What the heck does it mean to be on the bench? Being a benchwarmer is usually bad but it is discussed as if it is good at Exxon so must mean something different?
6 replies (most recent on top)
@ev depends on the bench. If you’re on the bench for say a Principal Engineer it could be low like 27. If you’re on the bench for some VP role obviously much higher. There’s not one Bench, you’re on the bench for a specific role, if you’re on the bench anywhere at all.
Any idea what the ultimate potential would be for someone who is in the bench?
@d5 it’s a carrot to offset the NSI stick on the other end of the motivation spectrum. There are typically many people “on the bench” for a given role.
You are the donkey, NSI is the stick with which they beat you if you’re “underperforming”, telling you you’re on the bench and other “perks” are the carrots. You rarely get the carrot at the end of the stick no matter how hard you pull the load or how heavy it gets.
It’s not common to be told this at all, so usually only those who are more focused on finding such things get considered while others just keep working hard to deliver real deliverables. They review these things plans often, so I have to assume there is a possibility you make it but who knows..
@cj so how common is it to be told this? I feel like they tell us things to give us hope but that it is just smoke and mirrors. They promise it to many people but few actually achieve it.
Yep, in Exxon it means you are considered in succession plan for some unique positions - technical chiefs/ architects etc. lot of politics, lobbying and good presentation skills needed to be considered from what I have seen..