Thread regarding ExxonMobil Corp. layoffs

Advisor bs positions

The organization seems heavily weighted toward advisory positions rather than operational leadership. While credentials are valued, practical experience and accountability appear to be lacking at the management level. This has led to ineffective guidance, limited clarity in decision-making, and inconsistent execution. Financial performance may be sustained by legacy systems or market position, but management practices themselves show significant room for improvement.


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| 1772 views | | 9 replies (last December 22) | Reply
Post ID: @OP+1kcygy526

9 replies (most recent on top)

@f1 For some reason, people in lots of places seem to want engineers in roles that have nothing to with their discipline, and in many cases aren’t even technical.

Lots of people who went to elite schools, developed “soft skills”, and nepo’d their way into upper management see engineers as organizational problem solvers whose primary function is to clean up the messes caused by mis-management and bad leadership (two different things). In reality, we’re technical SMEs who should be used to solve complex technical problems for the benefit of the business. In my experience this almost never happens.

I’ve personally come to despise corporate engineering roles. Seriously thinking about leaving the profession entirely. Maybe teach at a university or buy some farmland.

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Post ID: @gh+1kcygy526

@e9 Same could be said about most executive roles.

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Post ID: @gf+1kcygy526

An advisor title is a glorified "PowerPoint Preparer" for the V.P. / Executive. Your job as an advisor is to make sure that the financials are accurate. Exxon acquired Mobil in 1999 and we still do not have all of the SAP Platforms talking to each other and it has been 25 years.

Hopefully, the Polaris initiative will solve all of our issues but I have my doubts.

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Post ID: @fq+1kcygy526

What make you think credentials are valued? Sure having an engineering degree is “overvalued “ in a sense!as is having an mba in certain functions. But once you are in the company you expertise or competence, including expertise or competence derived from obtaining credentials, largely works against you in terms of management development.

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Post ID: @f1+1kcygy526

@e9 if the company is going to continue to load up on low cost tech center employees (BTC, KLTC for example) with limited experience and skills the company will need more advisors to keep things on the rails.

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Post ID: @ea+1kcygy526

OP is over analysing.

As said below, 95% of corporate jobs are BS base case. There's so many advisors as the company still has far too many employees for the limited amount of work it's doing.

Real example, Global Projects could get rid of 80% of it's people and the negative impact would be nil.

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Post ID: @e9+1kcygy526

Clearly you don’t have a clue what advisors do

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Post ID: @dr+1kcygy526

@OP Most corporate jobs are BS jobs. None more so than executive roles.

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Post ID: @aw+1kcygy526

One day a guy was a lab tech then the next day he’s an advisor with a MBA degree from a Cr--ker Jack university WOW . This company can save a lot of money by not overpaying their people

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Post ID: @a2+1kcygy526

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