Wiedefeld laying off 20 managers..

[JackRussell]

Reports in the news are that 20 managers have been laid off including 7 senior managers. They are not releasing the names of those laid off (not that I would know who they are). But there was this:

http://wamu.org/news/16/05/20/wiedefeld ... or_leaders" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

“As part of this restructuring, 20 managers are being released from WMATA, including seven senior managers," the memo said. "More than one-third are from the rail side of the house. Others are in administrative areas, including procurement, for example.”

Metro’s chief procurement officer was John Shackelford, whose office received significant media attention late last year when a shortage of spare parts severely limited Metro’s ability to return out-of-service railcars to the tracks. It produced a railcar shortage, resulting in more crowded trains and platforms.

[STrRedWolf]

Yep, sounds like Wiederfeld's doing what he did up at MTA -- firing where needed. And boy does it need it.

[MCL1981]

Music to my ears. P-Dubs in the house

[JackRussell]

Yep, sounds like Wiederfeld's doing what he did up at MTA -- firing where needed. And boy does it need it.

Sources tell Adam Tuss that more firings are on the way. I have to say from experience that firing someone is probably the hardest thing that a manager ever has to do. Still, all indications are that it needed to be done, but Wiedefeld is doing this about as well as can be done:

I hope you will join me in respecting the privacy of these individuals, and note that I will not be commenting about individual employees. CARe also calls for the elimination of redundant positions, and that review is underway."

In defense of the procurements guy, I found this from last year:

http://wtop.com/sprawl-crawl/2015/11/ri ... -railcars/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Procurement Chief John Shackleford says things could speed up if he were allowed to go directly to original manufacturers for some orders rather than competitively bidding each contract.

“It’s no secret that that was a restriction that frankly should not have been in place,” Shackleford says. “I’m caught between a rock and a hard place in compliance with rules and law associated with competition.”

Is this the reason, or is this an excuse? I have no way of knowing..

[srepetsk]

Stessel told our colleague, Washington Post reporter Paul Duggan, that the employees were not released for performance reasons, but because of restructuring. Stessel also said a number of employees are on performance plans.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/tri ... bout-time/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

We're just getting to actual performance-based firings/layoffs.

But he added: “That said, recently [Wiedefeld] did approve a handful of terminations for cause. And in addition to that, there are a number of employees here who are on ‘performance plans,’ which are our last-chance mechanisms. And, frankly, some of those employees will likely be separated from the organization, as well.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/tr ... story.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[dcmike]

Some of the impacted job titles include:

Chief Procurement Officer
Director of Rail Training
Chief Vehicle Engineer
General Superintendent of Car Maintenance
Director of Quality Assurance

[Chris Brown]

I like Wiederfeld's attitude. He is willing to get his hands dirty to get results. He is clearly passionate about fixing Metro and doesn't just see this job as a paycheck. Its hard to find people like him. They would be wise to support him as much as possible.

With Wiederfeld in charge, I'm very optimistic about Metro's future.

[srepetsk]

Some of the impacted job titles include:

Chief Procurement Officer
Director of Rail Training
Chief Vehicle Engineer
General Superintendent of Car Maintenance
Director of Quality Assurance

My jaw just dropped. Keep it up, Wiedefeld.

[JDC]

Some of the impacted job titles include:

Chief Procurement Officer
Director of Rail Training
Chief Vehicle Engineer
General Superintendent of Car Maintenance
Director of Quality Assurance

Lots of people with high titles. What exactly did the Director of Quality Assurance do that was different than Chief Vehicle Engineer (who you would think would be interested in assuring quality) or General Super of Car Maint (again, someone whose job would seem to revolve around quality assurance)?

[MCL1981]

QA makes sure the other guys are doing their jobs correctly.

[dcmike]

Some of the impacted job titles include:

Chief Procurement Officer
Director of Rail Training
Chief Vehicle Engineer
General Superintendent of Car Maintenance
Director of Quality Assurance

Lots of people with high titles. What exactly did the Director of Quality Assurance do that was different than Chief Vehicle Engineer (who you would think would be interested in assuring quality) or General Super of Car Maint (again, someone whose job would seem to revolve around quality assurance)?

The actual job descriptions can probably clear it up better than I can.

[farecard]

In defense of the procurements guy, I found this from last year:

http://wtop.com/sprawl-crawl/2015/11/ri ... -railcars/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Procurement Chief John Shackleford says things could speed up if he were allowed to go directly to original manufacturers for some orders rather than competitively bidding each contract.

“It’s no secret that that was a restriction that frankly should not have been in place,” Shackleford says. “I’m caught between a rock and a hard place in compliance with rules and law associated with competition.”

Is this the reason, or is this an excuse? I have no way of knowing..

If you'd ever been a federal employee, you'd just nod and agree. Congress LOVES to micromanage to ensure their district/buddies get the spoils. Look at WV [Byrd] & Alaska [Stevens]. Why does USAF have far more Hercules C-130's than they'd need? [Built in Newt's district.] And so forth. It's easier to pay a ""support contractor"" $75 for a $7 coaxial connector than try and get a signoff to buy it directly.

[JDC]

If you'd ever been a federal employee, you'd just nod and agree. Congress LOVES to micromanage to ensure their district/buddies get the spoils. Look at WV [Byrd] & Alaska [Stevens]. Why does USAF have far more Hercules C-130's than they'd need? [Built in Newt's district.] And so forth. It's easier to pay a ""support contractor"" $75 for a $7 coaxial connector than try and get a signoff to buy it directly.

Amen. I don't even bother most of the time, I just buy things I need (basic office supplies) with my own money. Quality is better, selection is better, and I assume price is actually competitive if not better.