Thread regarding Cisco Systems Inc. layoffs

The stock price was $33 in 2007, ten years later we are looking at $31.

It was over 117 in 2017 dollars more than 17 years ago, and unlike today where a huge percentage of the stock value is cash that value was mostly for the underlying business. The management team has been quite effective at getting people to catch the falling swords allowing many of us to make a lot of money on the upticks without resorting to shorting. As long as non-critical trade rags like Network World blindly report marketing blithering like "intent based Catalyst 9000s mean the switch can schedule a new flight if you miss one" they'll be able to charge even more per GigE port than they were a decade ago. Go Moore's Law! Go Internet Speed! Feel the power of no competition.

The stock price was $33 in 2007, ten years later we are looking at $31.

A lesson in scaling: a single CAP bug can be millions. Failed acquisitions and internal efforts over time is on the order of tens of billions. With a revenue run rate near half a trillion per decade they are probably losing a high single digit percentage of revenue which is likely offset to some degree by denying competition from those acquisitions. With 67% gross margins and number two market players having single digit market share this has proven to be a viable strategy for a very long time. Successful business and good engineering are not the same thing.

My current VP will scold you if you have to lead a meeting and do not have a powerpoint.

Do I have to draw you a picture?

For Cisco VPs. Yes.