A couple of interesting Posts from yahoo:
I CAN'T STAND IT!
by: supertech53 8/9/00 8:18 pm
Msg: 2112 of 2127
It's been a long time since I've posted and I can't stand it any longer. I know that no one in upper mgmt will consider this valid (if they even read it), but I'll feel better just saying it. As a long time LR vet one of the things that has stuck with me for many years was from one of the movtivational tapes from the lending library. It put employees into 2 basic types: shooting stars and quiet heros. Both are necessary for the "company" to be sucessful. The "shooting stars" are those that come in and just takeoff. They're always highest in ratings, make trip each year, and win all the local contests. Trouble is that after a few years they usually fizzle out or move on and you got to look for a replacement and start over. The "quiet heros" are the ones that are good producers year in and year out, place well in trip and contests, never any customers complaints, and are always reliable and responsible. The stars WILL come and go, but the heros are the foundation-people that make a manager's job a lot easier and they fortify our reputation in the business community. These are basically your core people. In the old days (I know, here I go again)being a quiet hero was a good thing, but the "Townhall" meeting I was in last month opened my eyes to the new truth. When asked if there were any plans to upgrade the techs salary (all techs: copy and voice) from "analog" to "digitial DOCutivity" level and stop the bloodletting, the answer really set me back. I was told that there were no plans to upgrade salaries. They told me that the mindset was to hire (his words)some hushpuppy-wearin' propeller head at a low to mid salary, work him 3,4, or 5 years or until he figures out that he can double his money elsewhere in the industry, show him the back door and run a new prop head in the front at the same low salary. He also said that longterm employees are a relic and a financial burden on the company because of the total compensation package cost. So much for "Company loyalty"! And the last nail was when they put up the new Company Vision statement. It basically wrote voice out. After the sale I can accept the change, but until that meeting I had always felt like an asset to LR, not a liability. So, from one of the "quiet heros"; Old MEN Scrooge are alive and well at LR and don't seem to get a rat's behind about loyalty. If that's the real thinking then BRING ON THE SALE; and for those few left: good luck and CYO*F!
Facts
by: serendipitoustoo 8/9/00 11:01 pm
Msg: 2124 of 2127
I would like to have an honest and factual discussion on this board. If you just want to slam LR, spread rumors or nit pik my grammar, I am not interested in your reply. If you have a comment or sincere question, by all means reply!
The facts as I understand them are:
1) LR was not offered in an IPO. It was spun off from HRS as a stock dividend. It never traded @ $6. That was the value assigned to the dividend on November 1, 1999. The first day that LR traded, November 5, you could buy it for $3.50. Highest traded price was around $4.25.
2) Certain types of debt are great! Based on information discussed in the conference call last week, LR has roughly $300M in debt secured by leases. $250M of this is in the United States. I understand it like this. LR borrows $250M from Wachovia @ 9% interest. They then lease equipment (loan money) to customers for 14% to 20%. Subtract processing costs and the rest is profit. In order to show this profit, they must recognize the loan as debt. Subtract the loans secured by equipment leases and you have only $350M in outstanding debt. If my facts are straight, I say bring on more of this type of debt!!!
3) Everyone likes to whine about the $730M in debt HRS passed to LR. If my memory serves me, LR paid over $500M for Agfa a couple of years ago plus they bought numerous Toshiba dealerships in the US in the 90’s. I am suspicous that most of the debt belonged to LR in the first place. If this wasn’t the case, I suspect some slimeball lawyer would be screaming class action before now.
4) LR has really screwed up the Healthcare divestiture. This was either a colossal screw up or a stroke of genius! Time will tell. LR management hyped a big announcement on April 27 and then their deal with Allscripts fell apart. They had to say something and therefore announced their intention to sell Healthcare. In the long run, this unorthodox methodology may be a blessing. While it has left employees and customers hanging for a few months, I understand that the delay has been caused by the tremendous interest in this division. Contrary to previous posts on this board, LR is gaining, not losing , market share in the hospital market. Their primary competitor, Dictaphone, has lost hundreds of millions of dollars in recent years. They have a strong presence in the logging business, call centers, brokerages, 911, etc., but are losing market share in hospitals, LR’s strength. I sincerely expect a very positive announcement regarding this divestiture in the coming weeks or months. On the CC they stated they wanted to book the sale in the second quarter.
5) Employee turnover. While I don’t know the numbers today, years ago turnover of 100% annually for outside sales people was not uncommon. I suspect that the number is lower today, but am unconcerned with a few salespeople moving on to other opportunities.
Please excuse my verbosity. I guess I am venting my frustration at the lack of factual posts on this board (other than E99 and one or two others). Please respond if you think I have got my facts wrong or if you have additional information.
SerendipitousToo |
