Thread regarding Dell Inc. layoffs

my team's manager was let go in February and we had nobody leading us for months. They were waiting for a reorg so for a period of time, we had some clown in India who ended up laying off people that he never even knew. The most dysfunctional company that I have ever worked for. It's priceless. You can't make this stuff up.

@1nc Giving it the benefit of doubt that this differs in different organizations, I can tell you from real experience that this goes all the way down to the managers of whoever is impacted. I wouldn't be surprised if it's actually the job of the directors, but reality is that they don't know sh-t and ask the managers that report to them (and the them asking from their M7/M8 if they have any) for the names.

The only exception I seen to this was when some Sr. Managers were let go themselves and their teams got impacted along with it (which is one of the cases I referred to in my earlier post)

@w1 I worked alongside a manager who was given the job of letting people go only to end up getting let go himself once all the dirty work was done. Unscrupulous.

Typically, nominations for reduction are made by directors and above. The list was prepared by December 19. It’s also important to note that if, for example, three individuals are nominated, it does not necessarily mean all three will be let go—there’s a possibility that only one or two may be impacted. Because of this uncertainty, those involved are under strict guidelines not to disclose any details until decisions are formally confirmed.

Do they know - yes! Can they share this info - big no!

@w1 I had to go through that as well. And then even after I had had 'the talk' they asked me for thoughts about my backfill in a 'lower cost' location..

@nt What if your manager is a director? I don't know what the M levels are - obviously m = management

The only managers that don't know, are the ones whose names are probably on the list as well. Otherwise it was them supplying the list to senior management in the first place.

Or in some cases both.

I have first hand knowledge of at least one case where a manager was asked to supply the list of names (and asked to terminate them), only to be let go shortly after. The pure evil of some people in this company is staggering.

@OP It depends on if their manager told them to expect the layoff. Names are requested of the bottom 10% performers and disciplinary issues. Then the director of the department chooses based on those recommendations. They will tell you a few weeks to a day before it actually happens. The manager doesn't always know for sure, but they have a good idea.

depends on level. if you report to someone m8 or below, they dont know unless they have the relationships in place. m9 probably knows. m10+ definitely know.

challenges sometimes come as not everyone on the list is always let go. managers may be asked to provide 2-3 names, then only lose 1 because the director picked more from other teams than yours. so the mgr also cant be fully transparent, as even those on the list dont always disappear.

In advance of the kayoffs last March my biss was asked to provide 10 names for who he recommended to be let go. Only 2 from the list were actually let go and 8 others that he didn't recommend were shown the door. In many cases Direct managers absolutely do not know who's getting axed until just a few weeks or days before.

@c8 Yeah I agree. They are gonna yank all your access to stuff anyways -admin access, adm accounts, privledged access, etc..., which for me they would yank my access to networking equipment which without access to that, i can't do anything work related, at least not with my adm/credintials... though I know what the breakglass username/passwords are so "technically" id still be able to login to the switches and routers..

@hs So layoffs are just random then? If so that seems incredibly d-mb, detrimental and ignorant lol. There has to be some way they pick and choose because if there isn't then would that not cause a massive issue? Imagine having your senior network engineer be let go and they had no backup person, or someone who is vital to a department, or a top sales person with vital accounts and good relationships with customers/clients?

My dad was a manager for 10 years at Motorolla and while I know things have changed... he said he basically had a "checklist" for each employee he had to fill out.
So like,
productivity - good, great, eh, bad, very bad
Likeability
Easy to get along with
etc etc etc... and then he'd submit that form and obviously the people with the lowest "check marks" would be on the chopping block.

@c8 You’re right, that is d-mb. Almost everyplace I’ve worked - when Layoffs occurred the affected parties were escorted back to their desks to collect personal belongings and then escorted to the lobby. Sometimes by a manager, sometimes by a security guard.

In my 40 year plus career, I have been laid off several times. One time the security guard, a man I greeted every morning in the lobby, was assigned to escort me. He apologized several times. My response, “It’s your job, no sense in two of us being let go.”

One time, when working in Cambridge, I was asked to escort a young woman who was being let go because of her odd behavior at times. (She had several warnings.) As we rode the elevator down she began unbuttoning her blouse and suggested we spend the afternoon at the hotel across the street. That elevator couldn’t get to the lobby fast enough for me. I told the woman in HR to call someone else to do her dirty work.

List with it's order is created every quarter - and it's one processed for terminations by HR , approved by Sr.Dir/Division Budget Owner and executed by mgmt.

Mgmt can change some names - however have to get agreement from Dir and HR - usually that is done earlier on in the process so never at the stage HR has list for layoffs

Sometimes someone leaves before other person was scheduled - there down-up 'change' is requested to save req under disguise of 'rapid change of performance'

I've since been let go as well. However, as a manager; the last time one of my direct reports was "on the list"; I found out due to an email from HR notifying me of my responsibilities in the process.

So I reach out to my boss and am like "something I should know?"... So yes, it often is done at a level above the first line managers.

It depends on which segment but in sales managers rarely know anything more than a couple days in advance. There are always going to be lists that are generated with low performers which is normal for any business but managers have almost no control over anything.

According to my paperwork I got after I was let go, HR and my manager knew for 6 weeks before I was let go.

In the UK, a member of the sales team was placed on WFR without being informed. His system access was revoked, and it wasn’t until the second day—after he queried the lack of access—that he received an apology and was told.

and then they let you work a week after you've been notified, which is pretty d-mb.