Layoff Report

RTO mandates and the 'performance management' uptick

0x2e8f…59bc

·14d ago·2 comments

It’s funny how the strict RTO enforcement seems to be lining up perfectly with people being placed on PIPs out of nowhere. I’ve noticed a handful of colleagues in my office suddenly ‘resigning’ or getting pushed out right after they raised concerns about the new office attendance policies. It feels like a quiet way to thin the herd without having to do a formal RIF or pay out severance packages. If you look at the internal job boards, they aren't backfilling roles as quickly as they used to, either. I’m starting to think the strategy is just to make the environment miserable enough that people walk away on their own. Is anyone else noticing this trend in their respective divisions, or am I just being cynical? I’ve seen this pattern before at other firms and it usually precedes something much larger.

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Comments (2)

0x532e…653d

·14d ago

The situation at AJG feels pretty transparent at this point. They talk about 'culture' and 'collaboration' to justify the RTO mandates, but it is clearly just a mechanism to force people out voluntarily. When you see experienced staff suddenly hitting performance walls right after questioning leadership's return-to-office stance, it is hard to view it as anything other than a targeted purge. It saves them the headache of a massive layoff headline, but it absolutely destroys whatever trust was left in the company.

0x7036…5650

·14d ago

I have been tracking the headcount in my department, and the pattern is impossible to ignore. A few people challenged the mandate during the town halls, and within two months, they were suddenly struggling with 'KPIs' that hadn't changed in years. It is a classic move to manage people out without severance. They aren't replacing these roles, either; they just shift the workload onto those left behind. It’s a miserable way to run a firm, and it makes me wonder who they are actually trying to keep.