These schering people would NEVER have been hire by merck. Are you kidding me? I look at their managers and directors and feel sick!
We bought a shit company and now these deadbeats get to say they work for merck. Priceless.
At the time of the merger, there were more than just a few colleagues that came in from S-P that had previously worked for Merck. For years they never hesitated to inform their S-P colleagues exactly the sentiments that you voice here - until in the months after the merger they had experienced first-hand what Merck had become during the time that they were away. Collectively these formerly smug co-workers expressed shock at what an incompetent company Merck had become over the years. Merck ranks squarely in the middle of an industry that is itself only mediocre i.e. they're no better or worse than any other major pharma. However, the extent to which they squandered their astounding advantages of reputation, talent, and finances over the last 15 years will be the stuff of future MBA educations. If anyone plans on pointing the figure at how "hollow" S-P seemed to be after the reality was known, consider which Merck clowns actually did the due diligence that might have revealed that. It was no secret that Fred Hassan was keeping his personal pig especially fat for the taking. Rather than maintaining the famous (and presently without basis in reality) Merck smug attitude, everyone needs to consider what can be done to turn around the actual state of Merck. A state that has nothing to do with the merger, by the way. The net benefit now hinges on the Remicade decision. And who do you suppose made that decision? Sadly, there probably are more Kool-Aid drinkers at Merck than there are those that notice that the emperor is a bit naked these days.
Poster #3 is right on.
But don't worry, the new MRK might get bought out by JNJ or Pfizer within 24 months, especially if the arbitration outcome is either not favorable or disclosed soon.
You would think even more that once any CEO decided to acquire some 30-50 billion market cap company, that there are only people at the HQ that would never voice any doubt about it (under pain of corporate death). Most of these silent sycophants only see these mergers as a way of expanding their own empire, anyway, not whether the merger would be good or bad for the company. Look, not much more than 2 weeks of due diligence went into Fred buying Organon as well. Most people that were acquainted with one or two very marginal pipeline projects could see that Fred was getting ready to hold a garage sale and there was more than just Merck sniffing at S-P. Pharma mergers these days are all about buying more time from Wall Street and the pharma CEOs with their short-term outlook think that a merger will buy them enough time to get their money and to get out. The only benefit is in future combined cost reduction and that means mostly layoffs. None of the pharmas has anywhere near the leverage that a Walmart has in retail so purchasing synergy for larger pharma is elusive. Pharmas have never historically been good at cost-savings and they're not good at it now. They know only one trick - layoffs. The former Merck CFO had it right but the fact that those sentiments were last heard from HQ 10 years ago shows you how much the mighty (and straight talk) has fallen.Too bad if the merger between Merck and SP is seen as a bad decision. You think there are enough people at the HQ that would analyze this deal to death before proceeding.
These schering people would NEVER have been hire by merck. Are you kidding me? I look at their managers and directors and feel sick!
We bought a shit company and now these deadbeats get to say they work for merck. Priceless.
