Titles are meaningless in my opinion. Just look at how many “directors” were laid off. Work at a company long enough and at some point you peak.

Between an L9 and an L8, can you really tell the difference besides pay grade?

Who knows, maybe that person pissed their boss off or have bad vibes to some other team director and silently raised an issue with their superior.

It could all just be random. A few “bad” performance reviews at this level and compared to the other “L9s” you are disposable.

Corporations don’t care about you. They only care about their board and shareholders and share price.

If a RIF will pump the stock 5-8% in a recession, you bet your ass they will do it. Doesn’t matter if you are a 10 year veteran.

It certainly feels random

> How does an L9 SE get laid off?

Should L9 be a tenured position ?

Bad luck, performance, budget, re-org, shake up for L8s

Not sure, but they have to be doing something right for the organization to reach that level. I'm also for shaking things up though. It's time to breath new life into these companies.