What is your reaction to Mike Vale's townhall? I have to admit that he is refreshingly articulate, as compared to the typical messaging we hear from M&M. However, I don't work within SIBG, so don't have as good of an understanding of the details of the businesses.
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Anyone see the latest on vale
My experience is very similar to @1nfn+1l5pCMss. I would even generalize it one step further and say the smarter a person is, the more they realize how full of sh-t Mike is.
To Mike's credit, he honestly thinks he is trying do well, there is good faith there for sure. The problem is that he just doesn't know anything other than 'cut, cut, cut your way to prosperity'. In my many experiences with Mike, I have never heard him say anything like: "Let's go invest in _____________ to grow the top line..." He really has to be dragged kicking and screaming to growth.
I admire Dr. Vale’s confidence.
3M has so much money we can afford to think of PFAS and earplug lawsuits as little more than parking tickets.
The gibbons townhall meeting was one for the ages! Here's a guy who last worked in the chemical industry 15 years ago put in charge of enterprise operations of perhaps the most complex chemical company.
He was totally unprepared coming Starbucks for the Q&A. He's used to baristas complaining about having to work 2 hours without a paid break.
He really got POed when someone asked him why he was bringing in some many consultants. That question wouldn't make it through the censors today.
3M is resembling one of those eastern European communist dictatorships during the final days after the soviets could no longer prop them up. People knew the end was near and started protesting and speaking up. So the dictator decides to plant the audience with only questions he wants to answer.
[OP] Thanks, everyone, for the detailed color commentary! Not having ever worked directly in an organization he has run, you only get little snippets to gauge competence and actual leadership ability. The first impression is apparently not an accurate one in this case!
I worked for Vale in a very senior position.
He is nothing more than the little professor...always can 'explain' everything but he is never right and has a terrible track record for delivering results.
He comes across as smart but is nothing more than an arrogant teacher who has failed in every business he has been in.
Id--ts love him, smart experienced people can't stand him, and his track record is terrible.
Company performance would probably get WORSE with him at the helm.
They must be screening the view of the town hall questions after the Gibbons town hall disaster last year. Truly inspirational messages from Roman, Vale, and Lavers over the last few weeks. Stay positive everyone the future is bright, but you should know that massive restructuring is coming so many of you will be axed. It’s great that MR built the bloated A3M structure, so now he can continue to tear it down and claim he’s right-sizing due to the economy. The level of incompetent management and buffoonery is just off the charts.
Was it me or can we no longer see everyones questions? Seems he got lit up a bit too much last time around!!
- 45+ minutes on why we are in the current situation. How many minutes were devoted to tangible solutions?
- “Innovation” is the answer to everything.
- More cuts are imminent, portfolios to focus on core, and that is the plan.
- There has never been a more explicit confirmation that the McKnight principles are dead than when the engineer asked about permission to spend $10. I doubt that was a “euphemism”.
- Commercialization strategy (Fewer, Bigger, Better, etc.) takes priority over creating an innovation engine. “Make a little, sell a little” is laughable to leadership. You think they still tell the post-it note origin story at the innovation center?
- That poor sales rep ain’t getting any help.
Right on for Prof Vale. He is not a great track record in biz
Funny comment about the MOC squirming.
This is a sign of a dying organization when leadership washes their hands of the blame and puts it on someone else without directly mentioning names.
We saw this with Mike and how he said the August layoffs were a business decision. Now business leaders are shirking the ownership and passing the buck to the next level.
Where does this end? At your own leaders level when he/she/Zhe tells you that you are fired. Having been a lower level leader, I can tell you, unless the employee was a real buffoon, seldom do you have any say in the layoff process. You are either given names from a committee of leaders one or two levels up or are told to give a name within 24 hours. Even if no one deserves to be fired, you have to throw someone onto the cart.
Glad to be retired and out from under this toxic cloud.
Vale was handed aerao to look after and seen the mess coming, how on earth has he lifted over 23000 shares each year the last few years,,first to sell too as he knows the price won't rise.
Manufacturing salary sure did not seem to enjoy the comments of him wanting to reduce our headcount. Half of us are already doing 3 jobs while others have WYW and no meeting Fridays... Tone deaf as always
It was an interesting town hall for sure. My takeaways are-
- Layoffs are imminent and likely to happen in the next few weeks - including beyond the 2,500 that were announced at earnings.
- He hates Work Your Way but it's clear Roman won't let anyone take it away.
- The comment about him not being the one to reduce travel made is MOC squirm. It was visible in the room.
- Still a lot of philosophical fluff vs. "here's the plan." He should be a professor - not a business leader.