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I work for a regional health system. The system I was with merged with another system today, and the #2 executive, the CEO, resigned abruptly and with no notice to the BoD last night. It was significant enough to cause a redo of the org charts and an additional press release to local and national media.
At this point, line staff do not even know where the combined company's HQ will be. I was on a conference call with an SVP yesterday who mentioned we needed to take a plan to our now departed CEO. He had no idea of the CEO's departure either. We are officially merged, and although I'm currently reporting to the same director, neither the line staff nor my director know who will be on our teams going forward. We're all operating day to day. My "internal customer" department's leadership got snubbed and virtually everyone from the director level on down in the system I worked for seem to be getting a demotion, and staff from the other health system are now over them. The manager of that team told me that she is going shopping.
We are essentially flying blind. There have been rumors of personnel cuts, but nothing concrete, and I run critical software that no other staff have expertise in, so I'm probably fine for the short to medium term.
I thought the merger rollout would be organized, but we seem to be completely winging it.
How long would it take you to start shopping under these conditions?
I would start looking immediately. It's likely they will eliminate duplicate management, before the end of the year.
They will look for any excuse to place management on performance improvement plans to create the paper trail. If people get fired left and right, the company can announce one-time charges for staff reductions are smaller than expected due to attrition. The investors will be happy.
If you wait too long, you be left looking in the slow period in the 3rd or 4th quarter. With all your colleagues searching for work, you need to beat them out. It's you or them for a limited number of slots. You don't want to be the one on the unemployment line for months. Long term unemployed end up with an even harder time finding a job, due to employer discrimination.
I would start looking immediately. It's likely they will eliminate duplicate management, before the end of the year.
They will look for any excuse to place management on performance improvement plans to create the paper trail. If people get fired left and right, the company can announce one-time charges for staff reductions are smaller than expected due to attrition. The investors will be happy.
If you wait too long, you be left looking in the slow period in the 3rd or 4th quarter. With all your colleagues searching for work, you need to beat them out. It's you or them for a limited number of slots. You don't want to be the one on the unemployment line for months. Long term unemployed end up with an even harder time finding a job, due to employer discrimination.
I'm planning on leaving the area if it comes to that. There is little to nothing here for me.
I've worked in telecom and IT and have witnessed first hand several mergers and acquisitions. This has been my experience...
Usually they'll start with redundancies at the top. Execs of the company that is bought out are typically the first to get their golden parachutes. Some might be kept on for some time, but it's rare that it's for the long term. Next, will be the redundant directors that get slashed. At this point, your boss probably has more to worry about than you do. From there, Senior Managers and Manager will either fall in line or they won't. If there isn't a role for them in the merged org, they may help them find other work, but they are expensive and will likely be let go to save money (unless they are highly specialized in an area the new company needs). In a lot of cases, the mid-level and entry level staff are retained the longest. If you're lucky, they may offer you a retention bonus to sit tight and not disturb daily operations.
Generally, I feel like unless you're really high on the totem pole, you're relatively safe. Perhaps well down the line they'll conclude that your role is no longer needed, but that could be a year or several years out. Most people who I've witnessed move on generally do it because they don't like dealing with the uncertainty and chaos during the merger, not necessarily because their job was at risk.
That said, it's always good to keep your options open. I'd definitely tidy up the resume and reach out to your professional network to inquire about opportunities. Always stay ahead of the curve, know what I mean?
Last edited by Left-handed; 02-01-2018 at 08:32 PM..
If you're talking about Bart, he retired. The retirement benefits under the merger probably allowed for a combination of old and new. By waiting until just after he was officially appointed, he received his old retirement package and now has a new package as the new CEO of the new merged company. Odds are the agreement only calls for him to be the CEO of the company, not that he had to spend more than 1 hour in that roll.
I work for a regional health system. The system I was with merged with another system today, and the #2 executive, the CEO, resigned abruptly and with no notice to the BoD last night.
How long would it take you to start shopping under these conditions?
Sounds like he knows something. I'd be in full-fledged job search mode. I'd want to cover all of my bases and be ready to jump before the place collapses around me.
I think I'm fine over the short to medium term. The legacy systems still have to be supported. With that said, there are just so many staff in what would be my division on the other party that I have no idea what the work load will be.
How long would it take you to start shopping under these conditions?
days
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