Thread regarding Cengage layoffs

Jawal !

Sounds like Spotted Elephant & I are in the same office area…

Looks like the company is providing lunch for everyone today that is in the office. My prediction is pizza!!! Place your bets!!!

Greetings,

Yes, streaming services have been bad for every company but Netflix. However, Cengage is like Netflix for textbooks and we can all agree that Cengage Unlimited has been an unmitigated success!

Full Stop!

I still remember the announcement of Cengage Unlimited. I think anyone not truly invested in the company could see how bad an idea it was. Even now we see how bad streaming services have been for every company but Netflix.

Incidentally, it sounds like the very thing the government was afraid of with regard to the MGH merger--that it would be bad for authors and consumers--is coming to fruition since it sounds like the current Project Horizon initiative is concerned with cutting down on the amount of total offerings.

Then again, how many different Calculus textbooks need to exist.

CU was brought out way before the MGH merger collapse.

I know several of the poor souls who were forced to turn "Thomson Now" or what we all referred to as "Thomson Not Now," into "Mind Tap," which they all referred to as "Mind Trap."

Such great times!

IPS nailed it. Anyone who has spent more than an hour in the company of hardcore Cengagians knows just what is meant by ‘the land of misfit toys’. There’s one location in particular that seems to attract the weirdest of the weird. Maybe the fact that the hiring there has been controlled by one person for well over a decade has something to do with how delightfully dysfunctional it is. Misfit toys, indeed!

"I can't remember all of the different initiatives, but for years, a new director would be named every year or two, and new strategies would be rolled out. Before MindTap, there were several others. There would be lunches, meetings, launches, marketing efforts, sales calls, etc., only to pivot when leadership changed again."

This would happen every 12-18 months like clockwork. Underlings favored by the previous VP/Director would get punished/demoted/fired while new "stars" sensed the opportunity and became department heads. The new religion would be shared at a retreat or offsite and everyone would put their heads down and try to out-do each other. Then that VP would fall out of favor with C-level management -- usually due to poor financial results that had nothing to do with the strategy. Then the entire process would start anew...a new VP would be anointed (sometimes from Pearson, occassionally from outside the industry) and all the old ways were torn up. The newest religion would be shared at an offsite or retreat. I gave up after my 3rd cycle of this. I remember questioning why we were throwing away the baby with the bath water and a Cengage cultist scolded me. I was done and left the company and industry for good 6 months later.

Thank you, IPS. You are definitely giving out words of wisdom to those who are still at Cengage.

Greetings,

Out of curiosity, where has Boston moved?

As I've said in the past, I worked at Thomson Place (I even remember the weird mustache guy from Fast Tax who used to creep on the young employees!), Channel Center, and in the Pier for a very short time before changing industries.

I follow Cengage because I worked for the company for so long. When I was a ranking member of the Cenforce, I used to follow more closely, but after I left, it's still been fun to follow.

Cengage would be a great case study for a business school project. In some cases, they've scored great wins, but as anyone in business can tell you, strategic long-term planning is the most critical component of long-term success. In my opinion, Cengage's leadership team needs to improve in this area.

I can't remember all of the different initiatives, but for years, a new director would be named every year or two, and new strategies would be rolled out. Before MindTap, there were several others. There would be lunches, meetings, launches, marketing efforts, sales calls, etc., only to pivot when leadership changed again.

This cost millions of dollars, and demoralized teams poured their hearts and souls into these initiatives only to have them shut down. Because of the ever-changing plans, Cengage's CTO (GM) could never bring together a cohesive tech strategy. This was further hindered by hiring at the managerial level using DEI guidelines instead of candidates with solid tech backgrounds. Most hires were either from MH's healthcare company or complete DEI hires.

I've nothing against DEI, but the candidates must be qualified. When you have someone running a department that doesn't know basic HTML, the employees can think up all kinds of reasons to extend deadlines, run up billing, etc.

Spending has also been out of control for years. For example, there used to be a Friday meeting about technology. Word got out that a free buffet was usually from a decent restaurant. The whole company would show up, grab a plate, and leave. Maybe thirty people stayed for the meeting, and about one hundred ate the free buffet, which ordered more and more food.

This showed me management was utterly detached from what was happening at the company. Instead of bringing this problem up in management meetings, more food was ordered. The message to the employees was to do what you want, and you can get away with it. I can say the same thing with WFH, which was never monitored.

To survive in any business, long-term planning is essential. The company must be ready to pivot if something like 9/11, COVID-19, or a market drop happens. Cengage is a smaller company but an ocean liner that can't react to change.

For example, when massive losses were piling up, and the MGH deal fell through, Cengage Unlimited was rolled out. Many may not know that CU was thought up by a C-level employee late at night out of the blue and rolled out within weeks (from what I'm told). I remember MH and FB unveiling it and there were three reactions from the audience.

1- nothing (checking phones, etc.)
2- Huge grins and enthusiastic nods (mostly editorial types)
3- Praise and faux awe from a few marketing mid-levels excited about this transforming the industry.

Self-fulfilling market research, no plan b, and no sane reason to give away most of the company's value. Nobody seemed to grasp that 'saving students millions of dollars' sounds great, but it's not sustainable.

To those asking if they should quit, I would say no. If you have a job, take advantage of Cengage's tuition reimbursement. If/when you're laid off, the time limit for your stay is waived. Update your skills, look for a job you will love vs. a paycheck, and look for something in a growing industry.

Despite all the news about Bidenomics and the fantastic job market, it's tough out there. This administration may have added more jobs than any other, but that's only if you consider all the jobs after COVID-19 ended.

The job market is brutal, we're probably looking at another lockdown at the next election cycle (if not sooner), and it's hard even to secure an interview. If you have a position at Cengage, look aggressively, but don't quit until you find something.

I worked in a different industry before coming to Cengage but publishing isn't all that good on a resume. I can say, however, that at Cengage the following happened:

1- I was hit on/harassed by a g-y manager (I'm straight).
2- Having a lower-level manager (not on my team) who would get so drunk they would get crazy in meetings and fall asleep in their office daily when they showed up.
3- Hearing about an employee on the RSO bullying his female co-workers (Clifton Park). This person tried to join one of my teams several times.
4- Waking up to the morning news of a Boston employee photographing students in a locker room.
5- A German superior telling employees to 'get on the train' and dropping words like retar*** in meetings.
6- etc...

The list goes on and on. I love Cengage and loved my time there, but if ever there was a company that could be called 'the land of the misfit toys' it would be the center of engagement.

Full stop!

All I can say is Kentucky office for the win!!! I don’t think this place will be closing any time soon. We have out lasted San Francisco and Boston, the so called premier sites. To all those people that looked down on us, well guess what, we are still here!

So, I am currently employed by Cengage. Should I quit or not?

I think IPS had a managerial role in finance and advised senior leadership. He has far too much knowledge of the interest rate fluctuations that impact Cengage the most (and are buried in the financial reports).

@rih+1oNPsGi5 Your last paragraph is 100% true. It's human nature. Despite the bow of the Titanic about to go under, many Cengagers have not headed for the lifeboats.

Denial is a great dr-g. I think some people actually believe that "management" will get them out of this mess. (Although I do know two senior managers who actually believed that Cengage Unlimited would "save the company." ).

Its hard to feel bad for those still there. Its been a two decade race to the bottom and there has been ample time to head for the exits.

BTW one of those managers was so wrecked by all the disaster there, they quit without another job a couple of years ago.

Those of us who did leave will be watching with our popcorn.

From reading IPS' posts, it's clear he is MH. He speaks just like him and uses all his buzzwords and phrases.

@1ghs+1oNPsGi5 Gee thanks captain obvious.

It's obvious IPS was in the inner circle of Cengage. They have explained things in the past only someone with sensitive information would know.

So, who is IPS? Years he/she was at Cengage?

What IPS is doing is no different than what investment analysts do. They make predictions on a company's future performance based on market conditions and financial disclosures. My guess is he worked in finance or accounting at Cengage and has a personal interest in the markets. Lots of people do it.

If you want to avoid mental stress you shouldn't visit a message board called "The Layoff" in the first place.

And I guarantee that IPS is more in touch with the actual financial position of Cengage than 90% of employees. I talked to a friend who still works there the other week and she told me the company is doing really well financially and didn't mention the upcoming layoff plan. The majority of people who work at Cengage choose to bury their heads in the sand.

I would expect sales to be flat, so no juice there. And borrowing costs have skyrocketed. Your predictions sound spot on.

I have to believe bankruptcy is the end strategy for the goons at APAX. They can shed a bunch of debt and blame someone else (interest rates.)

@njj+1oNPsGi5 Please go back to your cube. Doesn't Cengage allow for mental refresh days? You may want to take one or two.

Many people on this board have been screwed over by Cengage or have close friends who were given the hose.

Schadenfreude is a beautiful thing sometimes and it applies here.

To everyone reading this worried about their jobs, please be aware that while sometimes insightful, this poster does not work at Cengage and has not for years. I don't really think this type of discourse is helpful to anyone's mental load, and rather a bizarre obsession. Comments about Boston office (moved, not closed, with teams required to report in not WFH) and IT layoffs pending (already happened) should be cues to everyone that this is not reliable information.