OT: Recent/upcoming layoffs?
After ~4 months of the leadership of my firm telling us we were just understaffed because of summer seasonality and that they weren't going to lay anyone off, we just had a round of layoffs, and I was one of those affected. A lot of my friends in the industry have said that clients are hiring way less, and I personally worked with two clients who "restructured"... plus a friend at one of the Big 3 Automotives said he's expecting a round coming.
How's everyone else holding up?
Additionally, in case anybody knows of remote openings for a J.D. (UM Law 2009) turned strategy consultant turned recruiter (I'm particularly interested in talent roles at Private Equity/VC shops), I'd love to have a chat!
October 18th, 2022 at 5:24 PM ^
can't help you with recruiting, but there are lots of places looking for lawyers if you've passed the bar exam.
October 18th, 2022 at 5:31 PM ^
Can confirm. Our law firm has a long list of attorney positions in various practice groups that we would like to hire.
October 18th, 2022 at 10:54 PM ^
Are any of them IP and can they be done from Chicago?
October 18th, 2022 at 7:06 PM ^
yep, recruiting is a tough business when hiring slows. law on the other hand...
October 18th, 2022 at 5:25 PM ^
Sorry to hear that. I work for one of the FAANG companies and general consensus is the belt is tightening, demands will be greater, and if employees want to self-select out, that's okay, let 'em leave.
Open roles are currently frozen or need high exec level approval. It very much feels like a "brace for impact" scenario.
October 18th, 2022 at 5:26 PM ^
My company just laid off a little under 200 people. I think executives had been looking for a reason to restructure some things and doing this along with it made the most sense. We also happen to be in an industry that's changing a lot post-covid (workplace products related).
Working in IT, having 6 months severance + COBRA coverage wouldn't have been the end of the world but I like the people I work with and the work-life balance, so I'm glad I didn't get let go. Some folks had new jobs lined up already so it's just a 50% bonus to switch jobs. Not bad.
October 18th, 2022 at 5:31 PM ^
Oil industry is booming thankfully!
October 18th, 2022 at 6:34 PM ^
Can confirm, and if the wellheads in Siberia freeze over again this winter, like they did in the winter of 91-92, then things will look the best they ever have in the US, while they'll look... interesting... most everywhere else.
October 18th, 2022 at 5:39 PM ^
Sorry to hear that..... although certain sectors are tightening the belts, anticipating the recession not being short and trying to stay ahead of the impending economic slow down, there are still lots of sectors hiring.... There's a strong likelihood that you'll find employment if you're flexible and willing to work outside of your preferred position.
I'm seeing a fair amount of employment changers..... like the firms laying off, its good to try staying ahead of the slow down. If you feel your position at your current employer MAY be in flux, get out there and start looking. With the expansion of 'remote working' due to the covid environment, plenty of employers are flexible on location. most rewards are grabbed by those looking for them, not waiting on them. Best of luck!
October 18th, 2022 at 5:46 PM ^
I'm sorry to hear about your job loss and hope you'll land on your feet quickly. May you also have a strong social support system in place! Speaking from recent experience, being out of work can mess with your head after awhile.
October 18th, 2022 at 6:00 PM ^
So that’s why you invaded Ukraine….
October 18th, 2022 at 6:21 PM ^
I thought of HP immediately when reading this. I hope that you found a new gig that utilizes your talents.
October 18th, 2022 at 8:14 PM ^
Yeah I had a mental meltdown in early 2018 after losing my job and was idle for 4 months. A week after that I got a call from a recruiter at my current job and it all worked out. Stay strong, MGoBrother!
October 18th, 2022 at 5:49 PM ^
Oracle sure seems to be doing okay, sure are putting on a show here in Vegas.
October 19th, 2022 at 9:22 AM ^
This is the first year I have missed Open World / Cloud World in 15 years.
As an aside, I am hiring developers with C# experience. The caution around an upcoming recession gives us smaller companies a chance to get some really good talent (and gives a few people a glimpse of a better work experience)..
October 18th, 2022 at 5:50 PM ^
Work for a VC backed company and we have seen hiring come to a stand-still almost. Maybe 2 new people in October so far.
Fewer than 6 months ago, they were hiring in cohorts of 10-15 at a time every other week.
October 18th, 2022 at 5:50 PM ^
As a teacher, I have a ton of job security with the current shortage. I hope things work out for all of you.
October 18th, 2022 at 6:01 PM ^
Same, if anyone is interested in teaching feel free to reach out to me. The pay is good and the job is amazing.
October 18th, 2022 at 7:01 PM ^
I've been looking at re-entering the work force and I've always been interested in teaching. But I've heard lots of bad things about the current conditions in schools.
October 18th, 2022 at 7:21 PM ^
I have generally enjoyed every school I've taught at except one.
October 19th, 2022 at 8:40 AM ^
Enjoyment of teaching is directly related to the students in your school and classroom. I teach elementary, and some years I would say it is the best job in the world, and I went home every day feeling like I made a difference in the world. Other years I feel like Chris Pratt dealing with Velociraptors. I know several teachers who are on high doses of medicine for high blood pressure because of the job.
October 18th, 2022 at 8:21 PM ^
The state of our public metro Atlanta school is appalling. Can’t give away positions. Haven’t had a Secretary in well over a year (for a school of 650). Didn’t have a social worker for 3 months, can’t fill parent liaison…all that work gets spread amongst everyone else. Not to mention we’ve had 3 classroom teachers up and leave already and the (mostly younger) ones that are here take at least 1 day off every 2 weeks. It’s shameful.
October 18th, 2022 at 10:49 PM ^
Teaching sounds like a good retirement job. I would like to teach math or physics in High School or calculus/physics at a community college. I really don't want to tap into my 401K until I'm 72 or SS until I'm 70. I can retire next August when I turn 60.
October 18th, 2022 at 5:52 PM ^
Additionally, in case anybody knows of remote openings for a J.D. (UM Law 2009) turned strategy consultant turned recruiter (I'm particularly interested in talent roles at Private Equity/VC shops)
I'm in tech and there is a lot of opportunity for legal professionals in tech for in-house counsel -- deal negotiation, contracts, security, privacy, M&A, etc. at the last 2 companies I've worked for and when I was a consultant.
^ One of the VPs in Legal is a U-M grad! Cannot say I've ever come across any Sparties in such a role but I digress.
Recommend checking that out if you haven't yet.
Plus no law firm hours or partner-based hierarchical bullshit.
Otherwise, my industry, is largely recession-proof as with how digitally enabled business are these days, just because the economy shits the bed doesn't mean the care and feeding of information systems drops.
If anything it increases -- like when COVID shutdowns started happening, I was never busier at any time in my career previously.
.
.
.
Also, to your other question. We've ramped waaay down on hiring -- I had budget for 2023 to hire 11 infosec analysts and that was changed to 0 at the beginning of Q4. Also I have zero budget now for new procurement.
We're not in a hiring freeze as such but only strategic positions are being filled.
The VC firm which owns us (was public -> M&As -> combined companies into 1 umbrella -> went private) isn't hurting for money but it's hard to make financial decisions with so many misleading and contradictory indicators out there. I don't view this as something 2008-2009ish yet but I think people are waiting for some clarity regarding the economy.
October 20th, 2022 at 10:48 AM ^
Good to hear! I'd love to have a conversation with someone in-house; my previous experiences have been that they were leaning towards people with a big law firm background (which I did for one summer in law school and new that wasn't for me), but I'd be interested in getting into those roles. If you'd be comfortable making an introduction, I'd love to connect on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacob-lehman-0781a97/
October 20th, 2022 at 8:42 PM ^
So I wouldn't have sway over hiring you... yeah, I'm in a senior leadership role but I've observed that legal departments generally do their own thing when it comes to performance management and staffing. It's not like say I'm in engineering and could have influence over an IT candidate.
But I can perhaps give you some advice which could fine tune your job hunt and search. Lemme know if that's what you're looking for!
Thanks.
October 21st, 2022 at 12:22 PM ^
Advice and/or introductions to relevant people would be great; thank you!
October 18th, 2022 at 5:53 PM ^
With power starting to swing back toward companies and away from employees, I think you’re going to see remote opportunities on the decline or curtailed.
October 18th, 2022 at 7:49 PM ^
I agree with your prediction, but I'd ask employers: What if the best people in your "space" prefer to work remotely? (This is a reality in some areas of I.T.) Are you going to stick with mediocrities who will willingly go into the office? Hopefully those water-cooler conversations will inspire high achievements.
I'm admittedly simplifying matters, but I think it would be a mistake to assume that WFH is merely a perk and a sub-optimal way of doing business. In some cases it probably is. I recently read an article about someone in comedy who talked about how useless video meetings are when a group of people are evaluating jokes. In summary, YMMV.
October 18th, 2022 at 5:58 PM ^
It's tough out there, I wish you the best.
October 18th, 2022 at 6:02 PM ^
Ever since I was a young boy growing up in Bulgaria
October 18th, 2022 at 6:11 PM ^
Hey - I'm in a position to potentially help. Not sure how to connect here privately, but we should chat offline.
October 19th, 2022 at 8:02 AM ^
I'm happy to connect on Linkedin if that works for you: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacob-lehman-0781a97/
Thank you!
October 18th, 2022 at 6:11 PM ^
My gf dumped me on 10/1/2004 then my company laid off 15% of our work force, including me, on 11/1/2004. Not a great month.
Two months later I was moving from Novi to Manhattan Beach, CA. My takeaway, everything happens for a reason and I believe the same for you.
You'll survive this and come out stronger accordingly.
October 18th, 2022 at 6:19 PM ^
For a single dude, I don't think you could have landed in a better place.
October 19th, 2022 at 12:00 AM ^
That's fucking awesome. Just moved to SoCal earlier this year (Orange, South County), wish I had gotten out here a lot earlier. I moved here from Austin and never had a moment's thought to move back.
October 18th, 2022 at 6:11 PM ^
Just read an article claiming the only thing that will kill inflation are layoffs and corperate cutbacks.
October 18th, 2022 at 6:23 PM ^
Increasing supply could also help.
October 18th, 2022 at 9:42 PM ^
That's going to be tough until China stops deluding themselves with the "Zero Covid" policy. Global supply chains are going to be pretty effed til then.
October 18th, 2022 at 6:28 PM ^
I'd been under the impression that the country was in the beginnings of a general workplace shortage that looks to last for the next 20 years or so, though due to vary by industry.
October 18th, 2022 at 6:45 PM ^
Jennifer Gillman might be able to help.
October 18th, 2022 at 6:47 PM ^
I was laid off by an early stage health tech start-up at the end of June that was an offshoot from a larger public parent company. They decided to pretty much shutter our group rather than do lay-offs at the parent company, this despite assuring me when they recruited me away from a solid FAANG role that they were stable and the spin-off fully funded for at least 5 years. The CEO and management are so bad that the lay-offs at the parent company will likely occur anyway and by closing us down they lost a very clear path to a LOT of near term revenue. Small wonder their stock is in the toilet and likely to stay there.
tl:dr for below: lots of volume in terms of job postings, but also lots of people looking, so high traffic/high competition.
I work in tech strategy and am mostly focused on early stage start-ups and while there are a ton of jobs out there, many companies are quietly doing lay offs and so there are also a TON of people looking.....also I believe there are a lot of people hunting for higher paying roles to keep up with inflation. It was easy for me to apply and set up ~10 interviews per week, out of those roughly 3 sucked, 3 were okay/acceptable that I would slow-roll, and 3 were great gigs I would go after.
For the great gigs they would have filtered through hundreds of resumes to talk to maybe 10 people max for initial interviews and then narrow it down to 3-5 for next stages. Getting to final stages is pretty competitive.
After two months I'm about to decide between 3 offers that are all pretty great in their own way and it won't be easy to decide.
If you're looking at talent roles, think about getting connected to the venture/incubator shops that are popping up everywhere. They are churning out idea after idea, and handing them to business analysts to run rudimentary $ projections on. For the most promising ones, they staff then up with a basic team and give them some amount of funding to go off and make something happen. It is the epitome of the "fail fast" mentality where they're going to sink a little bit of money into 30 or 40 ventures and hope one of them pops. For this they employee large teams of recruiters that are constantly working to fill an almost endless need for new people. Downside is that a lot of these are going to fail pretty quickly, so choose wisely.
October 18th, 2022 at 11:14 PM ^
Glad you are landing on your feet (and hoping the same for the original poster as well as others who are in the same situation).
Not sure on how to connect but if interested, I'm also in the health tech space too and having a network is obviously valuable.
October 18th, 2022 at 6:51 PM ^
Good luck to you.
We've had a hiring freeze for a while though that was after a hiring surge so some of it might be natural leveling of teams. We are still making money and are stable but as a tech company we're always a bit on edge just because of operating expenses.
This probably sounds like a broken record but I am always dubious about companies with record profits saying they can't hire people despite their being need; this feels a bit like a power play to reset some of the gains employees made from 2020-2021. I do expect their to be an economic downturn (I doubt it'll look like 2008 because the economic fundamentals are still decent) and I hope everyone finds a landing spot that lets them weather it reasonably well.
October 18th, 2022 at 9:44 PM ^
Yeah, I mean, this is why Americans don't trust corporations. This really does seem like a play to seize back some of the power they lost post-pandemic. It's disappointing that the labor/employees side briefly held the cards for the first time in basically my lifetime but it won't last very long.
And it gets worse when you think that 1) many corporations basically pay nothing in taxes 2) they received forgivable loans during the pandemic and 3) their C-suite-to-average employee compensation ratio is obscene. I'm also curious as to why gas prices went down but the cost of many groceries did not. I know there were multiple factors at play (supply chain, labor shortage, etc.) but ostensibly the largest contributing factor was the high price of gas. But despite several consecutive months of declining gas prices, I was annoyed to see high prices for pretty much everything the other day at Target.
But the role of corporations in inflation shouldn't be overlooked; they're sneaky opportunists.
October 19th, 2022 at 11:22 AM ^
That's the inflation game, airlines do it all the time, wait for some market shock, fossil fuel event, and justify jacked up prices and complain about losing $$ when that is not even close to the case, in some instances even getting huge bailouts from the government........prices essentially stay fixed at the new level with only seasonal adjustments after that to compete. New normal is set at a higher amount. You'll never.......ever.....see them go all "fuel costs have dropped so we are lowering ticket prices."
Somewhat related, go back over the last year and look at the profits of fossils fuel companies while the general consumer is feeling pain at the pump.....more than anybody they use these periods to rake it in and pay their shareholders loads of dinero at our expense. Don't think for a second they care one iota about their customers or are going to possibly take a dip in profits to ease the burden of any American during a crisis. Quite the opposite, they took high prices at the pump and used it to jack their profits.
More pertinent to the original comment, companies will undoubtedly sell out their employees in a fraction of a heartbeat and not even think twice about it. I'm constantly flabbergasted by my peers here in silicon valley that as executives complain openly about employees bailing on them without a huge amount of notice, leaving for more $$ or better balance/lifestyle and a general lack of loyalty on the part of employees. I just laugh and tell them this is absurd given the current climate. Do you offer them any guarantee of employment or notice period if they were to be let go? No? Then don't expect one back. Did you cut benefits, not make cost of living adjustments, do anything in the last year to develop your employees, are there clear and established paths for recognition/advancement? Then don't blame employees that go find places that do support and develop their employees. And no, I don't at all buy that they can't afford it, because in nearly all cases the exec compensation is way out of proportion and could easily be adjusted to be more equitable and provide more balance and cover the costs, though hardly ever considered. After all, the company that just hired your ex-employee could afford it. And, the biggest downside is that in most cases you are losing your brightest and most ambitious contributors, they are the ones with the most options.
The company I worked for was shut down by the parent company in June because of poor management (at the parent company) and so we had to be sacrificed to buoy their stock price (did not work), but I was already looking around and planning to leave at the 1 year mark in September because nothing they promised during the interview process transpired and it was a horrible place to work; poor work/life balance, stock in the toilet so incentive shares worthless, with inflation here in CA I was effectively making about ~8-10% less than when I started, not to mention (and this is on me, I should have paid more attention) their benefits were absolutely dreadful.....couldn't have imagined them being that poor. They painted a very different picture when they interviewed me, to be sure.
The way I look at it, when I take a job, I give it a year to be what I expected. Ideally employment is a two-way street and everyone is doing what is expected of them, but at about the 9 month mark, I assess where things are at and will start to address anything about the role that isn't what I consider right. If the response is positive, I continue to work through the issues to resolve them, but if I get stonewalled or pushed off, I start looking immediately and will be gone at the first opportunity after I hit my 1 year mark. So far in my career I have only had to do this a few times, one of which they realized what was up and got about making things better, one they did not.
Rant over. Folds up portable podium/lectern, steps off soap box. Clears throat conspicuously at the 1.5 people that heard part of that and walks home.
October 18th, 2022 at 7:00 PM ^
Sorry about your position. Agree with others noting you law degree and bar admission would make many doors potentially open to you. I am not aware of private equity openings. I do know a national law firm specializing in employment law advertising for lawyers with the opportunity to work remote. Also agree with comment there seems to be a teacher shortage, though not sure about remote work in that field. Sincerely hope this change leads to a better opportunity and life for you. Good luck with everything and please be well.
October 18th, 2022 at 7:14 PM ^
Good luck in the job hunt. I am at the end of my career - Gov Info tech. No signs of layoffs yet, but I believe they will come. Layoffs suck! It is always best to leave on your own terms.