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How do I pivot from a broker to any job in tech?
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Coach
Quit quit quitttttyyyy time!
When did you receive your signing bonus?
Stealth layoffs at CWT confirmed.
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Mentor
It’s unfortunate—I’ve seen perfectly capable and pleasant associates sometimes fall though the cracks when they don’t have a partner sponsor to shield them through dips in business.
The typical script is partners will prioritize their pets in work allocation, once work of an associate drops enough they can use this basis to lay them off
Also, give them a tepid review. Say their work is “inconsistent,” or whatever.
Subject Expert
If this is what’s actually happening the firm is not run well. But it’s possible that you don’t know the whole story.
Agree with A1 and A3. Unless you really just have no clue what your doing, let people know you really don’t want to be there, or have some serious personality issues that make you hard to deal with, the whole performance thing is a lie. Even with those problems, if a firm was underwater with deal flow, they would keep you or at least until they found your replacement.
In a down market they gas light you and set you up to fail (which I think is some sneaky Voldemort sh*t and flat out unethical). Someone has to take the fall and it won’t be them or those they have close relationships with. It’s also telling when, eg, 10+ people within the main office in the same year are let go as well lol either that’s a business problem or someone needs to be shot for their interview acumen/judgment.
This is why you don’t show loyalty to a big law firm. If they feed and support you, stay. If you are not getting what you need from them or another firm has more to offer. I’d leave in a heartbeat.
You should treat big law like being a professional athlete and go where your talent will grow and people know your worth, or nowadays like college football and get your a** in the portal 😂
This happened to me. Basically, deal flow in my practice group completely dried up. I was a senior associate in a satellite office. I was given three months of severance, plus additional website time. I was told that the partner I worked for advocated for me, but was ultimately overruled by folks in the main office.
I was a little bitter, but was looking for in-house roles anyway. Ended up with a pretty pleasant few months, and then moved on to a much better role.
This happened to a close friend and mentor of mine. I was devastated as I had finally found a close mentor/friend at the firm and the practice group got screwed by the 2023 economy. We were all absolutely shocked about him getting laid off and it was 100000% because he was a satellite. That said, he landed on his feet and I’m so happy and proud so it worked out - I’m looking forward to joining him in club in house soon!
Yes, a lot of it is not necessarily performance based. It’s whether you have a sponsor and whether that sponsor can survive the down turn.