you can if you have another offer. The endless years of restructuring, selling parts and pieces of the business, and more work for the same pay have taken an endless toll on so many who worked here for so many years. Why stay for that? It used to be a great organization with a great culture. Now it is the ashes of the crash and burn over the last few years of all the initiatives with ridiculous investment with little to show for it and poor leadership. They don’t care about their people and they really don’t care about loyalty.
I was reading this and wondering why anyone would want to work here. Pearson was a great company years ago. We were involved, they cared about the employees, and people enjoyed their jobs. Now it's like we are all walking on thin ice. We have seen multiple restructuring across the business resulting in mass layoffs. Employees are afraid to speak up about their workload because of a fear that they will be next. Many spend their off hours scouring the job posting sites for another job. We were one company until AB came in as CEO. He divided the entire company into 5 pillars. Looking back it is easy to see it is for selling off divisions. Watch the stock prices and see how low they have been and when we are jumps are when we have cuts or a new get rich quick scheme launched (really, pop academy?).
POLS underwent a strategic review and the results showed that it is best to sell the division. Colleges are leaving and not renewing their contracts. These are Academic Partners that were with the company for years! The Pandemic did not increase the number of students for these Partners as originally thought. We all work from home now, so offices are closing.
If you work in a division such as textbooks, expect job cuts with the unrealistic sales goals in this slowly dying industry. If you work for a different division, listen to the managers as many are being moved to the Phillipines.
So spend your time here and worry if you will be next. You will not get a large severance package if you haven't hit a year. If you can work for a company that appreciates you and is stable. Get out of here! It isn't worth the stress to stay here. When employees with 10 years plus of tenure jump ship, it's a sign you should too. Best of luck!
So Did you leave?
Time was this used to be an organization that had a mission and cared about its people. No more— all about shareholder price.
Get out. Sales goals are unrealistic and will not be hit. Stock price will drop and someone will scoop up North America and its people will be discarded without a second thought.
This is a certainty next year regardless of what TapS says today.
Jump ship asap! There have been layoffs multiple times in various departments already this years. POLS underwent a Strategic Review and is being sold. The offices in Chandler and Elk Grove are being closed. We have a CEO who is investing in so many ventures that we don't hear about anymore. Can we say Pop Academy? I'm not worried about Credly badges, but hey it's an incentive that we get. And cost of living increase bonuses are only being given to employees who are on the lower pay scale. There isn't any loyalty to us employees, you do not owe them any loyalty!
I would leave and don't feel bad because I'm sure they could replace you with someone they just laid off who knows how to do your job. There's been massive layoffs every other year here and it's not stable and there's little to none advancement opportunities
run!
I hear Pearson is hiring in the Philippines. Could be an option.
Do what is best for you. Having a sense of security in the workplace is pretty important in my opinion. I know what I would do.
There’s no loyalty back to you here. Do what’s right for you. Odds are you wouldn’t get severance in a layoff anyways. Put in your notice, stay professional and be on your way!
Back in the day, you wanted to be careful doing this. It was a very incestuous industry and you would 100% sure see those people again.
Today, it doesn't matter one bit. There is so much turnover and churn you'll most likely not see anyone. But get the heck out of the business and don't look back.
And I agree with the previous poster. You don't owe anyone anything. They would run you over with a bus and laugh the whole way if it benefitted them.
Please...This incompetent, arrogant, uncaring UK corporation can care a less about you. No one on your team will pay your bills or care about your stability. Be proudful and turn in your 2 week notice. No need to give 2 weeks since you've only been here for a few months as you can omit the position on your resume. Take off and don't look back...