Here is the version published this week Forbes Careers Newsletter, which brings the latest news, commentary and ideas on the workplace, leadership, job search and the future of work straight to your inbox every Wednesday. Click here to subscribe to the list of newsletters!
Google offices in Granary Square, London. In January, the company announced that it was laying off 12,000 workers; employees described being notified of their job cuts via email notification. (Photo by Stefan Rousseau/PA Images via Getty Images)
PA Images via Getty Images
Jhis posts on LinkedIn have been heartbreaking. The woman who learned of her dismissal the very day she gave birth. The young program manager who was about to take his family for a tour of the office before reading it. The software engineer who had stayed up until 3 a.m. the night before work, only to find out hours later the email that meant his visa was now in jeopardy.
These are the stories of people who work for tech companies where layoff notifications have been sent by email. In some cases, there were no official individual interviews with their managers. No company-wide town hall where the CEO had to stand up and break the news in front of people. Not even a Zoom call dropping the hammer.
Have we arrived at the era of the digital bordereau? It sure is starting to look like that. From Twitter to Salesforce to Google, employees were notified, either initially or in full, from their inboxes. This week, I spoke with experts in outplacement, recruitment and human resources to find out why. Some have suggested this is proof that the lawyers, not the managers, run the show – after all, an email is much easier to control than an emotional supervisor. Others have suggested it’s a lack of practice with the mass layoffs – many of these big tech companies have never had to make cuts of this size before. Still others thought corporate leaders may be hesitant to end up like Better.com CEO Vishal Garg, who went viral after laying off employees on Zoom.
After posting my story on LinkedIn, a human resources manager, Colleen McCreary of Credit Karma, said the practice of layoff notifications by email was just “laziness”, describing how she had made job cuts in the past, with each affected person having a conversation with their line manager within two hours. “It’s important – years later people are still commenting on how respected they felt and remember the company fondly.”
Hoping that others will follow this approach. If you’re tracking companies that are cutting jobs, here’s our layoff tracker, which Forbes‘ Brian Bushard diligently updates. Speaking of layoffs at Google, my colleague Richard Nieva explained how Alphabet’s “Other Bets” employees, like Waymo and Verily, haven’t received as many severance packages as other Google employees. And as always, our contributors have insights on why big tech layoffs happen, how you can leverage your soft skills to find a tech job in another industry, and how to regain a sense of psychological safety after a refresh. massive foot.
FEATURED STORY
Wall Street’s most connected black woman has an ingenious idea to close the wealth gap
Ariel Investments’ Project Black aims to break through the size barrier faced by black entrepreneurs by acquiring companies with revenues between $100 million and $1 billion and, if they are not already minority-led, installing black and Latino executives to run them — “minorizing” the businesses, as co-CEO Mellody Hobson puts it. Read more in Maneet Ahuja and Hank Tucker’s profile on Hobson here.
ON OUR AGENDA
News from the world of work
But no, don’t work anymore: Mass protests swept through towns across France for the second time in two weeks on Tuesday as eight major unions gathered to protest against the French government’s proposed pension overhaul, which includes raising the age national retirement age from 62 to 64.
The compensation policy for CEOs: New research by academics from Durham University Business School in the UK and Sabanci Business School in Turkey shows that elections that bring left-leaning politicians to power reduce the pay of chief executives there by almost 6%. % on average, written Forbes contributor Josie Cox.
Super Bowl Leadership Styles: The game will be between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs. But the most compelling story may not involve any of the actors, writes Forbes contributor Theodore McDarrah. All eyes should be on the two men wearing the helmets on the sidelines: head coaches Andy Reid and Nick Sirianni. At opposite ends of their careers, how different are their leadership philosophies?
Hero either: The belief that “heroes” should sacrifice themselves drives veterans toward lower-paying, service-oriented careers, researchers have found in a study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Forbes’ Ana Faguy reports on the study which, through 11 experiments with 6,500 participants, examined the link between “hero” language and low rates of employment and income.
An Rx for pharmacist shortages: Major drugstore chains have announced they will cut hours in March following labor shortages, reports Forbes“Antoine Tellez. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment growth for pharmacists is expected to grow only 2%, much slower than other occupations, which also signals that the demand for pharmacists has increased as they expand their roles in the beyond the execution of prescriptions.
Quite a trial and error: Louisiana State University overpaid football coach Brian Kelly by more than $1 million last year, according to Louisiana’s legislative auditor, adding to the already exorbitant paycheck. coach, but the payments turned out to be accidental and the university made a deal with the coach to get his money back.
WORK SMARTER
Practical information and advice from Forbes contributors to build your career, lead smarter and find balance.
Don’t have enough ZZZs? A sleep psychologist explains how to turn off your brain at night.
Accepting or making counter-offers is never a good idea. Here’s why.
Did you survive a layoff round? Face any guilt you may be feeling with these five ideas.
It’s easy to get stuck in your work during slow times—try these tips to get ahead.
Layoffs are not the end of the world. Here’s how to land your next gig.
BRAND
Books, links and other web reading on work, careers and leadership.
“Labourism” could be coming to an end, writes the Atlantic‘s Derek Thompson, because wealthy Americans work less and buy more free time.
Voice‘s Rani Molla examines how layoffs of tech workers could benefit traditional companies, all of which are hiring – and need – workers with tech skills.
In Shifting into high gear: turning pressure into performance and crisis into creativityhumanitarian crisis expert Ben Ramalingam explains how to reframe responses to stress and pressure, using them instead to benefit your work and your mindset.
