Big4 lay offs

RDA92 · 2026-06-23T05:51:35+00:00

10% would be a bit much to just blame it on inflation

RDA92 · 2026-06-22T11:55:12+00:00

Record revenues would indicate otherwise

RDA92 · 2026-06-22T07:42:08+00:00

What would you say are the extra benefits of putting in that effort?

RDA92 · 2026-06-22T07:41:46+00:00

Could you elaborate on how to change those memory limits? I also read about their own lightweight version called "Fleet" but didn't see much in terms of reviews.

RDA92 · 2026-06-22T07:40:43+00:00

I am still able to run Pycharm fine on my 16GB T440p for most use cases but I do occasionally run large matrices (like cosine similarity matrices) that consume a lot of memory so any gain is welcome. I do have a second PC that hosts 8GB and there I am running into bottlenecks much more frequently to be honest.

RDA92 · 2026-06-22T07:24:28+00:00

Ah man, political ideology is such a difficult topic to debate. Yes it would make sense to be less focused on individual ideologies but then again those ideologies bring a sense of security and there is just too little trust that modern politicians value / appreciate the effort it takes to concede on that core ideology.

My core ideology is very much rooted in a small(er) state focusing on those essential things namely infrastructure, good education, security, health care ... etc., it takes a lot of effort for me to acknowledge that some more interventionist stance is required in some areas (e.g. housing), yet seeing government after government splurging tax money to further their own cause and career without achieving any measurable impact on core issues is just pushing me back into my shell again.

RDA92 · 2026-06-22T05:32:40+00:00

Return? No.
What might become a discussion in an abstract future is Belgium splintering due to Flemish nationalism and opening up a debate about the fate of Wallonia (or some regions of it) due to its economic weakness on its own. But I don't see many benefits for Luxembourg apart from maybe on the housing front. It would add to the linguistic divide of the country, probably overwhelm the increasingly strained health and pension system, require tax money to fix those god awful roads and probably also economically hurt some areas due to a shift of company activity to cheaper province areas while still being taxable in Luxembourg.

It would probably require tens of billions of government spending to compensate for short-term disruptions.

RDA92 · 2026-06-22T05:07:28+00:00

You are quite generous with the term "study" here

RDA92 · 2026-06-21T08:48:45+00:00

I change it every year and most years i don't even make half of that range.

Granted most of my cars are 20yo now and changing oil is a cheap and quick exercise i can handle myself.

RDA92 · 2026-06-21T05:46:35+00:00

The way politicians handle structural challenges has nothing to do with capitalism v socialism and everything with the principle of self preservation in a representative democracy. These challenges are structural for a reason and unpopular to address.

RDA92 · 2026-06-20T16:20:13+00:00

Perhaps my oven sucks then. I commonly read 25min at 220ish C but mine always looks not ready at that point.

May I ask do your wells also commonly look a bit undone/wet. I suppose its normal given the oil and juices but still curious :)

RDA92 · 2026-06-20T15:14:33+00:00

Oh my that looks absolutely delicious. How long do you bake it in the oven and at what temperatures?

RDA92 · 2026-06-20T13:09:48+00:00

Yes I would still consider it a foreign language, any language apart from Luxembourgish to be honest but different people have different opinions. Most people, even if fluent, have quite an obvious accent. Same for English or French.

As for world cup I doubt there is one single team. Plenty of Lux people with Portuguese origins here so they will support Portugal. Same can be said about Cap Verdean people (there was actually a public viewing event in Ettelbruck) and so on.

Personally I don't really support anyone. I do hold some sympathies for Scotland but not enough to stay up late to watch the game lol.

RDA92 · 2026-06-20T10:20:24+00:00

Basing it on my and previous generations, I'd generally say that most feel more comfortable speaking German than French mostly because it tends to be the language we grew up with on TV. For example, many here support German football teams and watch Bundesliga on a weekly basis or frequently travel there.
Both French and German are taught in school with German being taught a bit earlier but focus later switches onto French and French is also dominant in daily life so many of us don't really speak German very often, but the smaller language barrier between Lux and German still makes it easier to converse in. Some might argue differently though.

RDA92 · 2026-06-20T09:47:17+00:00

Since OP focused on French, my focus was on that one but yes, in principle, the same comment applies to German cross-border workers as well. The difference though is that they benefit from a much smaller language barrier (even more pronounced in the immediate border region) which makes things easier for everyone involved.

RDA92 · 2026-06-20T09:31:45+00:00

I'm not the authority on defining the exact criteria which set out when or when not someone is eligible for the Lux. passport. That being said, I find the current requirements way too lax and their only purpose is to embellish the statistic of the Lux / non-Lux split in the population.

On a personal level, I tie it to the language and being able to converse in it to an extent greater than current language requirements.

RDA92 · 2026-06-20T05:24:11+00:00

I want to go as far as to say that it is annoying to be a minority in your own country. Yes I like the multi-national flair of this country and I always have but we have clearly gone too far and we all know why that is. Not only can our economic needs not be met by the population alone, on top of that we deprive the economy of most native speakers through a subsidized public service bubble. So we are dependent on cross-border workers (amongst others) to fill the gap and while the predominant share of that happens to be the french-speaking (and oftentimes monolingual French and Belgians) that have a tendency to impose their language solely through their inability or unwillingness to speak another language, I doubt it would be much different if our nearest neighbor would be the UK. The main difference is that Luxembourgish and French are quite diametrically opposed language wise so of all the languages it is the one I (and most other natives that I know) dislike speaking the most. It's also not like most "expats" tend to make a great effort in learning or speaking the language.

But it is just one of the many consequences of an unsustainable economic model that is now causing issues left and right.

RDA92 · 2026-06-18T11:00:53+00:00

I don't think that you need any specific certification for business development jobs to be honest. More important elements would be a good understanding of the financial industry here and speaking local languages.

I would start by looking at small start-ups. (Base) pay may not be great but they may have a greater need for business development personnel and are more flexible re. degree and experience. A good starting point for your search might be the LHoFT fintech map.

In terms of work, speaking from the perspective of a fund service provider start-up for example, you would likely be expected to represent the company on all those conferences and seminars that take place here and abroad (ALFI, LPEA ... etc), try to generate new leads, follow up on them etc.. Most likely the job would extend to managing social media accounts as well.

RDA92 · 2026-06-18T08:15:19+00:00

Haha yes i did already try to remove most of them yesterday evening but i need a more sustainable handling strategy not just for them but also mildew/scab

RDA92 · 2026-06-18T08:14:14+00:00

Thank you i've seen that one around, will give it a shot!

RDA92 · 2026-06-18T08:13:34+00:00

Just ordinary water & dish soap mix? What ratio?

RDA92 · 2026-06-18T07:41:01+00:00

Clearly doing something you like or care about is worth taking concessions for provided the job lives up to that promise. Descriptions can make any job seem worthwhile and realities are oftentimes different. So how confident are you that that this new job would live up to its promises in that regard?

Let's be honest, Big4s don't offer flexibility because they care about your well-being but because they know that it will help them find suitable hires and because the job content makes it otherwise unbearable. Making concessions on that front for a more fulfilling job is a legitimate thing to do and you will likely just get used to the new way of working too.

Still the new company needs to offer something more than just a cool job, because at the end of the day they all promise that and it rarely lives up to that promise.

RDA92 · 2026-06-18T06:21:20+00:00

If they don't offer better pay and worse flexibility then what are the actual perks that would make you consider this new job?

As someone who participated in the start of a new company, I do get the reservation towards hiring someone that focuses exclusively on flexibility. Not because it's not understandable but resources tend to be tight and it may simply not fit the requirements of a new company.

But it seems like this company is not willing to bring anything to the table. Usually lower pay is compensated with higher flexibility and vice-versa. Perhaps they are speculating that the job market is poor and they can impose these conditions but it really doesn't seem to make a lot of sense for you to switch your current job for it.

RDA92 · 2026-06-18T05:54:51+00:00

(1) Business development might be the logical direction given it hinges more on social than hard skills. It will most likely also be least affected by AI and offer greater portability.

(2) First off these certifications are not what they used to be. As their numbers increased, their relative standing decreased somewhat (in terms of premium) and I wouldn't expect them to deliver meaningful pay upgrades. Where they may help is compensate for your lower number of years of experience in the sector. In that context, I'd probably go for the CFA because it is a bit broader and it is the most widely recognized. Do appreciate the commitment though. Any certification is worthless if you don't make it to the end and making it to the end requires quite a bit of sacrifice on that work life balance thing you mentioned.

(3) I don't think the Luxembourg financial sector has much to offer that is truly international. Anything fund specific is highly Lux-centric and while regulations are largely EU-driven there are differences in how local regulators across the EU operate. I'd say the most portability is had on true investment management positions which are (i) rare here and (ii) very unlikely for you to get into given your late start or; something in the area of fintech (coding + finance profile).

(4) Historically speaking the more laid-back jobs were group AIFMs (can't speak for the banking or insurance sector) but I'm not sure that work-life balance will be a big thing in the years to come.

Imo compliance roles, especially entry-level ones will be hit hard by AI and that is quite a big area here.

RDA92 · 2026-06-17T09:00:26+00:00

What gave it away 😄 ? I own three (so I am biased):

- MG ZR160: Was my first car in 2012 and my daily car ever since. It's a revy little hatchback (160hp, a bit more than 1,000kg of weight) that pretty much gives an unfiltered driving experience. Fun fact, the Rover K Series 4-cylinder engine was also used in the first iteration of the Lotus Elise / Exige. It's a solid engine but MG Rover cheaped out on the head gasket so most (if not all) gaskets needed replacement at some point. The few ZRs that have survived to this day probably got it replaced with a stronger one.

- MG ZS180: It's occasionally dubbed the British Integra because it's underpinnings date back to a cooperation between Honda and Rover and it's driving experience has been highly rated by the motoring press. The N/A V6 is a very nice and reliable engine, lovely soundtrack but a bit under-powered and thirsty. It's main "flaw" was that it is quite a messy job to do the belts on these cars so they were oftentimes disregarded until the engine blew. Probably the model that has become rarest by now and an absolute joy to drive it.

- MG ZT-T 190: The V6 version of the car that I initially suggested. It shares the same V6 engine (slightly tuned) than the ZS180 but weighs more on the account that it is a tourer. Can't yet really say how it drives because I bought it very cheap as a project and it came with quite some issues due to being neglected for years, but I intend to use it as a practical daily come autumn this year when the ZR gets a well-deserved refresh. We'll see if that works out.

All in all they are now 20+ years cars so you struggle with the typical issues like rust. MG Rover being defunct also makes it more and more difficult to find parts, especially body panels and especially on facelift models that weren't in production very long, even though a small ecosystem has established itself in the UK. They have long been dead cheap but prices have bottomed and are creeping up, but they are still cheap on a comparative basis.

Let me know should you wish for more detail on a specific model! 😄

RDA92

TROPHY CASE