#leadership

Worst decisions to have leadership reigns outside the U.S.

Another round of layoffs at Verizon is again being presented as part of the company’s transformation. Employees have heard this language before. Each cycle promises a reset and a stronger future for the business.

At the same time former CEO Hans Vestberg has moved into an advisory role at Consello. Like many executives before him he has transitioned from leading a major telecom operator into a position where his relationships and experience in the industry become the product.

For employees watching these cycles repeat the contrast is hard to miss. Workers face uncertainty and job losses while leadership often moves on to new opportunities within the same industry ecosystem.

Telecom is entering one of the largest investment periods in decades. Artificial intelligence data demand and digital infrastructure are reshaping the industry. The real question is whether Verizon is positioning itself to lead that next phase or simply managing costs while others shape the future.

Employees have heard the transformation message many times.

At some point the question becomes simple.

Dan, can you hear them now.

Clay was only worried about numero uno. He got the CEO and literally gave up everything else. Once the deal is done, expect him to check out and not make any tough decisions while letting the new exec team of 5 Coterra people and 3 Devon people figure out the future of the company. Pretty incredible to have the advantage of being the larger company and give up everything.

Sometimes you got to Like BB - 2 departure in one email…both were incompetent.

Jenny Breeden and Bill Foudy are out. What are they doing with owned brands?

It's amazing how many low-IQ people there are at Dell, many of whom are on this board.

For the last time, once and for all, Dell's medieval RTO policy was NEVER EVER EVER intended to increase productivity, improve team cohesiveness, or any one of the lies and propaganda vomited out by executive leadership.

It was ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS intended to make your life a living he-l, so much so that you ultimately quit on your own. This way Dell doesn't have to pay severance, nor does it have to incur any negative publicity as a result of wide-scale layoff announcements.

It's a BAIN trick. It's greed. It's selfishness. It's a lie, but it is today's Dell. Dell is doing everything it can to reduce headcount at the least cost possible. Get that through your heads. It's the only cohesive strategy leadership has right now.

https://www.barrons.com/articles/berkshire-deal-for-occidental-chemicals-unit-is-a-winner-51a720f0?siteid=yhoof2

OxyChem valuation up ~$3B since Oxy sold. Deal was done in tax inefficient manner. Oxy retained Environmental liabilities. Oxy didn’t try to sell to any other buyers and only negotiated with BRK. They have Vicki pegged as their mark.

This is why Oxy stock is sitting in the mid 50’s with oil at $100/bbl compared to significantly higher when Vicki became CEO and when Oxy acquired Anadarko. Buy high, sell low is not a winning strategy.

Rambeau out and Mehta takes over two out of three segments. What is going on?

I was not surprised by this statement on yesterday’s call. This begs the question, then WHY are those people sitting up there collecting checks? Alfonso also said there were too many people involved in the process. Too many people running reports and not enough execution. Again, why are they sitting there. None of them can do what we ask the front line to do today. Great leaders lead from the trenches not from the conference room.

After 20+ years at Verizon, I’ve never seen morale this low or trust in leadership this broken.

Yesterday’s EMEA call was a brutal reminder of where things really stand. Yet today we’re all expected to log in, smile on calls, and carry on as if nothing happened.

What makes it worse is the constant stream of polished messaging from management and our Exec team that feels completely disconnected from reality. We’re told everything is about “transformation,” “strategy,” and “opportunities,” while RIFs happen all the time and the remaining staff are expected to absorb the work.

I feel like we’re being gaslighted.

Everyone knows AI is coming and it will fundamentally change large parts of the workforce and remove even more jobs at a rate much higher than we've known before. Employees aren’t stupid. Most of us have decades of experience and can see exactly what’s happening.

What’s astonishing is the apparent belief from leadership that the workforce will just nod along and accept whatever narrative is being presented.

After more than two decades here, I’ve never seen this level of distrust between employees and leadership. People can deal with tough decisions and difficult change. What they struggle with is the feeling that the truth is being managed rather than communicated.

Right now, the biggest gap in this company isn’t technology or strategy. It’s credibility.

When EH first came on, he mentioned how Nike would be turning a new page and lay offs wouldn’t be like the past. More of a restructuring of roles rather than saying goodbye to teammates. Since then, it’s been lay-off after layoffs, more than the JD era it seems. And even with all these lay offs, the stock is lower than it’s ever been. Maybe he was just blowing smoke up our as--s, but makes it hard to trust leadership when they do the opposite of what they promise and then also kicks our stock/part of our pay in the gonads. Just get a double whammy.

I'm new to this site. I feel like i havent seen many comments from people in PVS under Tom Ap Simon. He was 100% in charge when I came on in 2020. In 2022, they hired a lady to take over PVS so Tom could focus on higher education. This lady was way more personable and professional than Tom in my opinion. She obviously had a vision, and part of that was to create a new department. She hired a black woman for that department who was very qualified based on previous work experience. Not even 2ish years into the role, this competent PVS leader departed. They did not replace her. They said Tommy boy would absorb and handle both Higher Ed and PVS. A few months after our original PVS VP left, our smaller dept head left abruptly. They did not replace her either and instead shoved our department into another that make 0 sense for half of the employees there.

PVS has a goal to increase enrollment by almost 50%. That is an insane metric and didn't even happen during Covid. On top of that, they so far have hired literally no one on the school facing side of things to support these schools/students. I thing they are eventually going to just sell PVS because it's obvious the powers that be don't understand the actual work that's needed to make this business line successful.

She gave word salad on what they want to do without a plan how to achieve it.
Just BS without any weightage..

Really liked D. Gold answer that he wants to focus on “how”.. everyone always talk about what.

I've been working here for two years and still don't understand how they keep the lights on. The people running this place make decisions that hurt the business constantly. They ignore what customers want, run off good staff, and act surprised when sales drop. It's a miracle we're still around.

First, alignment doesn't exist. Ask three managers the same question and you'll get three answers, maybe four. Then when you actually need support, when you raise your hand because you're stuck, they go blank. No ideas, no resources, and no help. Just a lot of blinking. But God forbid you make an error. Then they're everywhere. Suddenly they have all the time in the world to watch you and question every step, just to make sure you know you sc--wed up. They can't help you succeed but they'll definitely monitor your failure.

Seriously disgusted.

How do they justify spending company dollars on trips to Disney World when thousands are being laid off?

You don’t hate this company enough.

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/adamfalat_healthcareleadership-digitalhealth-healthtech-share-7437488519410880512-_Y0L?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_ios&rcm=ACoAAAH2E40Bnd7RAziuQBDoENHzgN671-AUNTg

I would like to raise concerns regarding workplace culture and accountability, particularly related to an East Coast office. There have been ongoing reports from employees expressing discomfort with certain interactions and behaviors involving male colleagues.

Additionally, there is a perception among some staff that complaints about inappropriate comments or conduct toward female employees have not been consistently addressed. This has created concern about whether employees feel safe and supported when raising workplace issues.

There have also been broader concerns raised about leadership response and whether appropriate steps are being taken when complaints are reported. When employees take the step to bring forward concerns, it is important that they feel those concerns are taken seriously and reviewed objectively.
I believe it would be beneficial for leadership and HR to review these concerns to ensure that workplace standards, professionalism, and accountability are being upheld across all offices.

Leaders need to be in office as consistently as the employees they force to be there to protect their employees if you aren’t going to address the behavior. Get out of meetings and offices and start doing your job!

Good article from "The Hill" on remote work, flexibility and why mandates just don't work.

https://thehill.com/opinion/technology/5775420-remote-first-productivity-growth/

"...Leaders sometimes argue that stricter in-office rules are needed to fix collaboration or innovation. The better path is to raise the bar on management, not badge swipes. The Institute for Corporate Productivity report describes organizations that use “magnet, not mandate” logic, pairing remote-first defaults with intentional gatherings, clear policies and outcome-based performance management. The combination produces high trust, defined norms and sustained results.

The risk profile for mandates is asymmetric. If they fail to lift performance, you absorb morale damage and replacement costs while sending a public signal that policy, not management, is your lever. If they “work,” the effect often comes from short-term pressure rather than durable operating improvements. .."

"...Executives face a choice. They can pursue badge-driven control that fails to raise performance and risks losing their best people, or they can treat flexibility as a strategy, design for trust and clarity, and measure what matters. The organizations that choose the latter are building stronger teams and better businesses. The smart move now is not to roll back flexibility — it is to raise the standard for how you lead..."

No airline background, and remote from Sweden…

Bro, if you’re going to make this an ‘ask me anything’ type of event. Grow a pair and answer the top question, don’t have your staff delete it and pretend it didn’t happen.

From my perspective, there is little evidence of meaningful leadership within the organization. The senior management team appears largely aligned around maintaining the status quo rather than addressing the significant challenges the company is facing (all 'Yes' men in key roles).

There seems to be little willingness to communicate candidly with JG about the realities in the marketplace. In many cases, customers have lost confidence in SAS, and a growing number are actively exploring or implementing plans to replace our solutions. This trend is likely to accelerate in the near future.

At the same time, the company lacks a clearly defined competitive strategy and the VIYA platform has not resonated with many customers in the way it was intended. Unless these issues are acknowledged and addressed directly, the gap between leadership’s perception and the market’s reality will continue to widen. Just look at the SAS revenues at being flat or declining and one of our biggest competitors, Databricks, has 60-70% revenue growth and over 100% market valuation Y/Y growth. Not once during the company kick-off meetings did our senior management team even acknowledge the competitive battle we are facing in the marketplace nor was any type of competitive strategy discussed/presented. How is that possible? How can management present a revenue growth plan for SAS when we are clearly losing market share rapidly and there is no competitive strategy to address it?

If SAS were a publicly traded company, the current trajectory would likely invite significant scrutiny from the market and there would be rampant short selling. It's a very sad story playing out in front of so many great employees. I wish I could do more but, unfortunately, no one in power cares to listen.

@ka+1kk76xn44 said it perfectly.

150 Years of History, 0 Years of Perspective

I’ve been trying to process the absolute disconnect of AT&T’s "celebration," but the more I think about it, the more insulted I feel.

Today, leadership stood up and proudly touted a $250 billion infrastructure investment. A quarter of a trillion dollars. It’s a staggering number meant to impress shareholders and the media. But for the people actually building, selling, and supporting that infrastructure? We got a sticker and a stale cookie.

The "Grand" Celebration Breakdown:

The Investment: $250,000,000,000 for the network.

The Employee Reward: A single cookie and a sticker (and only if you were lucky enough to be at a "core" location).

The Message: If you aren't a piece of hardware or a fiber line, you aren't worth the investment.

It is genuinely embarrassing to work for a company that talks a big game about "culture" and "people-first values" while treating a once-in-a-century milestone like an afterthought. 150 years is a massive achievement, yet there wasn't even an attempt at a commemorative item or a gesture that felt permanent. A cookie is gone in thirty seconds; a sticker belongs in a middle school classroom.

The Downhill Slide

We’ve watched the employee experience erode year after year. Milestone anniversaries: once a point of pride in this company, have been gutted. To see them brag about billions in spending while failing to provide even a basic token of appreciation to the global workforce is the ultimate "read the room" failure.

We aren't asking for a slice of the $250 billion. We’re asking for respect. We’re asking for a culture that actually acknowledges the human effort behind the numbers. Instead, we got a sugar crash and a piece of adhesive paper.

AT&T isn't a "family" or a "culture" at this point, it’s just a giant machine that forgot it’s powered by people.

Sanjiv just hosted an EMEA Town Hall and announced significant reduction in EMEA workforce. Looks like GNT and Security will be hit hard, possibly including divestiture & partnering with other companies, but no doubt all functions and countries within region will be hit. Hearing rumours of 20-30%.
Now we have to wait in torturous silence until the EWC Works Council consultation process begins and ends. No doubt UK will be hit the hardest due to the significant hurdles in European law making it more expensive to get rid of people there...

For those of us who stayed on to the end of the call whilst the Leadership team didnt realise they were still live, the cat is out of the bag, as they put it!

I predict Gail will leave the company within a few months (if not sooner), whether it’s her own decision or not. I’ve been here a long time and I’ve never seen a CEO stay as long as her. Our stock is tanking, and has been tanking for at least a year. I cannot believe she’s still the CEO. She’s the common denominator in all of our troubles.

My group leader status changed to unknown at 5 pm. It’s now 5:25 I have SMS them they blocked me immediately? San Jose what is going on? Also s d** S** and A** status unknown

Noelle never led IT and Katya/Gina did not lead digital?

Really nostalgic for what the company once was before these two/three

Yes, Leadership is weak. Thoughts?

Nike Leadership finds a way to fail and lose shareholder value everyday...

Can't seem to get questions answered. Leadership doing the information trickle method, like the government does with bad news.

Will quotas be dropping since retail partnership is severing?

Right now quotas in SMB are near equal (sometimes more) than mid-market due to retail traffic.

Eliminating that and dropping the base down more than 50%, surely quotas are dropping (in a perfect world)

Mid-Market opportunities yield much larger deals, SMB opportunities yield small deals.
So more calls, more meetings, more closed deals to equal the same or similar quotas doesn't seem logical.

An old VZ coworker used to say Verizon may have logic and they have reason but never logic and reason together.

The current approach to promotions highlights a troubling double standard.

HR has proceeded with promotions within its own ranks including VP to SVP and reversed role classifications from Senior Manager back to Director, even though the rest of the organization was required to make those changes.

At the same time, commercial line-of-business teams responsible for generating revenue and driving business performance are restricted and effectively blocked. Across my organization, leaders have taken on significantly expanded scope and accountability, with direct responsibility for new business generation, revenue growth, and client retention. Despite these expanded roles, we were told during both job reviews and the annual merit cycle that promotions were not possible even in cases where retention risk and material scope changes are clear.

When HR the very function responsible for fairness, governance, and organizational consistency applies a different standard to itself.

Reminder Chapter 11 is not an automatic liquidation of the business. It's not the end of the world, is it a bad situation to be in YES but it's not shut everything down and everyone just goes home.

Will the company that come out of Chapter 11 be different than the one that goes in for sure, will it be what is needed to shed some leadership along with processes, procedures and products that we need to drop to survive hopefully the answer is yes.

Many of us will find new jobs and careers at different employers but at the end of the day Xerox as a brand and company (under a new structure after Chapter 11) will remain.

Many leaders, accountants and lawyers will make some good money off the entire filing of Chapter 11 and the company will come out the other side much leaner. There will be questions on if different services / part of the company is sold off and etc. of course.

At the end of the day.. everyone still at Xerox at this point needs to make sure that there resume, education and skills and/or retirement plans are mapped out. If your still young in the workforce make sure your doing things to make yourself employable by the industry your in not the employer you report to today.
"Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code enables corporations, partnerships, and individuals to reorganize their financial affairs while continuing operations. It provides a structured process to pay creditors over time, often allowing businesses to avoid total liquidation. Key benefits include the "automatic stay" on debt collection and, in many cases, allowing the debtor to remain in control as a "debtor in possession""

The board should have a vote of no confidence in MF

Hi everyone. I'm currently experiencing soft pressure from leadership to not take my full 16 weeks of parental leave. My wife will begin cancer treatment shortly after birth and I already have a special needs boy to go along with this newborn.

I've been told "well, how will we promote you at the mid-year if you're on leave?"

I could definitely use the pay increase, but everything from leadership has made me distrust them. I know the right answer is to take my full leave and probably look for a new job while on leave (not at a core site).

I guess I'm just looking for some pep talks around not feeling guilty about leaving my already short-staffed team even more short staffed.

All of the bosses I had did the opposite of these. Most put up a front but it was mainly self serving.

1. They put you in the spotlight
   ↳In meetings, they say "This idea came from...," instead of claiming the credit

2. They step up when you're treated unfairly
   ↳If someone attacks your work without context, they set the record straight

3. They advocate for your promotion
   ↳Behind closed doors, they make sure your name shows up in growth talks

4. They take the heat
   ↳When a client's upset, they own the problem instead of blaming the team

5. They guard your bandwidth
   ↳They tell others "They're maxed out right now" instead of quietly piling work on you

6. They block bad work
   ↳They turn down projects that won't develop you or use your strengths

7. They boost your profile
   ↳They put you up for awards, stretch roles, or high-visibility work

8. They tell you straight
   ↳They mix encouragement with clear feedback on what'll help you level up

9. They support your ideas
   ↳When you pitch something new, they say "Go for it - I'll share the risk with you"

10. They honor your limits
    ↳They say "They're offline on weekends" instead of expecting 24/7 access

11. They listen - then act

12. They prove they care

Too much bloat with no added value and big checks

Updates coming to ways of working. They'll have us all in the office more in hopes the gas prices, commute, and micromanaging makes people quit. Theyve basically said as much to members of leadership.

I’m still trying to unpack that strange farewell town hall Cordani threw for himself.

How could neither DC nor BE acknowledge the layoffs that happened less than 1 week prior to this event and that are still ongoing?

I don’t even know what I expect from this conversation. I think I just need to know that everyone else thinks it was eff’d up and awesomely tone deaf.

EH, you can't rebuild with layoffs and you flying around! I had faith in your; but you proved me wrong...

Article: https://www.bizjournals.com/portland/news/2026/03/09/elliott-hill-nike.html?csrc=6398&utm_campaign=trueAnthemTrendingContent&utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin

Increasing bill didn't work
Matching paper bill didn't work
Delaying port outs didn't work and Dan had to back out

That organization cannot solve churn, they need expertise ASAP!!!