TL;DR
Meta is laying off 5% of its staff, calling it performance-based, but it’s likely a cost-cutting measure with negative consequences, similar to practices that contributed to past financial crises.
Story
“Meta Layoffs: Just Another Wall Street Shuffle?
Ah, Meta. The company that promised to connect the world is now disconnecting some of its employees. They’re calling it ‘performance-based,’ but let’s be real, it smells a lot like the old ‘rank and yank’ routine. I’ve seen this play out before—Wall Street does this annually. It’s like a game of musical chairs, but instead of music stopping, someone whispers, ‘You’re in the bottom 5%.’
So, what does this really mean? Well, imagine a school where the teacher grades on a curve. Even if everyone does pretty well, the bottom 5% still fail. It creates a cutthroat environment where people are more focused on making their colleagues look bad than actually working together. It breeds distrust and fear, and let me tell you, a fearful team isn’t exactly innovative.
And who are these ’lowest performers’ anyway?
Sometimes, it’s really the people in roles that were doomed to fail. Maybe the job itself was poorly designed, or maybe the company shifted direction and that job stopped being important. So before you evaluate the person, better evaluate the job itself.
This whole situation stinks of corporate maneuvering. They say it’s about performance, but I wonder if it’s more about cutting costs or making room for new, cheaper hires, perhaps H1B Visa holders?
Now, the whole world knows who got the axe, thanks to LinkedIn. Imagine the embarrassment, the scramble for new jobs. And the kicker? The people who didn’t get fired are expected to pick up the slack, often with no extra pay. Yay!
Look, I’m not saying that there aren’t underperformers in every company. Of course, there are. But this ‘rank and yank’ system is a blunt instrument. It’s like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut. You might get the nut open, but you’ll probably crush a few fingers in the process.
Remember the 2008 financial crisis? Part of what fueled that mess was the toxic culture of ‘rank and yank’ at some of the big banks. People were so busy trying to climb over each other that they forgot about the bigger picture, and we all paid the price.
The scariest part? All of these culls and layoffs might just be setting the stage for an even bigger fall, even for companies like Meta. It’s like they’re playing Jenga with our economy, pulling out blocks one by one, until the whole thing comes tumbling down.
Advice
Don’t get too comfortable, even if you’re a ’top performer.’ These ‘rank and yank’ systems can turn on you in a heartbeat. Diversify your skills and your income streams.
Source
https://www.reddit.com/r/wallstreetbets/comments/1i1ejp7/meta_is_cutting_5_of_its_lowest_performers/