[Deschodt]

I've worked for 10 years each for 2x Top 100 companies, different sectors, technical management level, company names not important. I've also got friends in many other big companies, and apparently this behavior is widespread, and it's really starting to bug me..

Here's how it goes: (a team of )Someone(s) in a corner office throws a dart at the wall to guesstimate next year's "numbers", I like to call this a "butt number" because sometimes they pull it out of their a$$. I know I'm oversimplifying, there are trends, forecasts, etc... but bear with me : at the end of the day, it's a *guess* and next year's forecast is a butt number... call it an 8% profit hike, whatever metrics you like !

One year later, said company somehow incredibly (in this recession) makes 7.5%, very near that butt number. They made money, gobs of it, paid bonuses, are highly profitable, and increased their overall profit by 7.5% over last year's profit which was already pretty nice. Wow !

Yet, we did not make the "butt number" by 0.5 %, and therefore people *MUST* to lose their jobs ! Not me... Just saying, I've seen it happen for 20 years now, it makes NO SENSE at all to me. Each team must cough up someone ! No rational justification whatsoever, no financial need to do so, but we must please the shareholders and send the right message! Are you effing kidding me ?

As long as you made a profit, any profit, and there is no apparent systemic problem in the company, $%#$%$% why ??? Why not fire the butt number guy instead ? He's easy to find, his fingers stink !!! Sorry, just venting... do non publicly traded shops behave like that too ? I think I'm ripe for a change of career, I'm turning a bit socialist I guess, but I hate seeing good people lose their jobs when there is ZERO need to fire them !