Discussion

Middle management is completely silent on the recent workforce reduction

0x3ef5…7b77

·17d ago·2 comments

The lack of transparency following the recent layoff announcement is honestly insulting. We get these sterile, corporate-speak emails about 'aligning our workforce with strategic goals,' but nobody wants to address the fact that the actual work output is expected to stay the same with fewer hands on deck. I’ve tried asking my manager about what this means for our department's roadmap, and I just get the standard 'we are focusing on core priorities' deflection. It’s impossible to plan a career or even a daily workflow when you don't know if your desk is going to be vacant by the next pay period. I know some people say 'it's just business,' but AEP used to feel like a place where you could build a career. Now it just feels like we’re all just digits on a spreadsheet that someone in finance is looking to prune to make the quarterly numbers look prettier for the investors. If you’ve survived previous rounds, does the communication ever actually get better, or is this the new normal?

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Comments (2)

0x22d3…b86a

·17d ago

It is the classic AEP playbook. They want us to carry the burden of those who were let go without any acknowledgment of the sheer burnout this is creating. When leadership hides behind generic phrases about 'strategic goals,' it just proves they have no plan for the actual operations. You are not going to get a straight answer because they don't have one; they are just waiting for the dust to settle so they can squeeze more productivity out of the survivors until people start quitting on their own. Document everything and stop going above and beyond.

0x2e8f…59bc

·17d ago

I've been through these cycles before at the company, and the silence from middle management is usually a sign that they are just as in the dark as we are. They are terrified of saying the wrong thing and losing their own positions, so they parrot the corporate talking points to keep their heads down. It is incredibly frustrating, but expecting real transparency from this level of bureaucracy is a losing battle. My advice is to keep your head down, do exactly what your job description requires, and use this downtime to update your resume. Loyalty here is a one-way street.