There are many good things to be said about WD. But a word of caution: if you are thinking of leaving a good job to come to WD, beware that once you come to WD, you can be laid off at any time. The fact that WD lured you away from a good position may not matter to your new managers. I've seen a case where a lady had a good job at another company, left it for a position at WD. WD laid her off w/o warning not too long after. Don't intend to make a bad comment about WD - lots of positives about the company. But this is a risk that potential hires might consider.
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That is a good question. My feeling is you are right about HDD. How much longer will it be around? Also, my sense (and I have no data to back this up) is technology development in HDD has slowed down a lot in the last 5 years.
So, would should someone rejoin the company after being laid off once? My sense is, it depends what group they were laid off from, and what group they would be going back to. If they were laid off from HDD, and now are going back to HDD, doesn't it seem like they might get laid off again? But, if all of their skill is in HDD, maybe it's ok, because where else are they going to find an HDD job?
Personally, yes, I would go back. I was with a non-technical dept. (e.g. HR, finance, legal, marketing, etc.). I left a lot of co-workers/friends that I loved working with. I'd go back for that. But that's me.
I would like to pose another hypothetical here. What if you were previously laid-off, but now have a chance to re-join the company? Would you give the same advice? Stay away from technical / engineering / engineering management, especially if it is in the HDD sector. What if WD continues with SSD development (yes, I know that sales of SSDs have fallen)?
It is best to not get into this company for other more legitimate reasons - layoffs or not.
If you are thinking of joining WD in a technical/engineering/engineering-management role, please do not join WD. The reason being - HDD is a technology in coma stage. SSDs are also on a gradual decline. Unless the next technology is made "cost effective" WD as a company will continue to make money However, in these age and times, competition for engineering jobs is very intense. Every company looks at a handful of probables for every job, before they make an offer. So, if you are working on a technology that is in coma stage, it is very difficult to be even called for another interview. Best wishes to those of you who remain.