immediate reaction to being made redundant

dopivo · Post by **dopivo** » Sun Jan 27, 2008 9:36 pm

hi, what's the best way to react when you are sitting in a glass office and just have been told that your contribution is no longer needed?

you certainly don't want to sign anything.

but what's right thing to do? just taking note of the fact and leaving?

FDAXHunter · Post by **FDAXHunter** » Sun Jan 27, 2008 9:52 pm

That depends. Do you happen to have a flamethrower?

Seriously though, your contract may require that you sign certain things (like, that you have given back all company property, that you have deleted certain information you may have had access to on your home machine or that you will cooperate with any inquiries that should come up, etc.). Our contracts have these provisions.

segv · Post by **segv** » Sun Jan 27, 2008 10:12 pm

Tell them you want to have your attorney review any exit documents prior to your signing them. In similar personal situations exit deals suddently became a lot sweeter when I resisted following the process.

braincat · Post by **braincat** » Sun Jan 27, 2008 10:16 pm

Asking how long you have before you have to leave

(unless you are fired outright).

It's easier to look for a new place while you still have

the old job.

Nonius · Post by **Nonius** » Sun Jan 27, 2008 10:43 pm

get a lawyer.

depending on the jurisdiction governing your employment, you may have some rights.

for example, if you were in Phrance, you'd probably get a promotion.

Bachelier · Post by **Bachelier** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 12:15 pm

"Tell them you want to have your attorney review any exit documents prior to your signing them. In similar personal situations exit deals suddenly became a lot sweeter when I resisted following the process."

I'd cube that advice. Do not fall for the line that they are making it nice. Make it clear to them that you have resources and solid professional advice. Get your lawyer to send them a letter saying that she will review everything.

"for example, if you were in Phrance, you'd probably get a promotion."

The career path of champions! Which is why the layer just below senior management in phrench firms is populated with washed-up nincompoops who suck value outta the chain.

There was a glass office next to my trading desk that the guy *never* showed up to for two solid years...he was "fired" in Lyon but negotiated to be "transferred (wink wink)" to Paris...he never showed up for those two years, his office was here, they paid him some pittance, while he looked for his next gig in Lyon.

Have your lawyer negotiate for you that you are still technically with the firm while you hunt for a new job. As brian cat said, this is very important. I signed a one-year non-compete in exchange for a healthy check and clear severance and it turned out to be a bad trade versus still being able to say I was with the old phirm, cost me some leverage when negotiating my next package.

I've been phired twice in my career, never for incompetence, and each time I got a better severance package by doing what you are doing, which is asking for advice. I never sued, but I always politely made sure that they were very clear that I had the intelligence, resources, and will to do so.

After you leave and pound the pavement: There are some books on interviewing that give you some stock answers on how to handle it in interviews. Grab those and learn the stock answers for the HR interview and the interview with the senior head of whatever you are going to work at next. But if you lay it on the table for the guys you will directly work with they appreciate the candour and it increases your likelihood of getting hired.

Head of Fixed Income: "why did you leave ByeDeeBye?"

Bachelier: "certainly not for performance results or alpha generation. she didn't like me and found out a way to fire me"

"how did you feel about that?"

"I had lost all respect for her because she didn’t ever have the strength to own up to when she was wrong. There was no upside for me there and it was an unpleasant place to work anyway, so I just negotiated a hell of a severance package and we gave each other a rictus smile as we said "fuck you and goodbye.""

"ha ha ha ha ha"

"after I left performance went into the toilet while the market was going the other direction...draw your own conclusions ........but I felt pretty justified"

"ha ha ha, we'll check that out"

"let's check it out now, it is on Bloomberg, and you've got my dates of employment confirmed from HR"

I’m pretty sure if you’ve been canned for any reason other than performance you can position your frank explanation on leaving in a similar way.

Truth is the daughter of time. But get a lawyer.

polysena · Post by **polysena** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 2:12 pm

"

for example, if you were in Phrance, you'd probably get a promotion."

????Do you really mean that F. is that bad?

polysena · Post by **polysena** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 2:14 pm

"

There was a glass office next to my trading desk that the guy *never* showed up to for two solid years...he was "fired" in Lyon but negotiated to be "transferred (wink wink)" to Paris...he never showed up for those two years, his office was here, they paid him some pittance, while he looked for his next gig in Lyon."

! unbelievable.. how did he manage that.. that's even better than JK's famous SG trick no?

At least JK was trying to (and possibly did for sometime) deliver..

p.s. what is a glass office ?

Bachelier · Post by **Bachelier** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 2:23 pm

[img]/User%20Files/1117/sc_montage_glass_cube_wall_medium.jpg[/img]

Feel free to throw a chair.

[img]/User%20Files/1117/partition-glass-750.jpg[/img]

polysena · Post by **polysena** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 3:16 pm

Merci Bachelier,

That's pretty.. seems it comes in varied models.. it there one with pinkish glass?

How do you get allocated to one? what does it mean?

The only time I was in a glass cage-- isolator--- was when I was treated as a potential terrorist threat at Dulles Airport USA by the NTA programs... after minutious search they decided I was not that dangerous.... same for finance glass cage? do you allocate disruptive people in there?