While the line level employees and line managers are some of the most competent you will find in the industry for any of the job families that fall under the Fidelity umbrella (trading, finance, information technology, etc.), the executive management fails to understand the talent pools they possess in those areas. This is readily apparent in the recent turnover among the upper echelons of management and the corresponding restructuring coming to be known as the "Rodger Lawson" era by employees. The executive leadership that built the company over the last 10-15 years is out. New executive management is in with the focus on cost-cutting that takes no regard for the Fidelity specific institutional knowledge and talent that is a key strength to stability. The "private company" and "family owned" environment that made Fidelity a great place to work and employees proud to laud the company to their friends, family and any one who would listen has evaporated. Executive management failures to properly define goals and thereby engage the talent in the labor pool they possess is abysmal. Some of the best and brightest with great knowledge and talent were assigned to projects that incoming executive management had no stomach for seeing to completion. Rather than reassign that best and brightest talent to retain it, a slash and burn has taken place in the form of layoffs in November 2008 that has placed that talent on the market, ripe for other companies to cherry pick. The new executive management isn't done and layoffs are coming again in first quarter of 2009 to reach some idea of a model organization. This is definitely throwing the baby out with the bath water. Consider this an announcement to all other companies, especially in the technology arena. While the individual writing this commentary was not affected in the Q4/2008 layoffs, there exists an opportunity for you to profit from Fidelity's unfortunate rush to meet a model organization concept. Those of us that remain at Fidelity will have to suffer through this bungling until a level of equilibrium is achieved and the people that matter, the ones who actually make Fidelity work, can again overcome this idiotic endeavor. I love the Johnson family. Over a decade of my life has been spent at Fidelity. I've seen the good and the bad. Why the new executive team being brought in by them is thought to be better and brighter than the people that have built the company is a mystery to me. Rodger Lawson is a retread, having worked at Fidelity before, but many of the executive management being brought in are coming from failed Wall Street companies that are the focus of the recent $700B bailout. These people are better and brighter than the individuals they replaced? Many with long track records of productivity in the lower ranks and that have made this company great are less than inspired. All we see is the continued evaporation of work-life balance and yet another step closer to a sweat-shop.
