Save yourselves

(Upstart) Both AOL Time Warner and Lucent announced massive layoffs yesterday. Unfortunately, it wasn’t that surprising. But I’m going to be positive even if Wednesdays have become the prime day to announce Chapter 11s , layoffs and other evidence of social and economic upheaval.

Besides, with the current state of telecommunications, there isn’t much that should come as a surprise to anyone. Lucent, like so many others, had a bad year (Alright, it was an awful year, but I’m trying to look at the good side here). It watched its stock fall from $70 to just over $12, lost its shirt on vendor financing deals and had to tell shareholders today, that it lost 30 cents a share in the first quarter this year. Jettisoning 10,000 employees now and around 6000 more by the end of the year to conserve cash seems reasonable.

So I’m not going to say that Lucent’s falling apart. That would be silly. It would be reactionary. Sure, it’s in trouble. This whole crash scenario’s taken its toll on every tech company. The biggest are going to be noticed more than the others. And that’s only because they’re more visible. Guys like me like to beat up on people with more money and power than we have. (You should see the nasty stuff I’ve written about that street vendor).

As far as those 2000 or so AOL employees packing up their offices over the next couple of weeks, hey, it was a merger. Two big companies-- there were bound to be redundancies. So that one’s got nothing to do with the economy going south; it has everything to do with getting bigger, badder, leaner. Or something like that.

What’s troubling isn’t just the expected loss of jobs. It’s the loss of focus that both these companies have shown in their massive restructuring moves. AOL Time Warner’s planning on selling off those WB stores that line every tourist trap in North America. The name will obviously suffer for missing out on the massive marketing power of Buffy dolls and Animaniacs underwear. And the loss of kitsch in tourist centers will likely have a massive effect on this nation’s economy at a fragile time.

And on the Lucent side, the company’s pulling out of its investments in an exclusive golf course. The New York Times reports that the company has already shelled out $40 million for the 36-hole course, with plans to sell million-dollar memberships to 18 companies. Compared to most business plans thrown around these days, $18 million a year in revenue on a $40 million investment sounds pretty good. But that’s not the point.

If the '90s taught us one thing, it was that a company didn’t have to make money; it just had to have lots of big flashy stuff with its name on it. Every MBA knows that companies are about the cockiness. Are things suddenly so different now? With this current trend, we’re liable to see tradeshows devoid of all Cirque du Soleil performers, world premiere movies and mascots with attitude. And god knows what the startup employees will do to entertain themselves while waiting for funding without foosball. Maybe it’s true. Maybe we’ve finally come to the end.

Staff writer David Schober doesn’t really care where he is as long as he’s surrounded by trapeze artists. Write him at david_schober@intertec.com.