There's a good WSJ article concerning NN's failure and how important it is to have good management:
Newbridge's Incorrect Bet On ATM Behind Alcatel Deal
By BEN DUMMETT
TORONTO -- What a difference 24 months make.
In the case of Newbridge Networks Corp. (NN), this relatively short period marked its transformation from an independent vendor of networking equipment to a company forced to put up a for-sale sign.
Back in 1997, Terry Matthews, Newbridge's founder, chief executive and visionary, confidently wrote to shareholders in the company's annual report: "There is no doubt that, in the next millennium, most voice, data, video and multimedia traffic will be carried on asynchronous transfer mode-based, broadband, multiservice and multi-application networks."
But only a year later, this vision proved flawed, and helped to drive one of Canada's leading technology companies into the arms of Alcatel S.A. (ALA) for about $7.1 billion in stock.
Matthews' pronouncement in 1997 "is a stunning piece of short-sightedness, in that a year later it became obviously apparent that a very decent portion of networks would be more Internet-Protocol-based than ATM, and that ATM needed to co-exist in an IP world," Paul Sagawa, analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein, said in a recent interview.
Newbridge's incorrect bet on ATM equipment underscores the risks network vendors face by failing to correctly anticipate the changing needs of their customers....
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