What have you learned about yourself from all this? What are you going to do different in the future?
12 replies (most recent on top)
Follow where the investments are going that need people to run them, not just build them. Ie Chemicals vs Upstream
Develop a side income so when sh– hits the fan, you won't be sweating.
The irony of your post... I bet you you contribute to the horrid culture.
Well if people put as much effort into their work as they do their nasty posts here and elsewhere, the company would not be in as bad of shape as they are today. Yes, management isn’t the best but this is the first significant layoff in a long time. Go work for Shell and Chevron and try and interview for your job annually because they are continually cutting jobs. Bunch of whining b$#@ches.
Despite EM always historically having a very poor workplace reputation, I learned that the culture has now plummeted to unbelievably toxic levels, and that staff/line employees and management both have some responsibility for the decline. I wouldn't advise anyone to invest in nor accept new employment with this company. Management has made a lot of poor decisions, but the vitriol that comes from the employees is beyond anything I have ever seen. The only hope I see is a merger/buyout in which the vast majority of EM personnel and work practices are eliminated. Sadly, I don't see how this happens unless EM totally collapses and is no longer relevant.
Employees should NEVER swear their loyalty to any employer because most employers don't give a sh*t in their employee's best interest.
I learned living below my means has perks...like early retirement. #fire
Oil and gas is done. It’s clear there is no growth opportunity or viable future.
I learned that management lies more than I was prepared to believe. I no longer trust them, so I don’t buy their empty promises and gestures.
I learned that our dog eat dog culture is toxic and makes our company unviable. There is no team under current incentives and people only look out for themselves.
Finally, I learned that too many fractures exist in the organization, that people are quick to blame others, that there is tension between boomers and millennials, mistrust diversity, embrace nativism, etc. This place is uglier than I thought but it is what it is.
(1) Use every opportunity at work to constantly learn and grow my skills
(2) Periodically polish my resume to reflect those learned skills
(3) Do market research on what skills other companies look for in my field so that I may continue and apply (1)
It is really important to keep your network of outside contacts as active as your internal contacts. Being at Exxon for a long time, I realized I focused more on meeting people internally as I did externally. I still remember in the college recruiting pitch that I would be here until I retired. What a load of BS.
I’ve seen how quickly and easily it is to fall into an us vs them mentality.
I’ve learned the importance of keeping my skills marketable. I believed what the recruiters told me that ExxonMobil offers careers for life and focused my efforts on becoming successful within the company. I didn’t consider how useful the skills I was developing would be to other industries if oil and gas declined. If I had it to do again I would try to find roles that would help me develop skills that are more sought after outside of oil and gas.