Hi Geoff,
I was a part of a recent RIF, and while there are a number of things running through my head right now, it seems to be a good time to share a few of them while they are fresh. Others may follow along with their own comments as well.
I was hired when Bill Hawkins was CEO, and I had a chance to share a meal with him. I never met Omar face-to-face. We've met and had a couple conversations. One of those conversations was particularly memorable because only 5 minutes after being introduced, you made a comment about by sexual prowess (either stamina or size of my genitalia, can't quite remember). That seemed odd on multiple levels, but you be you. After that introduction, you established yourself in my mind as the "Douchebag Broski" CEO. You have not disappointed since then.
When you took over as CEO and open-sourced some of the ventilator systems, that was very encouraging. It really looked like you had a vested interest in the health and safety of your fellow man. When you announced a half-baked idea about operating units creating greater efficiencies, in the midst of everyone trying to figure out how to work from home and adjust to the new way of working, I was not encouraged. After 3 years of trying to make this new system work, it sounds like things are moving back to the way things were before you took over. That is a good thing.
Geoff, you are tone deaf. Maybe the best way to exemplify this (aside from what has already been said about your social media presence) is how you carry yourself during Town Hall meetings. Nobody gives a shit about your pocket square. During times where departments were cutting back programs and employees in order to meet their targets, you were having fashion chats with Brett and others in the room. If times were better and the company was out there saving more lives and helping more patients, along with investors seeing and appreciating those efforts, a little banter about fashion accessories would not be out of the question. Devoting time to discuss the pattern on someone's sports coat is not something a leader does when jobs are being lost and lives are impacted.
When I say lives impacted, it's not just about the employees who lost their jobs, it's about the patients who aren't getting a meaningful therapy because the re-org broke quality agreements, supply agreements, and (in some cases) rep support. Not to mention the remaining employees who had to shoulder the burden of more work with less support.
During new employee orientation, I was told that Medtronic executives flew commercial, because they really aren't any different from non-executives. It's now rather well-known that Medtronic has its own jet. Gulfstream G650ER Medtronic Corporation N449MT. GVA, October 7. 2021
Gulfstream G650ER Medtronic Corporation N449MT. GVA, October 7. 2021
That's a good looking plane. It had better be for a list price of $65M. You're a lucky guy, Geoff. As a champion of diversity, are your actions performance art? You really are making the middle-aged white man a villain in this story. That's profound.
Keep living the dream!
I was a part of a recent RIF, and while there are a number of things running through my head right now, it seems to be a good time to share a few of them while they are fresh. Others may follow along with their own comments as well.
I was hired when Bill Hawkins was CEO, and I had a chance to share a meal with him. I never met Omar face-to-face. We've met and had a couple conversations. One of those conversations was particularly memorable because only 5 minutes after being introduced, you made a comment about by sexual prowess (either stamina or size of my genitalia, can't quite remember). That seemed odd on multiple levels, but you be you. After that introduction, you established yourself in my mind as the "Douchebag Broski" CEO. You have not disappointed since then.
When you took over as CEO and open-sourced some of the ventilator systems, that was very encouraging. It really looked like you had a vested interest in the health and safety of your fellow man. When you announced a half-baked idea about operating units creating greater efficiencies, in the midst of everyone trying to figure out how to work from home and adjust to the new way of working, I was not encouraged. After 3 years of trying to make this new system work, it sounds like things are moving back to the way things were before you took over. That is a good thing.
Geoff, you are tone deaf. Maybe the best way to exemplify this (aside from what has already been said about your social media presence) is how you carry yourself during Town Hall meetings. Nobody gives a shit about your pocket square. During times where departments were cutting back programs and employees in order to meet their targets, you were having fashion chats with Brett and others in the room. If times were better and the company was out there saving more lives and helping more patients, along with investors seeing and appreciating those efforts, a little banter about fashion accessories would not be out of the question. Devoting time to discuss the pattern on someone's sports coat is not something a leader does when jobs are being lost and lives are impacted.
When I say lives impacted, it's not just about the employees who lost their jobs, it's about the patients who aren't getting a meaningful therapy because the re-org broke quality agreements, supply agreements, and (in some cases) rep support. Not to mention the remaining employees who had to shoulder the burden of more work with less support.
During new employee orientation, I was told that Medtronic executives flew commercial, because they really aren't any different from non-executives. It's now rather well-known that Medtronic has its own jet. Gulfstream G650ER Medtronic Corporation N449MT. GVA, October 7. 2021
Gulfstream G650ER Medtronic Corporation N449MT. GVA, October 7. 2021
That's a good looking plane. It had better be for a list price of $65M. You're a lucky guy, Geoff. As a champion of diversity, are your actions performance art? You really are making the middle-aged white man a villain in this story. That's profound.
Keep living the dream!