What are the 3 most important things for executives to address?
#1 Acknowledge current performance, and a plan to fix it ASAP
#2 Innovation strategy ( how to retain and reward the hardcore innovators)
#3 Course correction of the SAS ship: Investment areas, and more importantly de-investment areas.
51 replies (most recent on top)
"LinkedIn always has been a public display of brown nosing."
Or as Frank Zappa has said, Brown Lipstick.
I had assumed that someone gave marching orders to post on LinkedIn, or else.
Saw the same lame, "SAS is Great" canned message being repeatedly posted from people that would have never posted on LinkedIn of their own volition.
Thinking back to when I was at SAS (pre-pandemic), I think that edict was given to the Customer Success/Retention team at one time. But what I am referring to is posts by those not in that organization.
The Picture of Dorian Gray.
That doesn't seem that far fetched...lots of internal resources are still using a picture of him from 30 years ago.
The Marketing and Communications teams are working to produce an AI version of him that depicts him in his younger days. Future Kickoffs will show an AI video of him, complete with an AI-generated voiceover. He'll be like a hologram, reading on screen in perpetuity.
Ah that makes sense. Make-up and retakes until its JUST right.
"Why doesnt the CEO ever appear in person at these events anymore. We always get a short video of him instead."
My guess is age ... and its accompanying issues with memory etc. (which will catch up to all of us eventually (if we don't die first)).
Why doesnt the CEO ever appear in person at these events anymore. We always get a short video of him instead.
Like the whiners on here are any better than the LinkedIn stuff.
Real easy to have the “courage” of your convictions in an anonymous forum.
LinkedIn always has been a public display of brown nosing.
Nobody in their right mind would criticise their employer on that platform, it would be severely career limiting if not legally risky.
What is telling is how little noise there is about SAS these days. I still have hundreds of connections who still work there, but they seem to be largely silent. I guess there's not much to say any more. Sad.
What I find interesting about LinkedIn posts from SAS leaders is that nearly all the supporting comments come from employees. It's like seals barking at the command of the ringleader. It's a fascinating and very cult-like example of an insular self-congratulating circle jerk.
If the posts I'm reading on LinkedIn are anything to go by, SAS leaders are yet again gaslighting employees.
"We are at the right place at the right time"....which makes the state of things within SAS, all the more tragic.
But would be very interested to hear from anyone who was actually there...
Did they mention how much was saved by laying off all the senior level folks last year?
Oh brother. Here we go again…
Before I left 5 years ago, the rule of thumb was the average employee fully loaded cost was $200k.
No specific level of profit, revenue per employee, or TOR, is required to IPO.
Better numbers certainly help. But if SAS doesn’t cut enough costs, the acquiring company can cut all they please.
"Trending up to ~$250k in 2023"
I believe the fully loaded rate for a mid-level developer is around that. I could be wrong though.
“And what was the trend? Increasing, flat, or decreasing?”
Trending up to ~$250k in 2023
7% Rev growth, but what was TOR? Rev will be higher than TOR due to investments, etc.
5% profit is really low for a mature software company. The market expects net profit to be well over 20%. They have a LOT of cost cutting to do if they want an IPO to happen.
Also, didn’t JG state a 10% TOR growth target last year? Feels like they are stretching to provide a rosier view of the numbers.
If I understood correctly, Dr Goodnight said the following on 2023 performance:
7% Revenue Growth and an Estimated 5% Profit.
Anyone understand the reasoning behind them still estimating profit?
Well I guess now I have to get myself in the mood for a jetstream of bullsh!t so I can find out the answer.
Was it, we are doing just fine, or we need to do better?
If the latter, was it, we need to get revenue up? ...audience thinks "yeah right, that ain't happening.
- or, we need to get employees down? ...audience thinks, "oh sh-t, but at least he's being honest with us"
And how did JG talk to the slide?
Was he softening people up to expect a lot of layoffs coming soon?
And what was the trend? Increasing, flat, or decreasing?
It showed values in a graph since around 2012 IIRC.
Did the chart include values, or simply a trendline?
I thought it was interesting that JG showed a chart of revenue per employee. I dont recall SAS ever talking about that in the past.
There is bullsh!t here and there is most definitely bullsh!t coming out the mouths of our execs. Though the truth likely lies somewhere in the middle, if I had to put money on which side was more realistic, I'd put it here all day.
So, have we learned anything from this Kickoff?
Have points #1: #2: and $3 been addressed? 🤔
@8umt+1qCK1Cb0 Is a master of sarcasm. I dig it.
Thank you for such great, heartfelt advice!
You know they're not going to give you a raise for being the sole "voice of reason" here, right anon? You don't get good boy points for your social media outreach at SAS. If you want to improve the quality of discourse, speak to the facts. Otherwise, just let comments like that slide. It's the equivalent of someone fa----g in the wind, just let it go.
When the thread is stale, move on.
No mood for a jetstream of BS, yet here you are on The Layoff. Has your mood changed?
We missed you!
Was in no mood for that jetstream of bullsh!t, so did not watch today.
Here we gooooooo!!!! Time to roll out the Viya beach ba--s!
They need to bring in some Interns from the School of Design at NC State to give some fresh ideas.
"There needs to be someone there to do some market research and come up with a successful strategy"
Er, uh, that's been tried too. SAS a 30-year history cozing up to the IT Analyst Industry -- and putting on a very expensive annual conference for them.
I'm talking about serious Product Management talent and designers and engineers who can bulid new products that solve real industry needs based on AI and advanced analytics. Sure, some good biz folks and marketing types are needed but something better then the current way of too many people just telling JG what he wants to hear.
@1eob+1qCK1Cb0 knows all. He sees all.
If you aren’t @1eob+1qCK1Cb0 you are a fool.
Company Kickoff?
A great big festival attempting to gaslight employees. The gullable ones will believe it, some will shrug it off and ignore the BS, and others will just get more annoyed by the dishonest and disrespectful attitudes on display by leadership.
Just like the band kept playing and the people kept on eating and drinking as water poured into the hull of the Titanic.
"What are the 3 most important things for executives to address?"
- Drop loser products and layoff associated staff.
- Assuming JMP has positive net revenue, sell it. If will sell faster by itself than it will sell if bundled in with the rest of SAS. Additionally, selling something demonstrates seriousness about selling the rest of SAS. Besides Broadcom, there has been no offers and perhaps that means the market questions the owner's seriousness about selling.
- Unwind peripheral businesses from SAS, such as hotel, school. Country club, etc.