I spent 22 years at 3M before being laid off a few months ago. The company is a mess and morale is in the gutter. 3M was a great place to work with innovative products, experienced workforce and opportunity to grow. There’s nothing new and exciting at 3M. The forever chemical lawsuits affects so many products with a loss of 3 billion at a minimum. Everyone is waiting around to see who will get cut next. Sales people were told to stop spending which includes no air travel or hotel stays for the past 6 months. When sales people do sell product at 3M it’s then back ordered for months. Young people are coming to 3M and then leaving in 2 years or less and management then wonders why but somehow finds a way to blame millennial work culture.
8 replies (most recent on top)
FIRE Roman!
FIRE Monish!
FIRE Lavers!
Say it!
Actually bringing McNerney back might be what the patient needs
Sad,
One of the worst things is the cycle of layoffs has gone from annual to now every 6 months. And you are right about work being dumped on the remaining staff, without any job grade change, bonus, raise, etc. Just a "be happy it wasn't you" co--y attitude from the boss. Even though it could be you the next round.
I remember a production engineer being told at the beginning of December that his job was being "eliminated" at the end of the year. He was told to get his severance he would have to agree to stay around and train his replacement, who already had a full time job! Why train someone when the position is supposedly eliminated? He wasn't allowed to use his vacation and was told it would be paid for as part of his severance, which was a farce because the severance for him wasn't any better than others.
Come to find out, the engineer that took over his duties got canned a year later!
McKnight must be fuming in his grave over what has become of the 3M that made people proud to work for.
You're also right about leaving if you find something better. Life is truly better at companies that value employees.
I left about 18 months ago after 20+ years in the company. There really was no longer a reason to stay. Why wait around for the next layoff, be punished with extra work, not be recognized or compensated for the great work you do, etc? Its so sad that 3M went from a great company to one to be avoided.
The nightmare is only getting worse. How many layoffs will happen in Mike and Monish Madhouse in the 2023 sequel?
I suspect February followed by June and then one last blast from the past in December right in time for the holidays.
Even mcnerney was this proficient at layoffs.
In all seriousness, leadership needs to talk with the best EAP and determine what is driving this destructive behavior. Is it ego, lack of caring for other humans, superiority complex, or issues from childhood? With power comes great responsibility. These people are no Spideman. At best they are wimpy Peter Parker pre-bite. At worst they are a wet barking spider.
Mike (and Monish) have put together and implemented a playbook that is 100 percent wrong. Ok maybe 95 percent wrong because the HC spin does make sense but should have been done 2 years ago.
The only reasons 3M ever got the huge margins is because (a) it had world class research and consciously dedicated about 6 percent of sales to this organization and (b) 3M sales force were in constant contact with customers both on how existing products were working and in determining from the customer what new products 3M needed to supply to meet those customers future needs.
Today, research is considered a cost only (the company is solely focused on the current quarter or year and not the 3 to 5 year future needed to spur new product development). Sales people are grounded which means they have no easy way to find out what's happening at our customers nor are networked to know what future needs they have.
The problem with this model is that customers will not pay 20 to 30 percent premium for 3M name if they don't perceive the value gained. Plus, the complete disconnect between end customer and research means what 3M does develop may not be what the customer wants to buy (at least at the elevated price) in the future. This explains the lousy organic sales growth over the last 10 or more years.
Desi in the 1990s was always driving new product development and margins based on customers willing to pay premium for 3M stuff. This was a great model until 3Ms board got enthralled with the so-called GE management model and hired mcnerney from GE in 2000. Some 20 years later, we are reaping what was sown under shortsighted management. This won't end well.
"A nightmare at 3M center" would make a great book title. There are some very talented writers on this site. Someone could write a book about the rise and fall of 3M and make way more cash than their 3M severance.