I’m at the EMC analyst event this week and it is filled with the typical briefings on new products and services. Much of this I can’t talk about because of the required NDA but there is an overarching message I’ve picked up that isn’t protected. That is about how management is transitioning the company to dominate a technology market that is economically constrained. I’m seeing three areas of unique concentration: Employee Engagement and Trust, Customer Loyalty, and a focus on lean, smart, savings. Let’s take each in turn.
Employee Engagement and Trust
For most of the large companies, both in and out of tech, layoffs have been one of the most common tools of dealing with the downturn. These are often massive layoffs (and I’m not a fan), and these firms have treated employees like easily replaceable parts and sacrificed long-term loyalty for short-term economic benefits. EMC has had some staffing adjustments but has avoided the massive multiple layoffs that many of its peers have executed. In addition, it continues to ...