Verizon Job Losses Hit 13,000: Ex-CEO Posts Rare Honest Message

Verizon's massive job cuts, which will be the biggest in the company's history along with the previous milder reductions, have drawn a sincere reaction from Tami Erwin, a former executive. She worked for Verizon for thirty-five years and also served as the head of Verizon Business, so she gave an honest message through LinkedIn to the thousands of people who are losing their jobs because of the restructuring of the telecom giant. Her post has been widely recognized in professional circles for its blunt recognition of employee suffering.

Erwin pointed out that the layoffs lead to a personal loss, and each affected position is not just a role, but it is a part of a person's identity, pride, and relationships. "This week’s news has weighed on me heavily," she said, and she asked the employees to be aware of the emotional side of job loss. She made it clear that technology is the factor that creates change, but still, the employees are the ones who matter most in making an organization successful.

Erwin, who was once a low-level customer service employee and then climbed the ladder to executive leadership, encouraged the staff to take time to absorb the changes. She said, "Give yourself permission to grieve. A job shapes identity, relationships, and personal pride. Losing it is deeply personal." Her message was in sharp contrast to typical corporate communications which tend to downplay the emotional challenges by not ignoring but rather facing them.

Erwin also suggested to the people who are let go that they should realize the worth of their experience, as she said, "Your time at Verizon is meaningful and will create new opportunities. Keep your head high. Your impact will last."

Verizon's overhaul plan comes with the axe of 20% nonunion job cuts, thus impacting more than 13,000 employees. While outlining the changes, Erwin emphasized that organizational transformation would not be at the mercy of the cutting of costs only. "A company cannot be transformed by technology only; it is the people who do that," she said, and proceeded to elaborate that the leaders must fuse the new methods with the virtues of empathy, clear communication, and accountability. Her last words were a sharp reminder: "Humanity lacking in transformation is not leadership."

Dan Schulman, the new CEO who came to Verizon last month, took the workforce changes in his own statement, arguing that it was necessary to shift the company's focus to the experience of the customer. Schulman offered a $20 million reskill fund for the workers affected by the layoffs.

Verizon is facing a very difficult market situation. The company has just reported a loss of 7,000 consumer postpaid phone subscribers which is not in line with growth expectations. The competition from AT&T and T-Mobile is getting tougher, especially due to the ongoing efforts and investments in the fields of artificial intelligence, quantum computing, robotics, and intelligent networks that are changing the telecom industry.

In the future flow of Verizon, Erwin's message will still be the same, human focus should be the key aspect, during the transformation to totally technological and operational. It is a rare corporate perspective that shows an intersection between personal insight and industry realities.