Richard Seltzer's
home page Publishing home
mgmt memo
.
Volume 8, #7_______________________________________________________________
October,
1989
Message
To
Sales, Delivered By The Executive Committee At ’Summer
Session’
Helping Employees Deal With Changing Business
Needs
Proper
Use
Of Digital Computers, Systems And Networks
Universities
Are
Porting Software To Digital’s RISC Workstations
Colby
Chandler
Nominated For Board Of Directors
Gary
Eichhorn
Appointed Vice President
Sharon
Keillor
Named CSS Vice President
Distributed
Software
Systems Group Formed
The current market environment requires more
timely and
responsive decision making. Our customers require this, and
Digital requires
this in order to win more new business.
The most significant element in this direction
is the
emphasis we are placing on account management to drive our
customer focus. This
account emphasis also positions us to continue to build the
industry focus we
have been working towards. We are moving planning and budgeting
responsibility
as close as possible to our customers, by further empowering our
unit managers
and large account managers. They will be capable of mobilizing
Digital
resources to solve customer problems.
Our relentless efforts to destroy red tape will
continue, as
we work towards simplifying and improving our environment,
systems, and
processes.
The organization of Digital’s U.S. sales force
will be very
simple, easy to understand, and will allow the freedom to make
adjustments for
local or special conditions.
The account will be the basic building block of
the Sales organization.
A sales unit may consist of one very large account or may consist
of many
smaller accounts.
The sales account does the basic budgeting for
the sales
department. Each account or group of accounts will budget
expenses, the capital
it will use, and the results it will commit to.
Plans must be reviewed and, when satisfactory,
be approved.
The latter process is the "senior management’s" way of making sure
plans make sense.
We will not have many measurements. Primarily,
they will be
orders, and a way of measuring a return on expense and future
investments.
The account sales unit will cover all the
geography covered
by that company. There will be one budget for each company and
investments will
be made and returns will be realized in whatever part of the world
most
appropriate.
The account is the basic budgeting element.
Therefore, the
sum of account budgets will often exceed the volume of business
within a
geographic boundary. It is not necessary to evaluate investments
within the
context of a district or geography.
The accounting system will automatically
deliver all the
orders, all of the expenses, and all the capital investments
incurred by the
sales unit in total and by the districts in which they are
incurred. These will
be reported once a month.
For each six to twelve units, there will be a
district. The
budget of the district is not the total of all the units in that
district but
is the cost incurred by the district to supply the services it
gives the units
and is, therefore, relatively small and can be managed relative to
the services
given.
In this light, the district continues to play a
critical
leadership role. The district is responsible for ensuring we make
this change;
that means helping, coaching, supporting, and assuring the success
of each
unit. The district will help the units achieve their budgets and
offer services
and management support, as well as represent Digital when more
senior presence
is desired.
There will be six to eight sales geographies in
the country.
These will be groupings of districts. The districts and the
geographies will be
measured on the obvious measure of the services, help, and
training they give,
but we will also add up the results of all the units represented
in their
geographies to see how well these services have done in helping
business,
morale, enthusiasm, and the competence of the units. The units are
very clear
and obvious, and these will be important measurements of the
districts and
geographies.
While we will organize in sales by account,
this organization
will allow us freedom to do things such as make certain districts
aimed at
specific industry markets, when this is the obvious thing to do.
But we will
not claim to organize the entire field by industry.
The U.S. government, managed by Harvey Weiss,
and the
reseller area, managed by Jay Atlas, continue as specialized
geographies with
specialized districts. In those cases, the geographies also have a
marketing
function. Industry Marketing and large account management report
to Bob
Hughes.
It’s important that we simplify the
organization quickly so
everyone understands exactlv
how we operate and that we get on with the
business. We will
rebudget units to reflect this way of organizing and have it all
in operating
shape early in December and have it instituted the first of the
calendar year.
The redoing of the budgets shouldn't be
terribly
time-consuming because they’re done. However, as each unit
balances the
expenses with the promised returns, they will undoubtedly face
the question of
how much more business they get with more investments. In some
cases, when they
realize what they are investing, they will be much more bold in
what they
promised in way of return.
We have learned and accomplished a great deal
over the last
few months, and I am excited about this next step in our
direction. It
represents significant progress in our continuing goal to
simplify our
decision-making processes and operating environment, and position
our
resources as close as possible to our customers.
(This summer over 6.000 Digital sales
professionals from
North America and some from the Far East went through a three-day
intensive
training program on the campus of Brown University in Rhode
Island. The
program was designed to arm the company’s sales people with the
most current
product knowledge in order to help them work with customers to
solve business
problems. The following article is based on a speech delivered to
Summer
Session participants by various members of the Executive
Committee.)
The best strategy will work only if the company
as a whole
has the commitment, support, values and organization necessary to
implement it.
This means effectively communicating with each other, and working
together to
satisfy the customer.
Customers are asking for more, and we have to
deliver more.
This is especially true during times when industry growth is slow,
and it feels
like resources are less available. Wall Street and industry
analysts are
expecting us to withdraw, let go of people, cut back. Competitors
have stepped
up their attacks.
At times like these, we have to be bold and
take the
offensive. We have spent too much time letting the competition
define who we
are and what customers need. Now is the time for us to seize the
high ground,
solve every customer problem, maximize every opportunity, and
remember our
competitors’ weaknesses, not just their strengths. We are not just
seeking to
"survive," but to grow, and to lead. With the best products, best
people and our financial position, there is no reason we can’t be
a $20 billion
business in a few years.
For the company to succeed, we must become more
customer-focused. Our sales force provides the support to the
customer, and
the rest of us provide support to them.
We have restructured the sales force to be more
account-focused. The new structure of the sales organization will
give sales
people the authority they need to innovate, take appropriate
risks and sell
successfully. This means making account teams the basis of our
business.
From now on. business starts with the account
plan. Every
account team and every office will have a plan that they work
towards. They
propose the investments, manage them, and are accountable for
them. They make
the decisions, and close the business.
Part of our charge to the sales force today is
to entrust
you with the ability to set your own goals and have the
satisfaction that comes
from accomplishing them. Don't wait for the rules to come down
from corporate.
You are the ones who will be deciding what to do next. And once
you’ve decided,
it is your responsibility to do it.
To meet our goals, we need the best educated
sales force in
the industry, and the support of the best specialists. Our sales
people need
the right support, in the right amount, at the right time. An
immediate remedy
is our "All Hands on DEC" program. Close to 2000 Digital employees
contributed their time and expertise to make this district support
program
work. Through "All Hands on DEC" we have placed 150 people, on a
full-time basis, into Sales as competitive sales specialists, and
in
telemarketing sales and installed base sales. We estimate the
program resulted
in $150 million in incremental revenue. "All Hands on DEC" will
continue, and will improve as we learn to respond more
effectively.
We also are addressing the longer-term issue of
support.
First, Sales Support will now be managed day-to-day by sales
management at the
district level, including performance reviews and prioritizing of
work.
District sales will decide how to allocate support. This year we
plan to hire
over 1000 sales and sales support personnel. This aggressive
hiring program is
dependent on the ability of Sales management to recruit internal
Digital employees.
Second, budgeting for sales support specialists
will be done
by the groups that develop products and applications. This allows
tighter links
between these groups and Sales Support so we have even higher
quality products
and can ensure solutions that respond to customers’ needs.
This is why we are creating Digital Competency
Centers
(DCCs) — application-specific solution centers which complement
existing resources
like Application Centers for Technology and Systems Integration
Centers. Sales
Support will exist in the DCCs, tied closely to our product,
application and
systems engineering organizations. With DCCs, we can really do the
complete job
for the customer.
Two DCCs are already planned — one in New York
for the
financial services industry, and one in Detroit for discrete
manufacturing.
Additional facilities are in the works for all of the industry
groups.
Our sales people also told us they needed
product and
competitive training. This Summer Session is a response. Further
sessions of
Digital University are being planning. The Digital School of
Networking was
held in Boston in July. Sales Support is scheduled for Q2 this
year; and
follow-on Digital University programs will be scheduled throughout
the year.
Sales people have also asked us to make it
easier for them
to do business, so they can spend their time selling, not enmeshed
in red tape.
Here are some of the major issues and what we're doing about them:
Pricing and price books. A major effort is
under way to
simplify price books, improve their accuracy, and communicate
major price and
term condition changes well in advance. We have also added many
sales
administrators in each district to reduce the administrative
workload and let
sales people have more time for selling.
Product Information Disclosures (PlDs). Our
customers need
to have a clear understanding of our future products for their
planning. That
means getting the information directly from the engineers to Sales
in a timely
manner.
We are doubling our technical support hotlines
in Atlanta
and Colorado Springs. We are doubling their capacity. We also have
created a
special government system hotline that is providing fast answers
for our sales
people who call on government customers. Our goal is to give sales
people
instant answers so that they can give instant responses to our
customers.
Order Processing. We want a simple, one-step,
on-line
process for price quotes, order placement, and status. Artificial
Intelligence
(Al) Engineering and the Field are engaged in a high-priority
effort to
implement a greatly simplified configurator within the next six
months. In FY90
you will also see continued expansion of our "Fast Ship" Program
and
full-scale introduction of electronic data integration (EDI)
capability for
both suppliers and customers.
Rewards and recognition. We’ve made a number of
improvements
in this area, including DECATHLON selection on a district instead
of an area
basis. We are evaluating the inclusion of full credit for
International Sales
and sales through OEMs for this year's metrics. In addition, we
are addressing
the need for team recognition, not just at the management level,
but at the
account/customer level where it really counts and where it
absolutely must
occur.
Metrics. Measurements must be intended first
and foremost
for encouraging self-motivation; and secondly, for encouraging
motivation
between peers. When metrics are out of "sync" with the business
goals
of the company, they are unacceptable. When metrics are out of
"sync"
with the values of the company, they are doubly unacceptable.
Our responsibility is to help make sales goals
clear and to
support the sales effort. Your responsibility is to sell
successfully, acting
in accordance with the values of the company: honesty, quality,
integrity and
commitment to the customer.
Our primary goals are to achieve quality in our
relationships with customers and quality in our products. We want
to produce
what customers need, and completely satisfy their expectations
before, during
and after the sale. Short-term profit and growth come as a result
of all of us
doing our job the right way.
To succeed, we need to deal with customers on
the basis of
their long-term goals, making sure every sale delivers the
expected value. When
we sell our products and services, we also are selling the
corporation and all
its people. That means acting with complete integrity and
clarifying customer
expectations in advance in a way that the customer can understand.
Finally, it
means meeting all commitments once they are made.
When we founded this company, we believed that
doing the
right thing for the customer would eventually result in the right
thing for us.
It still works that way.
To explain all the capabilities Digital has to
offer, we
have to have the best sales force in the industry — the best
trained and the
most knowledgeable about customers’ needs. In an industry whose
products are
changing as rapidly as ours, that means a commitment to constant
renewal of
knowledge and skills — on-going learning to understand our
products and
strategies.
Our sales people have to be business partners
and
entrepreneurs, working with customers to help them define their
critical needs
for the 1990s. Each and every one of you must know your customer,
Digital’s
products, the competitors’ products, the difference, and how to
make use of our
internal resources. And each and every one of us must work with
you to make
that easy.
Our commitment is to put the power in your
hands. Your
responsibility is to use it effectively. Take the offensive.
Solve your
customers’ needs and maximize your opportunities. Focus on the
weaknesses of
the competition and sell against them. Grab industry leadership
and extend the
lead.
We are confident and enthusiastic about our
future. We have
the best products, the best people, tremendous financial
resources, and
magnificent technology.
We’re listening, and we’re responding. With
your knowledge
of our leadership products and applications, the competition is in
trouble.
Digital in the U.S. continues to take a variety
of steps to
improve workforce planning, and to help employees affected by
changes in the
company’s business to find and prepare themselves for other career
opportunities within the company.
"Change is a normal part of our business,"
explains Jack Smith, senior vice president, Engineering,
Manufacturing and
Product Marketing. "We have to be in constant transition, and we
have to
continue to manage it effectively.
"Right now, we have to continue to streamline
our
overhead functions so we can continue to grow our direct
revenue-producing
resources aggressively. And, at the same time, we need to invest
much more
heavily in software development. We’re making these transition
moves so we’ll
be in a better position to grow."
Don Hunt and Annette Albright have been leading
workforce
planning efforts in Manufacturing. Engineering and Marketing
(MEM); and Tom
Colatosti and Sally Cunningham in the Field, with their respective
committees.
In addition, these four people come together in a Cross
Organization Task Force
that includes Rob Ayres, senior group Personnel manager for
Corporate
Operations and chair of the Task Force; Ron Glover, senior
attorney; Dave
Grainger, vice president, U.S. Sales and Services; Bill Hanson,
vice president,
Manufacturing Operations; Dom LaCava, vice president, Low End
Systems; Bruce
Ryan, Controller; and Ted Sares, corporate manager of Transition.
From a
cross-organizational level, they look at these issues on a
U.S.-wide basis,
share what they have learned and deal with administrative barriers
that might
otherwise hamper such efforts.
"Digital always has had workforce imbalances —
too many
people in some places and too few in others," explains Tom
Colatosti.
"This is because new technology continually affects the work that
needs to
be done. Such imbalances can be resolved to a great degree by the
movement of
people, which is what we’re focusing on now."
Programs to help identified employees deal with
changes in
the business typically start at the local level on a
business-by-business
basis. As the various functions and sites have become more
integrated and
interdependent, these programs now need more cross-functional
cooperation to be
fully effective.
"We continue to take a multi-dimensional
approach to
this issue, with employee choice as the cornerstone," observes Ted
Sares.
"We continually evaluate the resources of the company on a
business-by-business basis to determine if there are any
imbalances in the
supply, skills and/or locations of available employees. We have a
number of
programs designed to move available employees into other jobs in
Digital or into
new work, to help those employees who choose to leave Digital, and
to take
advantage of normal turnover through attrition. Each organization
may choose to
use a different selection of options. In highly selective cases,
subject to a
stringent approval process, including the Cross Organization Task
Force,
financial support may be considered to provide a ’bridge’ for
employees seeking
outplacement."
"We began tracking these efforts throughout the
U.S. in
July 1988," notes Annette Albright. "Since then we have helped
over
900 employees find new jobs within Digital. These people were from
both
Engineering and Manufacturing. We’ve dealt with some product
cancellations in
engineering groups and had an effort in Salem, N.H., starting last
November.
Also, there have been similar but smaller efforts in other
places."
Last November people at Digital’s Salem, N.H.,
Computer
Systems Manufacturing (CSM) plant were notified that the plant was
being
rechartered, and Computer Special Systems (previously in several
buildings in
southern New Hampshire) was to occupy the Salem plant. A voluntary
incentive
plan is now being offered to about 500 employees, all of whom are
still
associated with the transition program in Salem. N.H., and its
associated
business units in Merrimack, N.H., and Marlboro, Franklin,
Westford and
Westminster, Mass. It provides an allowance, based on years of
service, and
other benefits, for a limited time, to help employees who choose
to leave
Digital.
"From dealing with plants that have gone
through
changes like this in the past, we have gained understanding and
experience in
dealing with the effect this can have on people’s careers," says
Annette.
"We don’t have all the answers. It’s never easy. But we always try
to
handle these situations as sensitively and competently as
possible. Our goal is
to provide affected employees with a wide variety of choices."
"Digital has been going through these kinds of
changes
for more than 20 years," explains Don Hunt. "At first, all of
Engineering and Manufacturing was in the Maynard Mill. Then we
shifted much of
Manufacturing out of the Mill to places like Westfield and
Westminster,
Massachusetts. A number of people chose to move to the new plants.
But others,
who preferred to stay in Maynard, learned new skills and found new
jobs inside
Digital. Back then we were growing at 25-30% per year, and there
were many job
opportunities available within the company.
"Since then, jobs haven't always been
plentiful, but
the process of dealing with change has been similar. Westminster
used to be the
hub for all systems that we shipped to customers. Nothing went to
a customer
until it went through Final Assembly and Test (FA&T) in
Westminster. Then
advances in design and in manufacturing processes and procedures
eliminated
the need for FA&T, making it possible to provide higher
quality products
at less cost. Today, Westminster is a distribution and warehouse
facility as
well as a major manufacturer of software.
"Likewise, Phoenix, which used to be a major
terminal
plant, went through major changes, as did Albuquerque, N.M., which
used to be a
video plant. Most Digital plants have gone through such evolutions
— some more
than once.
"The business of the company keeps changing, so
the
business of the plants must change. When that happens, we try to
help people
adjust and give them choices and opportunities. That’s the way
it’s always been
at Digital," he concludes.
Don Hunt explains that any of five different
factors can
lead to the need for people to gain new skills and make changes in
their
careers — and that four of these factors are very positive and
important for
the company’s continued success.
o A technology change leads to an improvement
in product
design, so old products are replaced by new and better ones.
o A process or manufacturing technology change
leads to new
ways to build products, o Innovative efforts lead to new ways of
working more
efficiently and effectively.
o Changes in markets and in company-wide
strategies for
penetrating those markets lead to changing where various products
are built.
"When these kinds of changes occur, that means
our
products and processes are improving," says Don. "We’re becoming
more
cost-competitive, and we’re responding to customer needs. The net
result may be
that some people have to adjust their careers; but without these
changes, a
company becomes stagnant and simply can't compete.
"The fifth cause is that, being human, and
having to
take risks to succeed in business, we sometimes make mistakes. For
instance, we
sometimes overestimate the demand for a particular product and
gear up with
more people and other resources than we later need. On the other
hand, much of
the company’s success and growth has been the result of good
risktaking. We’ve
made great strides in improving our forecasting, but there is
always an element
of unpredictability in this dynamic and exciting business.
"Philosophically, we have to come to grips with
the
fact that continuous change is a natural part of our business,"
Don
concludes. "We all have to be flexible, strive to learn new
skills, and
keep up with the changing needs of the business."
Digital recently updated its worldwide policy
defining the
appropriate use of Digital’s computers, systems and networks. This
version
includes a philosophy statement that reaffirms the importance of
our systems
and network utilities as business tools. It also defines "misuse"
and
spells out the responsibilities of all employees and managers.
Because it is important that all employees
understand this
policy, it is being published here in its entirety. This policy is
effective
immediately and will be available in the U.S. in videotex and
hardcopy form on
or before November 1. (Numbers refer to other policies in the the
U.S. Peronnel
Policies and Procedures Manual, also known as the "Orange Book.)
Outside
of the U.S., this policy is being distributed by Personnel
organizations.
Philosophy
Systems and network utilities are powerful
business tools,
encouraging creativity and the exchange of ideas needed to
maintain our
competitive edge. These tools allow for instantaneous creation of
"electronic" organizations to focus worldwide resources on urgent
tasks. We want to encourage our people to use these tools in
accordance with
company philosophy and values.
Our peer-to-peer, open computing environment
reflects our
corporate culture. We sell this concept to customers, and business
and society
are clearly moving towards this way of operating. We believe that
what we sell
to our customers will get better if we use it ourselves.
Information, and the ability to freely
communicate it are
valuable assets that play a significant role in Digital’s success.
The
protection and appropriate use of these assets is everyone’s
responsibility. We
must strike a balance between encouraging open systems and
protecting these
assets if they are to continue to support our success.
Policy
Digital owns and operates computers, systems
and networks
primarily to support the company’s business activities. Systems
should be used
to enhance the cost effectiveness and efficient running of the
business, to
assist employees in being more effective in executing their
duties and
responsibilities, to enhance our employees’ ability to operate our
computer
systems, to foster appropriate open and efficient communications
and to perpetuate
the use of computers in day-to-day activities.
Employees should remember that computers,
systems and
networks like paper files, notebooks etc., are company assets
provided to
employees to assist them in performing their work. These tools,
and the work
product they contain are company property and are therefore
subject to company
review and control. The efficient operation of these vital
resources is
critical to the success of the business, and it is therefore the
responsibility
of all employees to use the computer resources provided to them by
the company
appropriately.
Definitions
For the purpose of this policy, improper use
includes, but
is not limited to the use of Digital owned and/or operated
systems, networks
and conferences for the purpose of gaining unauthorized access to
internal or
external computer systems or accounts, for personal purposes that
are contrary
to company philosophy or policy, for purposes that interfere or
compete with
the company’s business activities, or for purposes of individual
financial
gain. Examples of misuse include, but are not limited to,
transmitting sexual
or ethnic jokes or slurs, soliciting other employees, developing
chain letters,
making defamatory statements, disclosing private facts about any
individual or
organization, inappropriate disclosure of company proprietary or
confidential
information, permitting unauthorized access, etc.
Responsibilities
Cost center managers - cost center managers are
responsible
for effective use of the company’s assets, which includes
networking and
computers. They may delegate that responsibility to other
individuals, but
they are ultimately responsible for making sure these policies are
adhered to.
Systems managers - all employees must ensure
that computers,
systems and networks that they manage are clearly operating in
support of
company business activities. System managers must immediately
investigate and
report any incident of misuse by an employee to the employee’s
manager.
Managers - managers should periodically remind
employees
about the appropriate use of company computer resources and,
monitor these
resources to insure that they are being used in accordance with
this policy.
Employees - employees are expected to use
company sponsored
computer resources and their time at work (as determined by their
manager) in
accordance with this policy and to support company business
activities. In
addition, employees should report all potential misuse to their
manager.
Conference moderators - conference (notesfile)
moderators
are expected to periodically review the contents of the
conferences they
moderate to insure that material contained in those files meets
the letter and
spirit of this policy. Moderators are expected to remove any
material that does
not comply with these standards, and should report violations of
this policy to
the appropriate systems or cost center manager.
Notes
files/conferences
Digital provides systems to its employees to
maintain
computer conferences (notes files) in direct support of company
business (i.e.,
product development, financial analysis, business planning, etc.).
Digital also
permits access to these systems to communicate matters of opinions
and common
interests.
In all cases a computer conference must have an
identified
conference moderator as defined above. Where the conference
directly supports
the company’s business, the conference
moderator and the responsible systems manager
may elect to
restrict access to the conference. Digital classified information
may only be
placed in a conference with restricted access. Conferences created
to
communicate matters of opinion and common interests may not be
used for
solicitations of any kind, and must be open to all employees.
In addition, these conferences may not be used
to promote
behavior which is contrary to the company’s values or policy
(i.e., they may
not promote discrimination, disrespect for the individual,
violence, etc.). It
is the responsibility of employees who utilize such notes files to
do so in a
manner consistent with both the letter and spirit of this policy
and the
company’s values. The company reserves the right to terminate any
notes file it
believes is inappropriate or in violation of this policy.
Responsibility
for
content of messages sent or posted on network
Messages mailed or posted over the Digital
network are the
responsibility of the original author. Posting these materials in
a notes
file/conference without the explicit permission of the author is
prohibited
and is a violation of this policy.
When forwarding messages or posting them to
conferences,
removal or falsification of the original message header (which
indicates the
author) is prohibited.
Company
access
Because networks, computer systems and accounts
are
resources the company provides to its employees, the company
reserves the right
to access those networks, systems and accounts as it deems
necessary.
Policy
violations
Managers who suspect systems are being used
improperly
should discuss the problem with the employee in question and, if
appropriate,
involve security. In cases where improper use has been clearly
established, the
employee should be dealt with in accordance with the corrective
action and
disciplinary policy (6.21).
(The following article is based on a
commencement address
delivered at Wentworth Institute in Boston, Mass.)
The nature of the business world has changed
dramatically in
recent years. We used to believe we belonged to an "American
Century," that America’s strong economic infrastruc ture and
technological
leadership would remain dominant for the foreseeable future. But
today, we see
the emergence of a truly global economy, with competition emerging
from the Pacific
Rim, and from an integrating Europe.
When I started out with Digital thirty-plus
years ago, our
competition consisted of perhaps three or four major players most
of whom had
worked together or at least knew of each other. Today, the scope
of competition
as well as the number of competitors has increased dramatically.
There are not
only competing computer companies, but competition for every part
that goes
into a computer system: chips, terminals, memories, software,
networks.
The speed at which things change also has
increased
dramatically. In the computer industry, I have seen the lifetime
of new
products change from years to months, start up companies emerge
overnight to
become billion-dollar players, and billion-dollar players
disappear seemingly
overnight - their markets vanished, their products too slow and
their
technology obsolete.
Out of turmoil, traditionally comes
opportunity. The
companies that not only survive, but thrive, will be those whose
employees are
the most productive, innovative, and motivated. In the future, I
expect that
only companies that encourage employees to be creative and make a
difference
will ultimately succeed.
Making a difference many times involves risk,
and risk can result
in failure. Today, too much corporate focus is concentrated on
averting
failure, rather than creating success; success that can only come
from making a
difference and taking the necessary risks.
Unfortunately, our financial and investment
institutions
have nurtured a riskless environment. They want to minimize risk.
They desire
consistency and, most of all, predictability. They have forgotten
that it was
risk-taking that made this industry and this economy what they are
today. What
I see all too often in business, particularly at the entry level,
is coaching
of our young people to conform and to passively accept things as
they are. The
emphasis is on fitting in. Making a difference involves too much
risk.
Many of us in business have forgotten our most
distinctive
human characteristic — creativity. This reminds me of the
difference between
the architect and the bee. Both are capable of creating the most
elaborate and
marvelous of structures, but with one important distinction. The
architect
imagines the structure in his mind before he creates it, he
changes the
approach many times - his burning desire is to make a difference —
to do it
better and better in his mind’s eye. The bee builds the same
marvel
instinctively from a set of unchanging instructions — over and
over again. No
difference — no improvements — basic survival being the only goal.
In other words, it is our imagination, our
vision and our
ability to be creative that distinguishes us as humans. Too many
young people
are being coached to simply conform. This is not the way to
succeed.
Digital recently jumped into the forefront of
the expanding
workstation market with the introduction of our RISC-based
DECstation 3100
system. The technology for this product was acquired outside
Digital from a small
innovative chip-maker called MIPS. This acquisition represented a
major
turnaround in the way Digital introduces its technology. And what
made it
happen was not the great foresight of senior management, not the
superiority of
our long-range planning, but the dedication of two individuals.
They took the
initiative and decided this is the way we had to go. They had
creative ideas
about technological innovation within Digital and were determined
to make a
difference — and they did.
Don’t let anything stand in your way. It is
your right to
share your ideas and have them heard. Any organization that
doesn’t allow this
to happen is not going to survive in the long run.
Believe you can make a difference. You are,
today, our best
educated and most knowledgeable generation — fiber optics,
robotics, CAD/CAM
systems, local area networks, lasers — the great achievements of
my generation
are common-place to you, taken-for-granted — pushing you to new
heights of
imagination and creativity. All that is required is your own
determination and
belief in yourself.
The future is full of opportunity. See what
needs to be done
and do it — the power and the knowledge is in your hands. Create
solutions and
implement them. Follow your vision and believe in yourself. Great
success
awaits those of you who dare to make a difference.
Most high technology companies spend from seven
to ten
percent of their revenues on information generation, processing
and delivery.
Using that rule of thumb, computers and networks and the people
who process
information for the company cost Digital over $1 billion each
year. That makes
information one of our most expensive resources.
Industrial espionage goes on all of the time.
In a case a
few years ago at another company in Europe, a computer operator
was paid a
year’s wages to print an extra, unauthorized copy of a report for
outsiders.
Someone thought the report was valuable.
We need to remember how critical information is
in an
industry where competitive position depends on Digital being able
to design and
produce a family of new products every two or three years. If our
business
plans should be exposed, we could lose our competitive position. A
competitor
who knows our plans and understands our reasons for choosing
certain
technologies can make fast, cheap decisions, without the expensive
research we
have had to do. We could be undersold, lose a market niche, or
suffer
irreparable damage.
Finally, we need to preserve our reputation. If
we cannot
successfully protect our own information, how can our customers
depend on us to
provide computers and networks that will protect their
information?
To be certain that we do everything possible to
provide
security to Digital information, the Information Security Strategy
Committee
(ISSC) has been established. This committee is responsible for
identifying
information security issues, providing resources to develop
solutions, and
seeing that the solutions are implemented across the company,
worldwide.
The ISSC has representatives from all parts of
Digital.
Current issues being addressed include improvement of network
emergency
procedures, development and installation of security tools, and
the creation of
an information security business architecture.
The ISSC meets quarterly, and will be
developing proposals
for new policies and standards to improve practical procedures for
information
security, to simplify directives, and to accommodate new
technologies. Since
Digital runs on Digital products, this work implies the delivery
of Digital
products with ever better security features.
The message is that Digital will continue to be
a leader in
information security. It’s an essential part of our business.
Through the recently announced DECstation
Innovators
Program, university researchers and faculty are busy on more than
50 projects
to port more than 130 well-known software applications to
Digital’s family of
RISC workstations. Several applications from the program are
already available
for customers, and approximately 400 DECstation 3100
configurations have been
acquired by participating universities.
Engineering and product marketing people chose
key
applications and invited target universities around the world to
participate
in the program. In exchange for partial summer support for project
personnel
and special prices for DECstation 3100 systems, each university
developed a
proposal outlining the scope of its project and the distribution
mechanisms it
will use to make the software easily available. Most of the
applications are in
the public domain and will be available over national networks and
through
organizations like DECUS. The remaining applications are
distributed through
more formal channels directly by the universities for modest fees.
"Historically, universities are among the early
adapters of new technologies," explains Jack McCredie, director.
External
Research Program. "They led demands for a RISC-based ULTRIX
workstation
and were among the first customers placing volume orders after
Digital's
system was announced last January. By working with the leading
universities and
faculty to port key applications, Digital is ensuring an even
broader, early
beachhead in the strategic education market. By establishing
credibility and
gaining university commitment to Digital’s RISC technology,
successful
penetration into the more commercial markets is more likely to
follow."
About half of the participating universities
are in the
U.S., 40% in Europe, and the remainder in Canada and Australia.
"This
program accelerates the porting of valuable applications to this
new RISC
platform, and it enables universities to acquire more systems
than they would
otherwise be able to afford," adds Jack.
"Coupled with the Engineering Systems Group’s
’Call-to-Arms’ effort (with its 34 software development firms also
porting
applications), this program demonstrates Digital’s commitment to
meeting
customer needs and to the RISC-based ULTRIX workstation arena."
A few examples of participating schools are:
Johns Hopkins
(astronomy), CalTech (engineering), Vienna Technical University
(artificial
intelligence), University of Oslo (artificial intelligence),
University of
Ottowa (chemistry). University of Antwerp (engineering), Brigham
Young
University(engineering) and the University of California at
Berkeley
(computer-aided design).
"We will re-evaluate the program this fall",
notes
Jack, "but it already looks like an excellent model for how we can
work
with many groups and meet multiple goals. This approach gives us
better
applications and better research, it builds better educational and
research
computing environments for the universities, and it expands our
existing ties
and presence with our many university partners."
Colby Chandler, chairman and chief executive
officer of
Eastman Kodak Company, has been nominated for election to
Digital’s Board of
Directors. Digital’s 1989 Annual Meeting of Stockholders is
scheduled to be
held on November 6.
In announcing the nomination. President Ken
Olsen said,
"Colby Chandler is a distinguished business leader with a global
long-term
vision and a focus on improving U.S. manufacturing quality and
productivity.
Digital and Kodak have worked together on projects for a number of
years, and
we’ve developed great confidence and admiration for Colby
Chandler."
Mr. Chandler began his Kodak career in 1950 as
an engineer
at Kodak Park. He subsequently held management positions in
quality control and
technical services before being named in 1962 as recipient of a
Sloan
Fellowship to study at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
From 1963 to 1971. Mr. Chandler held various
management
positions in the Color Print & Processing Organization. He was
named
director of Corporate Photographic Program Development in 1971,
and in 1972
elected an assistant vice-president of the company. In 1974, he
was named
general manager, U.S. and Canadian Photographic Division, elected
a member of
the board of directors, and an executive vice-president of the
company.
He was elected president of Eastman Kodak
Company in 1977,
and became chairman and chief executive officer in July 1983.
Mr. Chandler serves on the board of directors
of Ford Motor
Company, JC Penney Company, and Citicorp. In addition, he serves
as chairman of
the President’s Export Council. His other business affiliations
include The
Business Roundtable, The Business Council, The Business-Higher
Education Forum,
and the Council on Competitiveness. His public service commitments
include
service as a board member for the United Negro College Fund, the
National
Organization on Disability, and the United Way of Greater
Rochester.
Gary Eichhorn has been appointed General
Systems Business
and Laboratory Data Products/- Science vice president. He
continues to report
to Peter Smith, vice president, Product Marketing, and is still
responsible for
the LDP/Science marketing group which he has managed for the past
2 1/2 years.
LDP/Science develops and markets complete solutions for scientists
and
researchers worldwide.
Gary joined Digital in 1975 as a Sales
associate and has
held a number of sales and sales management positions, including
District Sales
manager for the Northeast Accounts and Applications District in
Boston, Mass.
Previous to his management of LDP, Gary was Product Marketing
Programs
manager, responsible for a number of corporate marketing programs
as well as
developing key linkages between Product Marketing and Engineering.
The General Systems Business Group, a new
organization
within Product Marketing, will develop and market complete systems
for
companies with revenues of less than $100 million across all
industries and
applications, and will work closely with the U.S., European, and
GIA sales and
service organizations as well as with MicroVAX and other key
engineering groups
to implement a complete plan.
The Independent Software Vendor Group (ISVG)
continues to
report to Gary as well. This group will maintain its focus on
insuring that
Digital has a broad base of applications optimized to its
client-server
architecture on both VMS and ULTRIX platforms.
Sharon Keillor has been named Computer Special
Systems (CSS)
vice president, reporting to Don Busiek, vice president,
Professional Services.
She will continue to manage the Software Services Engineering
organization, a
position she has held since 1983.
Sharon is chartered to help create and support
the
Enterprise Integration Services (EIS) organization and to better
integrate
these functions in support of that group. In this capacity, she
also will
report to Russ Gullotti, vice president, Corporate EIS.
She joined Digital nine years ago as Corporate
Software
Service Training manager. Later she assumed management
responsibility for Digital
Management Education (DME). Prior to coming to Digital, she held
positions at
several universities, including the University of Massachusetts.
A new Distributed Software Systems Group (DSSG)
is now
responsible for the development of the operating systems and much
of the
layered software for Digital’s distributed system environment.
This group is
headed by Bill Strecker, vice president, who reports to Jack
Smith, senior vice
president, Engineering, Manufacturing and Product Marketing.
"A traditional source of Digital’s uniqueness
is its
networked computing," explains Jack. "But, our customers are
demanding that we go beyond the simple connectivity of networking
and move to
true distributed systems. These distributed systems will have the
functionality.
manageability, and security of traditional central systems. DSSG
will insure
that Digital has the industry-leading heterogeneous distributed
systems for the
1990s."
The new group includes such organizations as:
Open Systems
Software Business (OS/SB), VMS Software, PC Integration Software,
Software
Development Technology (SDT), Secure Systems Engineering, the
Security Program
Office, and Corporate Standards.
OS/SB, previously managed by Bill Heffner, is
be managed by
Roger Heinen. VMS Software, previously managed by Kurt Friedrich,
is now
managed by Rick Spitz. Kurt Friedrich will establish and manage
new integrating
functions to insure that the central mission of DSSG is
accomplished. Bill
Keating continues to manage STD. PC Integration Software continues
to be
managed by Joe Carchidi, who now reports jointly to Bill Strecker
and John
Rose, group manager, PC Integration.
In addition, a Software Strategy Committee will
be formed,
including representatives from DSSG. other Central Engineering
groups, Product
Marketing, and Field Engineering. The Committee will establish
Digital’s
Distributed Systems architecture and insure that all of Digital’s
software fits
that architecture.
"Superficially, the new organization resembles
the old
Systems Software Group, which was divided into three pieces a year
ago,"
notes Bill. "But it includes a lot more and has a new focus. For
instance,
a new group within DSSG will be responsible for implementation of
distributed
computing strategies across the company. DSSG also includes PC
software because
of the increasing importance of PCs and PC integration in the
overall computing
environment we are building. In addition, we will work to build a
strong
business and marketing focus for all of software. At the same
time, we expect
that the Software Strategy Committee will do for software
architecture what
the Systems Task force once did for all of engineering —
integrating software
across the company."
Bob Hult has been named Corporate
Internal Audit
manager, reporting to Bruce J. Ryan, vice president and Corporate
Controller.
Bob joined Digital in 1972 and has had extensive financial
management
experience in Corporate Operations, European Headquarters,
Manufacturing and
Customer Services. Most recently he was Customer Services Finance
manager.
John Doherty has been appointed to the
newly created
pole of Recognition manager for Sales, Sendees, Marketing and
International
(SSMI), reporting to John Mercier, SSMI Compensation and Benefits
manager, and
Dick Walsh, Field Personnel vice president. He will be responsible
for
developing and implementing the overall SSMI recognition strategy
in support of
business needs. For the past two years, John has been Corporate
Personnel
Policies and Procedures manager. He joined Digital in 1974 and has
served in
such positions as Human Resources manager for Software Services,
CSS and
Educational Services; line manager in the Product Support
organization; and
Personnel manager.
Randy Levine has been named manager of
the Scientific
Applications Marketing Group in LDP/Science Marketing, reporting
to Gary
Eichhorn, vice president. Randy has been with LDP/Science since
1985 and with
Digital since 1982. He has been manager of LDP’s Product Marketing
and Planning
Group and acting manager of LDP’s Laboratory Applications
Marketing Group.
Prior to joining Digital, he taught astronomy and conducted
research in astrophysics
at Harvard College Observatory.
Dennis Pearce has been appointed
Administration
manager for Educational Services, reporting to Pat Cataldo, vice
president,
Educational Services, and to Mike Kalagher, U.S. Administration
manager. Dennis
has been with Digital for 13 years. In his most recent assignment,
he was
Educational Services Manufacturing/Distribution manager
responsible for
worldwide distribution of Educational Services’ products.
Bob Stewart, Corporate Consulting
Engineer, is now
technical director, Workstations, reporting to Don Gaubatz, group
manager. In
this position, he is responsible for the systems and graphics
architecture of
all VAX-based and RISC-based workstation products. Bob began his
career with Digital
in 1971 after he completed his undergraduate and graduate work at
MIT. He made
major contributions to the PDP-11/45 and the PDP-11/70 systems.
Subsequently,
he moved to the VAX group where he worked on the VAX-11/780
system. the VAX CI
architecture and implementation, and the VAX 8000 family of
products. His
contribution to these products is recorded in the many patents
that he has been
awarded during his 18 years at Digital.
Tony Wallace has been appointed Finance
manager for
the Customer Services organization, reporting to Don Zereski, vice
president,
Corporate Customer Services. For the past three years, he has been
Corporate
Internal Audit manager. He also has held key financial management
positions in
High Performance and Clusters, Peripherals and Supplies, and CSS.
He joined
Digital in 1980 after spending 10 years with Itek Corp.