That kind of culture is what led to where we are now. When you're working against your employees instead of with them, this is what happens.
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@jfi+1rt0YMqW You had me till I saw “ One could argue JD is a great manager of a company” … enlighten me on the supporting points for such an argument??
Agreed on all fronts. We're no longer trying to grow, just extend the window before the brand fails. Employee happiness & rewarding innovation are our ELT's last priority. That's why their business plan is just a 5 year old deck with a pre-recorded all-hands.
Post-quality brands are a tale as old as time. Sears, Toys R Us, Craftsman, MTV, General Electric, Pyrex...
The only question is how they'll take us to the grave. Corporate loans paying ELT bonuses, real estate "deals", Enron levels of fraud, a slow gradual death, ...?
Looking at how many useless companies we've bought in just a few years my bet is "buying our buddy's startups".
…enter Bain culture. Where there is a deliberate separation between management and the doers. It will take a decade to eradicate the consultant minded management, but will only be possible with a JD exit, and a PK admittance of failure to maintain the standard.
Bain (and the other big consultants) are taught to execute management principles in a manner that simply takes zero soft skills into account. To them (and the culture we are now in) we are all numbers on a spreadsheet, to be sorted and optimized in a manner that gives the false sense of an up-and-to-the right outcome. Provable, through a forward looking excel pivot chart.
We have management. Not leadership. One could argue JD is a great manager of a company… but not a leader. The outcome of a manager is generic, infrequent, and sporadic growth; driven more from market conditions than internal factors.
The outcome of a leader on the other hand is incalculable opportunity, as your people (if you lead) will surprise you with progressively better ways to grow the business. A leader is capable of not getting more out of their people… but coaching and inspiring their people to expect more out of themselves. Resulting in 1.) happier employees 2.) more creative employees and 3.) business growth.
My 15 year old kid working nights and weekends at a bowling alley has a bigger T&E budget than I do. Seriously. I have more than a dozen employees and contractors, and Nike has less trust in me than a bowling alley with a 15 year old. I’m not alone, this is Nike wide. If I’m wrong… let me know… what department at Nike is trusted with any T&E at the Director or Sr Director level? I’m not talking party budget, or team trip to Vegas stuff… I’m talking about a team dinner once a year kind of stuff. In absence of Nike T&E, I pay for it on my own; or we potluck it.
Managers make sure you do what they told you to do. Leaders inspire you through high-trust relationships… to the best possible outcome.
JD will never be a leader. And he will never create a culture of trust. Ever.