Quit or Layoff? Leaving IBM — My Story #2
Two days ago, in a meeting with the principal and teachers of my daughters’ preschool, some teachers cried, asking parents to pay a fee for next month. The principal told us she had already laid off non-essential staff to cope with the crisis, but we need teachers.
It is tough, but more and more people are discussing the uncomfortable topic: layoff. I hope my personal story quitting from IBM can help you and me today.
I had the idea of quitting my job from IBM since 2012 when I felt less and less happiness from work, and my time was consumed in political things inside the company. I am a fighter, getting impossible things done. However, I felt I was wasting my life in IBM just for the sake of salary. The end of 2012, I started to think about such questions,
“What is the value of my work to my family and me, other than money?”
“Why should I work? What is the purpose of my work?”
“What’s the meaning of my existence in the world?”
From 2012, the changes began. Some friends choose to leave IBM for a better position in another company, and some with good luck were laid off with cash compensation.
I was not excited about a new position in a different company, so I waited for the layoff. I may have a chance to get compensation (I assume it was around one-year compensation). My calculation did not succeed. At the end of 2012, more than twenty percent of team members were fired, but I was still in the waiting list.
Early in 2013, after I took one more year of salary repeating the same things in the same position, I told myself, that’s enough. If the company does not fire me, I will have to fire the company for the sake of my life — a life with more control in my hand to cope with future changes.
There are changes we have to face directly, sooner or later, in business and life.
The business landscape changes. In my case, IBM was no longer a leader in new technologies business, and the bureaucracy started to demotivate employees. Such changes happened gradually, and we did not feel it and react to it appropriately. Many startups struggling today will finally disrupt the world, and employees in established business may have challenges. In the past 20 years, how many startups have fundamentally transformed the business landscape?
Changes may arise from significant events like 911 in 2001, World War II, and of course, the Coronavirus today. Events occur dramatically, but they have an impact on everyone immediately and even in decades. One effect of World War II was baby boomers, and some are discussing baby quarantine, citing the fact of condom sold-out. So no worry for the human future, but take good care of ourselves today.
Growing older, we have no choice that some jobs will longer a good fit for us. Except few rich guys who have amassed fortune when they are young, the majority of us will have to find a new skill/job to support our living.
Bad news: we have little control over business landscape shifts, pandemic like today, or even growing older. We don’t know Coronavirus will stay with us for one more week, one more month, or even one more year.
My basketball friend, texted me a message yesterday, asking,
“How long do you feel this quarantine time will be?”
This is a tough question, and he may think that I can talk and convince the virus, the same as what I have been doing in the basketball field.
“I don’t think it will be a long time,” I tried to assure him, but continued with a joke, “I guess at most two years.”
He laughed out loud.
Good news: we do have control of what we can do today.
My first employer was Huawei, a controversial company, particularly from the USA perspective. Thirty years ago, Huawei was the least promising company in the China Telecommunication equipment supplier market. It has competitors like Motorola, Ericsson, and Nokia from the world, and big brothers owned by the Chinese government. The founder was not scared but determined to take advantage of changes.
Mr. Ren, the founder, once said,
“There is only one thing never changes — change itself,” and he has implemented his strategy to cope with it, “Rather than wait to die at home, let’s get out and fight to die with changes.”
Today, we know that Huawei has beaten all of its competitors and dominates the Telecom market.
I left IBM the last day, 2013. Two months later, 50% of my team members were laid off, and after one year, my business division was sold out.
These days when I tried to reconnect with my former IBM colleagues, I found the few who are still working there are mainly waiting for retirement. For those who were laid off, some secured good jobs, but many are still struggling financially and psychologically. The big surprise comes from those guys who quit from IBM. Many started their own business. Very few have significant financial success in their new adventures, but some told me they are living a happier life than they were in IBM — they have more control over their life.
By Jianhong Zhou, former IBM employee, HOOP Founder
