I was going to respond as a comment, but thought that there was enough in the response that was better in the main section of the blog, instead of being buried in the comments.
Dilios: I never tried to come off as 'objective' - not sure where you got that idea. I've got an issue with the way Netshops does business. I have issues with the way they treat their customers and the way they treat their employees. Shocking? Probably not. Would I have a different perspective if I'd survived this round of layoffs? Maybe. Maybe not. I know I'd have been asking - as I did after the last round of layoffs - if this was the end of the reorgs and job cuts. I wouldn't expect to get a response. I didn't last time - why would this time be any different?
Back then, I was simply a concerned Netshopper. This time, I've been laid off by Netshops. Drastically different situations, different response.
I eagerly await the results of the Omaha Chamber of Commerce's 'Best Places to Work' survey this year. Is Netshops on the list? Maybe they should open the survey up to employees laid off both from Omaha and those being let go from Duluth? How would they fair then? Makes you go Hmmm....
If I was 'layed-off' and not really fired??? Maybe you missed the entry about how prior to being laid off, I was an 'above average' employee - according to each review I'd gotten. (Yes, before you ask, I had more than one. I had to ask, prod and pry my managers to get them completed, but I got them. That's more than I can say for some folks employed by Netshops.)
Who said I was trying to 'stop' anything? If someone looking at Netshops as a potential employer sees this blog and reconsiders their application, or if one potential affilliate pulls their ads OR if one investor decides not to go forward with Netshops, then I've accomplished something. Can you say the same thing about your daily activites? How will your opinion change when you're let go without notice or reason? (Don't think it can't happen - anyone there is fair game.)
Yes, layoffs hapen. Generally they are a sign of a company that is either struggling to stay afloat or a company that's trying to look more profitable than they really are.
Look at it this way - let's say 1st quarter 2007 profits were down. Sequoia (or any other investors for that matter) isn't happy. Call center supervisors were being paid somewhere around $30,000 per year. Let's use that as our median salary - some folks laid off made more, some probably made less. $30k/12 (months) = $2500/month, yes? Ok. 1.5 months into the year, they've paid out approx $3750 per employee. 60+ employees were laid off. Those 60 employees would have cost Doug & Co $1,800,000 in salary. Since they were laid off and some received severance pay,we'll say 60 x $3750 = approx $225,000 in salary paid out. That's a savings of $1,575,000 - quick and easy profit. Who's going to make up the difference & do the added work of those 60+ employees? You are Dilios. You and those employees still there, getting a good laugh at this blog. Although, none of you are any more productive than those who were laid off, since you're spending HOURS each day reading this, rather than doing your job....
Ironic, isn't it?
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15 comments:
The scenario you describe in the last paragraph is exactly what has probably happened. What is the relevance? It happens constantly at companies across the country. You're not special. And guess what - nothing you do is going to stop it. I got laid off once too. Yes - it's no picnic, but I understood the situation and moved on. I didn't take it personally - It was a layoff. I didn't start an acerbic blog.
Chances are the remaining employees at Netshops are fully aware of their lack of employment security. The employees probably aren't getting much of a laugh out of your blog, either. More likely, they probably wonder why someone who supposedly cared about his/her fellow coworkers would put forth such effort to condemn them and probably have by now dismissed this blog as a bitter tirade - which it is.
Did you have any freinds at Netshops? At least, it certainly doesn't seem that you give a rats ass about anyone left behind.
I see you're still reluctant to identify yourself. If you really believe in all this flimsy libel your spitting up, why don't you identify yourself? Your silence on this matter speaks volumes.
Lets face it - All you say on your blog here will do nothing other than fuel your own bitterness. You have to ask yourself - honestly - What is the real purpose of this blog?
I suggest a much healthier route. Why not work on a website that makes money for yourself? Maybe sell some stuff on eBay, or better yet - just put all this effort into finding a job. And in your spare time, instead of seething on your blog, I suggest picking up "The Power of Positive Thinking" by Norman Vincent Peale.
"Simon" - I'm pretty sure the scenario I've described is the reason for the layoffs. Well, that and the fact that Netshops doesn't have a HR policy to speak of that properly handles performance issues. Many of the 'layoffs' could have been avoided by having some kind of process improvement procedure in place. If employee A is not performing to X level, employee A is told they have Y # of days to improve. (This has been done at Netshops with a few select employees. I've only heard of it in cases where the employee in question was older, so every effort was made to appear as if everything possible was done before letting them go. Letting go of someone in their 20's or 30's is much different in today's society than letting go of someone in one of the 'protected' classes.) On a larger scale though, this procedure isn't applied to all employees and it certainly isn't instituted the same in all cases.
Your reaction to being laid off and my reaction to being laid off were different then. Guess it's a good thing we live in the USA where we have the freedom to speak out about things we feel aren't right, huh?
As far as 'friends' at Netshops, there are different layers of 'friends' - kind of like an onion. You have your core friends - those who have been there with you for the duration. Then you have lesser degrees of 'friends' - work friends are transitional, mostly because of the lack of job security in today's society. This layoff at Netshops just shows - at least to me - no matter how well you do your job and no matter how much you go above and beyond - there is no such thing as security. Again, I can only speak from personal experience, but I think it applies to many of the 60+ employees released on 2/1/07. Do I care about anyone left behind? Yes - I do. It saddens me to thing that they're buying into Doug telling them that everything is ok and they 'don't anticipate any more layoffs'. That's a true statement today. Tomorrow? Who knows?
"Reveal my identity"? Why? What does it matter who I am? You aren't revealing your identity either I've noticed. Pot? Meet kettle.... "Flimsy libel" - where? I've posted facts "More than 60 employees were laid off by Netshops.com on 2/1/07." = FACT. I've also posted opinions based on what people have told me - only 3 Thralow reps are considering moving to Omaha. Taking the Thralow reps to the various malls here in town isn't going to sell them on the city. Taking them to Chuck E Cheese isn't going to sell them on the city. Taking them to the smelly zoo isn't going to sell them on the city. Notice a pattern here? Talk about not knowing how to speak to your audience. Did ANYONE at Netshops.com do ANY research on Duluth and the surrounding area?
I can imagine the brainstorming session now "Well, we can't compete with the lakes, the football/baseball/basketball teams, the Mall of America or, well anything....let's take them to the mall and show them how we like to shop and eat." "Hey! That's a great idea! We were in the top 25 fattest cities at one point!" "Hmm...maybe we should get a plaque and put that on the wall in the lobby (and another for the wall in Doug's office) - we are members of the Omaha community so technically we won that award too..."
Yeah. I'd be real happy about the number of employees lured to Omaha.
Oh my, you are a bitter one.
Look, you say many of the layoffs could have been avoided by having yada yada - probably not. If a company can't afford the employees, it can't afford them - no matter how much improvement there was. And - are you saying all those in need of improvement were the ones laid off? Probably not.
As for reactions to being laid off, lets compare. Person A reacts by pouring his time into a blog that does nothing for the betterment of himself. Person B shakes it off and moves on to his next job and a brighter future. Tell me who is healthier here.
As for this Doug giving lip service, - welcome to America. It happens at companies every day - it always did and it will again at your next job. That's life my friend.
Reveal your identity - why? Because your the Author of the blog of course! I am merely a commenting footnote. It's your blog. It's all about you and your bitterness. Never mind me - how about we turn that question and ask you - why DON't you reveal your name then, Hmmm? C'mon.....chicken....
By the way, that zoo you call "smelly" is considered a world class zoo with some of the rarest creatures on earth presented in a state of the art venue. Why not go there this week and relax a bit.
I notices your response to my p[ost just fizzled back into lame mocking and your obsession with the 60 laid off employees (many of whom are probably employed again by now)
How about you? How is YOUR job search going, LOBN? That's all I can think to call you since you won't give your name.
The personal attacks seem to be missing the point. Especially in light of the bredth of people with the same point of view. Why single out the blogger? They're providing a forum and their thoughts and there is clearly an audience receptive to it. Very receptive.
I'm also not sure how I feel about the defense of "Oh, so-and-so did something morally terrible? Well, it happens all the time, so it's OK."
I agree with the people confused by the messaging that Netshops had record revenue, record profit, allegedly has amazing growth prospects, but needs to put ~80 people out of work. I guess it's investor pressure trying to pretty up the financials for a sale, but while that's a reason, it's not exactly encouraging and there's not a clear point at which the situation is "fixed" so people can stop worrying.
Netshops currently collects sales tax in NE, MN and TN. MN is getting shut down, what about the Tennessee operations?
Since the Tennessee location is only a warehouse, I would guess it will stay as is. Netshops was able to utilize that warehouse to speed processing and shipping times to customers located closer to that warehouse - cutting ship times at key periods of the year, such as around Christmas.
As to "Simon" and their comments, it is what it is. I wonder if "Simon" started responding here as a result of the high level meeting that took place last week to discuss this blog and what to do about it...
Greetings, Simon,
I just wanted to point out that, while the moderator of this blog is expressing his own opinion, it is, in the strictest sense, an opinion; that's what blogs, editorials, zines are for --not to mention the bumper stickers and T-shirts that you and your kin are slaves to; i.e., Americans. This is a free country. The moderator has the right to express his disgruntlement without restraint (check out Amanda's blog if you need a working example of a real bitch-fest). This blog, as I have seen it, has been opinionated, enlightening, edifying, and refreshing. Perhaps, because I happen to agree, largely, with the opinions of the moderator --that's why I read this! Human beings tend to enjoy expressing ideas with like-minded human beings. You, judging by your resolute insistance that this blog is a bitch-fest; that the moderator and posters are just desperate for attention; that the opinions expressed herein are nothing but embittered rants --don't seem to be like-minded nor do you seem to enjoy the correspondances you have entertained here. So, quick question: why are YOU here?
Well "Lord", don't you sound almighty!
If you must know, I am here because I stumbled upon this blog (clicking the "next blog" button)and finally decided that I'm sick of people wasting their lives obsessing negatively about something in their past they can't do anything about. I merely am trying to present the correct view that getting on with your life is far more positive.
As for your calling for requirement that I be like-minded to comment on a blog - well, that's simply b.s.! The American Heritage definition of a web log is, "n.A website that displays in chronological order the postings by one or more individuals and usually has links to comments on specific postings. . Every definition I could find is like that. Nothing say opposing viewpoints aren't expected. And by allowing comments on his blog, LOBN should very much expect opposing and helpful viewpoints that will help guide him toward a better life for him/herself. You say I'm not enjoying this? I'm loving every minute of it. I started off sounding rough - but now I realize: this blog is a real waste of his/her time. My helping LOBN realize this is not.
Simon ~
You're not here to "save" us and you certainly are not trying to dictate how we spend our free time, are you?? Of course not. If you have contradictory opinions, no one is saying they aren't welcome here. But, isn't posting comments that we are wasting our time with this "bitch-fest" a waste of YOUR time?? Hmmm...
Simon,
I'm having difficulty understanding why you feel this blog is a waste of time. You insist that you're trying to push the moderator and other laid-off-by-NetShoppers to move on with their lives. I don't see how your hostility would help. You say you are trying to instil a positive outlook on this blog and yet you have been nothing but offensive, snide, and deleterious. I'm not attacking you and I don't think anyone here is. Why then are you belittleling people here? And why do you begin every comment with a juvinile insult? On your first meeting with someone, do you find gain respect and admiration by sucker-punching the person? You have enlightened me thus far in one respect: for years I've been wondering what Archie Bunker would have been like if he had been literate and I realize that he would still be a prick.
Simon,
I'm also curious about your claim that you stumbled on this blog while hitting the 'next blog' button. Several of your comments indicate experiential knowledge of Netshops and I find those two hard to reconcile. Are you a random passerby or a current (or former) employee?
My assumption was that you were a current employee trying to 'break up' the blog by patronizing people and telling them that if they were mature they wouldn't waste those precious, precious couple minutes a day.
Leigh - I never said I'm here to save anyone, just try to help you see the light towards a healthier state of mind.
Lord - I already mentioned I was rough at first. I've since changed my tune and am doing my best to help everyone here find the positive aspects to look for in their future.
Eric - I did indeed stumble across this blog. All information I've used has come directly out of this blog, the Netshops website or everyone's freind - Google.
To all: The most successful individuals in life are those who learn how to move forward with each day, placing yesterday's experience in its rightful place - the past.
Simon ~
Since you allegedly found this blog by accident, you don't know any of us. So, if we want to spend our days discussing what a wretched company NetShops has become, what the hell do you care?? Your "positive outlook" is obviously not welcome. Why don't you "stumble" onto another blog and leave us alone?? You have nothing worthwhile to contribute here.
Why so harsh Leigh? If you as a group want to be left alone, why not just get together at the bar and talk about it. A Blog is a public forum, and this one I thought I would participate in since I came around to thinking I could help since I'm told I'm a pretty positive guy. You say I have nothing worthwhile to contribute? I'm sorry you're not appreciative. I'm just trying to convey an attitude that admits into the mind thoughts, words and images that are conductive to growth, expansion and success. What are you contributing?
After reading some of this blog, Simon reminds me of the manager on "Office Space". Walking around with his coffee cup, a smug look on his face self-fulfilling in his mind that he has all the answers making profound statements. People like Simon want to help but don't know how to help, and all too often make it worse. Simon can't relate and that's why he comes off sounding Holier than thou or righteous. Let Simon speak his piece, we can all shake our heads in wonderment and continue on our merry way.
Poor Simon.
But you are wasting your time as well. You are feeding into the negativity, just as I am by posting this very comment.
But if lay-offs are what our host wants to focus on, that means more time for the rest of us (like myself, who has been laid off by NetShops and found better, more interesting opportunities), to find the better jobs that are out there, just waiting to be grabbed.
NetShops is like many other corporate places-- it's not all Oreos and chocolate milk. Sometimes you gotta suck it up and realize that life has given you a chance to do something even greater for yourself.
Laid_off: I hope that you can move on soon. Insulting a company that doesn't even care about you is almost like obsessing about an ex-girlfriend who dropped you like last week's leftover tuna fish salad. Who cares how hard you tried? Obviously NetShops wasn't good enough for you. Finis.
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