Terminated (Navigating Convoy’s Unraveling)
In the final week of May 2022, Convoy's COO falsely reassured all the existing employees of a stable cash flow and no layoffs during our All-Hands.
Fast forward to June 8, where a company-wide Happy Hour unfolded, featuring senior management mingling. Each of them were fully aware that a substantial 33% workforce reduction loomed the very next day.
Since then, as one of the survivors of the first round of layoffs, I have been asked a lot of questions about how everything ended. Here is my two cents in the 6 months I had at Convoy.
Operational Excellence: Within every department, including ours (Operational Excellence), many failed to reach the 40-hour workweek threshold. Deriving from my manufacturing days, I continue to advocate for time studies, diversification of skills, and tapping into existing talent before resorting to costly external hires.
Conserve Expenditures: Post-layoff celebrations in the form of Happy Hours, Holiday Parties, and extensive bonuses proved tone-deaf and financially reckless. A meticulous effort should have been undertaken to conserve every dollar before subjecting engineers to layoffs.
Delay Hiring and Promotions: Despite the prevalence of hiring freezes, Convoy welcomed new hires post-layoffs. A more prudent approach would involve scrutinizing roles for amalgamation, recognizing internal talent, and promoting carefully and selectively. After I was let go, my own team got a new hire.
Golden Handshakes: Voluntary layoffs, or what is colloquially known as "Golden Handshakes," could have been considered. Those exploring opportunities elsewhere could have exited voluntarily, averting a mass panic across all the different organizational layers.
Strategic Layoffs: Convoy’s layoffs targeted entry-level and individual contributors, whereas a lower percentage of employees would have been lost if middle to upper management had been targeted instead. Wayfair is a fantastic example of what the other route could look like.
Prepare for Doomsday: Each of the three rounds of layoffs was accompanied by a 3-month severance, but the employees who stuck till the end got the raw end of the stick with 30 days of garden leave. Uniform treatment for departing employees, regardless of their exit timing, is paramount.
In addition, post-layoffs, the unsettling trend of embellishing resumes surfaced. Fostering a culture of truthfulness and integrity is essential to prevent future disappointments in subsequent roles. All in all, I know startup culture looks down on the Fortune 500 companies I had come from, but I have seen things being done right before. Golden Handshakes, Hiring Freezes and Conserving Expenditure (especially frivolous ones) have to be the most important ones that were ignored during the tragic closing of this company over 2022 and 2023.
