The truth is, Oracle was an ocean of innovation once, with mature software development that was run by adults. We believed in being a place for responsible and business oriented work/software, and to be a company that made other companies successful. Kinda like "All ships rise with the tide". A quiet confidence. The Oracle name had cachet. Sure, we lost people during mergers and aquisitions, but those were logical business decisions. Where did I fit? I came into Oracle's influence around 1997, and I was in and out of Oracle several times. The stories I could tell. However, the stories were within the norms of a company that was run by adults. Good and bad. I look around my life, and Orace paid for everything. My life is what it is now, because of Oracle. There was good. There was great. There is no way I can ever say that Oracle was a bad experience overall, but I can surely say there were some horrible times. Things started to go really bad, when Oracle got a case of insecurity and heavily recruited from AWS. Like the AWS folks had some secret sauce to take Oracle into the "new age". The AWS folks - or shall I say - refugees, hated AWS and jumped ship to be in Oracle. Sadly, those people who left AWS, for whatever reason, brought those same dysfunctions into Oracle. You could see it in how they interacted with "Oracle people". Yeah, the AWS transplants felt that the Oracle people were old, without innovation and at every chance, they replaced/cancelled where they could. Those AWS folks HATED Oracle! Crazy right? You left AWS because it was a terrible place to work, then you came and hated the people that hired you? We saw this happen over and over. If you want to see where this layoff cruelty came from, look no further than who came from AWS. Instead of being an ocean of innovation at Oracle, we have islands now...and they are shrinking. I am so sad to see these layoffs. Its horrible to see all the good people gone over the last year or so. These new people who are running things at Oracle, just don't get it. I think Oracle, at least the Oracle I remember (Good and bad) is dying a quick death. The current leadership is not reading the room on the AI narrative. They are doubling down on a plan that won't work because the room has changed. People - as in the general public - are getting tired of AI Resumes, AI videos, AI words, AI decisions created by a machine running on old data. These folks who are running things don't have the experience of knowing how trends go (Blockchain anyone?) So these layoffs. My guess is Oracle will implode soon on this direction. I just hope there are enough adults to want to get back in the game and fix things, and hire these folks back when it does implode.
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100% agree. When VPs force hiring loops to choose their preferred candidate, even when that person is clearly unqualified for the job, and when they uninvitedly show up in bar raiser meetings to make sure the person gets hired, you know the system is compromised. The same tribe from another company then hires their spouse in exchange for the favor. This is more common than you might think.
Current leadership can be replaced by a room full of orangutans.
It started when Oracle bought out Peoplesoft
100% agree.
I had to hold a meeting, pull 40 people in and ask them to be quiet and read your long post, so we could digest and create panic and fear by it. I had to name drop several OCI EVPs SVPs to ensure people knew I mean business and actions will be taken. I will have 50 program managers (that’s all AWS is) double and triple checking your status and actions daily including the weekends. Only to deliver something nobody wants 12 months too late. Thanks AWS folks I have become one with your broken ways. Work harder not smarter, work longer not efficient and rule with toxic blood in the org.
So everyone is moving from phase 1, the shock and anger, of the layoffs to phase 2 assess blame. How many phases are there in recovering from layoff? How many phases before acceptance?
Back in my days (00-21) Oracle was allowing only one return iirc. So if you decided to leave during your second period it would be your last time.
And yes AWS folks were given card blanch and it was very difficult to survive when they started gutting one org after another
@ae Wow. I guess now I am being confused with AI slop! My point exactly.
Ironically, your post itself is AI slop.
Yeah. My heart plummeted when the IBM buyout of Sun died. Then the news of Oracle and another plummet. The absolute worst news I ever heard in my career.
It started before that with Sun.