Did anybody who still checks this board quit in the past several months? Or does anybody here know somebody who did? I'd love to know how things turned out for them and if they have any regrets. I've been considering walking out myself. This place has gone from toxic (which is bad enough) to abusive work environment this year and I've had enough of it. But with this economy, I'm still too scared to just leave.
If anybody would be willing to share their experiences, I'd be really grateful.
If you can make it to retirement, then becoming an independent consultant at 55 is quite rewarding. You can leverage all the industry contacts you developed over a 25 yr EM career. Getting the consulting business going takes a while so the retirement income helps, but once you have regular clients you can be picky about how much you want to work and for whom and which projects interest you. I earn over 300K per year consulting but work less than 70 days a year. I will keep working until I am 80 like this.
Two of my coworkers chose to take 3mo of salary and leave. I decided to try PIP. Don't know if anyone else in my group was rated low and offered PIP/termination choice.
PhD and other education from the very top tier schools. Did well and enjoyed EM and made some good friends.
I left ExxonMobil when everything in O&G was still good.
It was the best decision of my life! I cannot thank god enough for giving me courage and strength at that time to walk away on my own from an amazing salary, zero stress job, great pension and other benefits. The stink of poor management is too overwhelming for an ambitious mind.
@kuq+16ni7Epc Does anyone know of your plans to retire in Jan? Two emoloyees stated thw intent to retire as to allow management succession planning as they both are technical experts. Only ones that have these jobs company wide. Both got PIPed
I recommend that everyone allways keep looking out for the next job opportunity. It keeps you focussed on why you are staying and the circumstances and opportunities that would cause you to leave. It keeps you in touch on your market value. I almost left once in 2004, but stayed. I now have no regrets with staying. I had a great career, worked with great people including the vast majority of management. This turmoil will blow over. The business goes thru cycles and this is a very difficult down cycle, but not worse than other down cycles. Forced ranking and cutting low performers is difficult in normal times but really tough during the bad times, like now. Most terminated employees will actually do well, but their egos will be damaged for a while. Pandemic is causing these issues everywhere in other companies. Exxonmobil are smart and will do well but caught in vortex right now and recovery may take several years.
I quit not too long ago (for a job that I was passionate about) at a time when the crude oil prices were doing well. Within a month in my new job, I felt and knew that I made the best decision of my life. I now work hard and have my dreams, work interest and excitement back.
At the time I was leaving, it was a very difficult decision due to great pay and a feeling of golden handcuffs. But one thing was clear that ExxonMobil was not a place where I wanted to spend rest of my career. It felt like a drag to talk to incompetent management and employees on a daily basis. Some of us ranked well only because some of us were smart enough to include illusional unproductive leadership activities in our routine as people above only understood that language.
I quit and took a pay cut. Glad that I don’t have to spend time dealing with LPSA touch, LPO, and the weekly meeting.
I left a year ago. No regrets. Stayed in the same industry though. Still pleased with my decision. I've had some companies in other industries reach out and I'm considering moving on from oil and gas totally at this point. My current employer might not be perfect, but leaving the Tiger was one of the best decisions I've ever made.
Leaving was the best decision I’ve ever made! Lots of interesting jobs in tech and in renewables that XOM people can leverage their skills towards. Culture in both of these sectors is complete opposite of XOM.
Rated outstanding, but actively looking for opportunities. Outside O&G, outside Houston, even if it means a paycut. Better for my mental health and relationships in the long run. Geoscience.
We had a guy quit from the Clinton research site. Management urged him to reconsider and back handedly called him dumb for leaving. Even told him he should talk to his family about his poor decision. Anyway he quit and hes doing better than ever. Got a good job closer to home that cares about him. Makes good money, doesn't have to deal with corporate politics. hes really doing well. I'm happy for him.
Couldn’t agree more. A lot of people that stuck around too long are not marketable. They have to go back to school just to catch up. Pension is not guaranteed and maybe not even worth the gamble.
How much longer do you think pension will last in this environment?
I'm thinking about staying
Quit 6 years ago and couldn't be happier [especially now], staying in XOM too long ruins your external market as you're only good at XOM processes. XOM keeps you locked in with golden handcuffs and some vague promise of stability, and of course the pension (which is valuable), but in reality if the company goes much further south even the pension benefit which is "yours" (newsflash: if the company goes bankrupt you won't see that money) might be gone anyway.
Are you really going to grind for a company in a role you hate for 30+ years, during your prime years of life for a pension that may not exist?
I’m thinking about leaving
Pension seems to be what attracts a lot of people but nothing is guaranteed. I watched so many people lose their retirement and life savings over the last few years. Anything can happen.
I was ranked high but will ride it out until January. I will carryover all of 2020 vacation days and retire early in January to also get all of the 2021 vacation days. Between now and then will spend majority of my time seeking the next job in a different industry’. 55 now and I’ve given too many years of 60 hour weeks, so I deserve to slack off from now til January. How many others have this plan? I expect there are many.
Plan on a year of unemployment if you stay in Houston. There will be no O&G jobs for 3 years, but accounting and IT can find jobs at 20% less pay and lower benefits (no pension but a 4% match. It is easier to find a job if you are employed.
The only thing that’s been keeping me here is that my current assignment and boss are both great. The knowledge that it could flip in an instant with a new boss or assignment keeps me actively applying/networking/interviewing.
Ranked outstanding, but looking actively to jump ship.
Look for a job while you’re still employed. Quitting is much easier when you have something lined up, and there isn’t really anything to miss at Exxon, not even the pay is that competitive considering more things are up for being cut. You will get a feel for things while interviewing.. and first impressions do matter . As an experienced hire I have been unimpressed with Exxon from the very beginning - - - it’s the lack of care for the little things, and no wonder they add up to something toxic. There are some great leaders at Exxon also, people who truly care and bring out the true potential in their direct reports but those are not the ones getting promoted.
I quit almost 10 years ago after working at EM for over 10 years. I switched industries. I was just over the opacity of the ranking process and not having enough input into my job moves. I was worried about giving up stability and the pension, and for a year or two I wasn’t sure I made the right decision. Over time I heard from old colleagues about how much worse things had become. Now I make double what I did at EM. Don’t take leaving lightly, but it’s not the only good place to work.