When I was 10 and my aunt was 13 my grandfather gave us each some money so we could get a treat in a small store. When we came out, my aunt was all excited and smug. She showed us she had received too much change back from her purchase. My grandfather told her to turn around and go give it back. She was shocked, out-raged and said that was stupid. To this day I remember him standing there, looking at her and saying “But if they had short changed you - you would be back in there in a flash.” So what am I talking about? I’m talking about how you develop a moral and ethical compass and how you come to know right from wrong.
For the past 29 years I have dutifully applied my skills and talents in order to help S***** succeed. Each new manager, each new project, each new situation has tested me and helped me become the person I am. In all that time, I have done my best to do my work as my grandfather and my parents have taught me. Do it right. Do it well. Work hard. Be honest. Be a loyal foot soldier for the company. I am happy to say I can look back and be proud of how I served S*****. I’m sure there are many mistakes and I’m sure I didn’t’ get it right all the time, but I believe in my heart I did the best I could.
Unfortunately, in the past few years the S***** I grew up with became a different S***** than one I signed on with. Where the S***** of the past looked at its employees as an asset, the S***** of today treats them more like an unwanted expense. Where the S***** of the past believed in achieving a good balance between work and family, the S***** of today has no respect for personal boundaries. Where the S***** of the past honored and stuck with its employees through thick and thin, the S***** of today treats them more like Lego pieces that are completely replaceable, regardless of how many years of experience or how knowledgeable they are of the insurance industry or company affairs.
Having now witnessed several so-call “reductions-in-force” it’s easy to see the trend. The S***** of today wants the old guard out. Of course, they want that on their terms, so they keep a few of us around, but it’s impossible to miss the change. In my department something like 60 S***** employees used to support the systems here. Today it’s like 6. Think about that. If the 54 employees who were fired had just 10 years of experience apiece (and it’s probably much more) that’s 540 years of experience and knowledge being tossed out the door, like you’d toss out the trash. Yes, many of our contractors are bright and willing and I’ve personally enjoyed getting to know and work with them, but the problem is I just can’t believe that any short-term employee will have the needed investment in S*****’s success that a long-term employee would.
I’m an analyst at heart. You can’t work a job as long as I have and not start applying what you know to situations around you. As an analyst, I’ve been trained to spot problems and look for solutions so it really shouldn’t be a mystery to those around me when I start applying my analytical skills to my work environment and the decisions of management. I suppose this is where I go wrong in that when I see problems and bring them up I’m sometimes told I’m a negative person. I don’t see myself that way. After all, it’s what I’ve been taught to do as a programmer. To me, bringing up a problem is a positive thing because then you can find a solution, but this again is where I run into problems. In essence I’ve been trying to debug what seems a crazy situation. My dilemma: Why does management insist that we throw away experience, knowledge and loyalty in favor of inexperience, lack of knowledge and a loyalty only based on length of contract. Of course, we all know that cheaper contractors (providing they really are cheaper) increase short-term profits. What we don’t know and can’t prove is whether short-term profit is a valid indicator for long-term success.
I keep coming up back to the same problem: the actions and words of management simply don’t support S*****’s long term success…and no matter how hard I work, no matter how many questions I ask looking for that missing piece, no matter how hard I push for change, management has set forth on a path and they aren’t going to change it. It reminds me of our President and his refusal to consider changing course in Iraq. The policy is doomed, but if he talks fast enough or points enough fingers or just refuses to hear the objections of those he disagrees with all the problems will just go away.
If I were a short-term thinking person I could probably accept this situation. After all, it’s just about money and profit and things look rosy right now. If I were only planning to be here a few years to pump up my 401 or add something on my resume I could probably keep going. If I could be “okay” with the actions I so strongly disagree with I could probably stay on awhile. My problem is money is no longer enough for me and I’ve come to realize something important: The person I was taught to be by my grandfather and parent’s is being swallowed alive. Stress turns out to be an amazing motivator. If you have just the right amount you become very productive. Unfortunately, when you discover you work in an environment that doesn’t believe or value the principles you hold dear to your heart then stress becomes this nasty foul goo that begins to eat and gnaw at your soul.
Last year, S*****’s CEO made $14 million dollars. That is obscene. When I think of my friends and coworkers who are sent packing all in the name of saving the almighty dollar, or when I think of comments made to company employees denigrating the good people of Arkansas or when I think of comments criticizing the University District or S*****’s own IT department and then see such outrageous sums paid I am appalled. Where is S*****’s moral compass? Where is it’s soul? What makes a single person worth $14 million dollars a year and how many wonderful, decent long-term employees might we have kept for even $10 million? I’m tired of the lies and spin. IT just reorganized again and they want you to think it’s somehow going to improve efficiency and yet if I think back on my tenure here I must have lived through dozens of these so-called reorganizations and there’s never been a single one that made even a tiny bit a difference. You want to know what costs too much? Poor decision making at the top.
I will miss certain things about S***** very much. You can’t work someplace for so long and not care about people you’ve come to know so well. I will miss the interesting work and the camaraderie, but I now see that by staying I simply enable management to continue down their disastrous path, a path that has left me literally sick with an ulcer. I truly regret that my leaving will make it harder for the few I’m leaving behind, and I also regret that the only compensation they will get for their stepping up will be the added work and stress. To you, and you know who you are, I can only say I’m sorry.
Effective immediately I resign.
<Name removed to protect her>
