Layoffs in Wine Country

Following the takeover of Silicon Valley Bank by the FDIC on March 10th, I found myself needing to take a break from watching the news for several weeks. Our company had become the main subject of every news outlet, and unfortunately, it was for all the wrong reasons. The constant coverage of the "ugly news" was difficult and painful to endure. The experience only added to the already stressful situation for both employees and clients.

Now that things are back to normal in the wine division, we're happy to get a break from all the ugly news updates. It is starting to feel like we're settling into a new routine, but nothing lasts forever.

Wednesday, SVB announced that we were laying off 3% of the bank's workforce. That made my phone ring again from both friends and clients - How are you doing? Are you still employed? Did the wine division have any job cuts?

The answers are: great, yes, and no. 

Our wine division has not been impacted by the recent staff changes. I assure you that our team remains unchanged, working hard, and committed to providing exceptional banking to the premium wine community.

It is a common practice to review roles during an acquisition to avoid redundancies, so it was hardly a surprise to us. But it is still never easy to say goodbye to colleagues.

First Citizens Bank does not have a wine practice though, which means there were no redundancies. The elimination of jobs was done to support functions that were either unnecessary in the new organization or duplicated elsewhere.

I'm happy to share that the SVB wine division is alive and well. Despite the bank's crisis in March, we have successfully retained all of our employees and borrowing clients. In fact, we're currently experiencing a period of above-average growth, which may seem counter-intuitive, but it's a fact.

Stay tuned for further adventures - adventures NOT in the ugly news category!