#strategy

TL;DR : Nike needs to make more desirable products again and get them in front of more people by focusing on a few big hits and not over-relying on its own stores.

Nike should prioritize restoring brand heat and product distinctiveness while rebalancing its channel mix. The shift toward direct to consumer has supported margins but reduced marketplace visibility. I would recommend sharper segmentation of distribution, reinvesting in key wholesale partners for reach, while elevating owned channels for premium storytelling and data. In parallel, focus the innovation pipeline on fewer, bigger product bets across core categories, reducing complexity and improving speed to market. Growth will come from concentrating demand around iconic, high velocity products rather than expanding assortment.

This likely requires a simpler operating model with clearer priorities and faster decision making. That includes reducing organizational complexity, aligning incentives around end to end category performance, and empowering teams closer to the consumer to act with speed. There is also an opportunity to improve demand forecasting, merchandising discipline, and supply chain responsiveness to increase precision without adding overhead. Cost discipline matters, but primarily as an enabler of speed, creativity, and execution rather than the goal itself.

Thoughts?

Citi is quietly doing layoffs without much noise like Amazon or Microsoft. They are not in news much.

The government must look into the fake internal job postings, promotions for favorite candidates, and immigration visa abuse. Citi is notorious for replacing American workers with H1B, L1 TN, OPT, H4 EAD candidates.

They hire in India, Ireland, Poland, Costa Rica Singapore, and their last option is hiring in the USA.

Most of the Indian managers are racists and they discriminate other south asians based on caste and culture. It's a absolute disgrace to the America.
Citi HR and Ethics teams are a joke!

They will hire overseas and make them rich and show layoffs in the USA to bump up the stock!

The only strategy is lay off people and get more bonuses! This cannot survive for long. It's a shame that the assets of the big four banks in the USA are not even comparable to some average banks in China.

All we do is new marketing brands

Great job Vz Board & Dan.

Great strategy... Great Execution.

Paying Dan $1M a month... do the right thing and resign.

Harvard Business Case already written howbto F-K up a once great company with DEI

Bank leaders are all in San Antonio this week for strategy sessions. Could be a good or bad thing…anyone have insights?

I’ve never seen a company that is so top heavy. And notice how every VP is always in the same meetings with other VPs. What decision autonomy you have when everyone is in everyone’s business always.

There are meetings in random cities all over the world that everyone flocks to. And these “strategy sessions” do not drive anything other than poor decisions which require future pivots (and more Strat sessions).

What is going on with Honeywell?

This is the reality.
NRE employees are not being targeted because they are lazy, noncompliant, or underperforming. That narrative is convenient, but it is not the truth.
They are being targeted because they are the most financially strategic group to remove.
Employees who are already retirement eligible have already earned their pension and benefits. If they leave, the company still carries those costs, including payouts, healthcare, and everything that comes with it. The liability is already locked in.
Younger employees? Many of them will be impacted anyway as AI and automation continue to evolve. They have not accumulated significant pension value yet, so the financial upside of removing them now is limited. They walk away with relatively small payouts, which would likely happen in the near future regardless.
But NRE employees are right at the threshold.
They are the ones about to qualify for meaningful pension payouts and lifetime medical benefits. That is where the financial exposure is. That is where the delta is. That is why they are being pushed out before they cross that line.
Not because they are all poor performers. Not because they are disengaged. Some are, some are not, but that is true of every group.
So let’s stop pretending this is about laziness or attitude. It is not.
It is timing. It is cost. It is strategy.
What is frustrating is not just the outcome, it is the narrative being used to justify it. Do not label people as lazy to explain decisions that are clearly driven by financial incentives.
People see what is happening.

https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/jim-cramer-nike-one-bigger-153440220.html

The most important thing is to collect and destroy all the green crayons, replace them with purple crayons, then sell the devalued purple crayons to a company who wants used crayons and doesn’t have better ones

What is the sense in celebrating 147 years of a defunct company’s “legacy” while replacing all your “legacy” offerings with purple lipstick and nothing new except worse problems?

5 words: Technical Vision, Get Some Fast.

Cisco is still milking the innovations of the 90s. Margins are shrinking, the market share is shrinking. What is left is espionage and up theft. It doesn’t go well for chucky boy.

Educated at Ivy League universities vs no-name college

Worked at prestigious organizations like Bain, Paypal, Service now vs Nike only experience ( that too which he got by literally begging for it)

$170 share price and $52 billion revenue vs comedy that we are seeing now

Has PHK made a mistake by replacing a highly educated, intelligent leader with Shoe salesman? The results are for everyone to see, even if JD continued I am sure that share prices wouldn't have dipped this low.

I am not saying JD would have been the best person to continue on the job, but he would be as aweful as EH. EH got free hand in literally replacing JD's handpicked team, and all the freedom to reshape company's strategy but the outcomes have been the worst.

What do you guys think, how much time does EH have before he is shown the door?

Long story short...I expect to be NSI this year. Can anyone share the blueprint for dragging this out as long as possible before I am severed?

What happened to the highly anticipated external hire from a consulting company who was appointed to head DMC strategy? She disappeared after just a few months. Was she that bad?

What changed over the last month or so? We were at $50! I was optimistic that Dan was turning around our firm post layoff and new strategy. Our net add and cash flow numbers were impressive and further OpEx reductions + stock buy backs + dividends was meant to turbo charge our stock to ~$72. What happened? What changed? Does the street know something that we don't?

Flight to saftey over. Vz stock resetting and back to low 40's/30's. Zero strategy execution exposed. Buyback and layoffs only strategy. Without Executive Leadership... BOD only option is merger and tap out with bonuses. Merge with Charter and let Nick Jefferies reset DEI hirings.

another "strategy team" pushing a not new approach and calling it new with long trainings where no one has done the job on the clinic level. exhausting....praying for rif or early retirement. why cant these over paid consultants figure stuff out? If it did not work the first time or second time... it wont work with less staff.

During Chambers' time, there was a very clear strategy and vision: to be number one or two in every product line that Cisco sells, combined with a vision to change the way we live, learn, and play. Today, there is no vision or strategy at Cisco. What is important is to maintain profit margins only. Over the past decade, Cisco has lost significant market share in every product line it sells, and in some of them it has long since ceased to be number one or two.

Sony Pictures Entertainment is undergoing a major operational restructuring. The company will eliminate hundreds of roles across its film, TV, and corporate divisions. These changes are described as strategic for growth, not primarily cost-driven. New focus areas include franchise strategy, anime, and video game adaptations. CEO Ravi Ahuja communicated these organizational shifts in a staff memo.

https://variety.com/2026/tv/news/sony-entertainment-layoffs-tv-film-1236710554/

Sony Pictures Entertainment has begun layoffs across its motion picture, television, and corporate offices. This move is part of a strategic refocus on growth-oriented strategies. The company aims to strengthen differentiated businesses and ROI drivers. Growth areas include Crunchyroll, other anime, and PlayStation adaptations. Chairman and CEO Ravi Ahuja sent a memo to staff regarding these changes.

https://deadline.com/2026/04/sony-pictures-layoffs-refocus-on-growth-1236782963/

My former undergrad mate went to Wharton (MBA finance), entered the industry and was mentored by the likes of Dan Niles. His view on justifiable Head Count for Intel Inc.

Design team = 20,000
Manufacturing = 40,000
Total = 60,000

He called it out right. What do you think. Tag HR and the powers to be.

https://www.phonearena.com/news/at-t-has-big-plans-for-cricket-wireless-and-they-go-way-beyond-phones_id179442

Most decisions are focused on immediate results. Long-term impact doesn’t seem to ever be a priority. It leads to the same problems coming up again later and more wasted time and resources. Imagine how different things would be if we actually focused on the future and long-term results.

Here's the thing. Dell isn't going to suddenly start caring about you. Accept that. Then use it. They offer education benefits? Max them out. Training programs? Sign up for every one. Tuition reimbursement? Take every dollar. Upgrade your skills as much as you can on their dime. Take on responsibility, not because they'll reward you, but because it makes your resume stronger. Then you have two paths. Path one, you become so marketable that you can leave for a better job with better pay. Path two, you become so essential that they keep you when the cuts come. Either way, you're in control. Stop waiting for them to be good to you. Use them.

Unfortunately the news article is paywalled. But how exactly do they plan to double profits? More cutbacks?? Is this the part where private equity starts doing what they do best, cut everything down to nothing to maximize profits?? Here is the link to the article but sorry it's paywalled.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-04-02/walgreens-private-equity-owner-plans-to-double-chain-s-profits

In your view, what's the purpose of technology @ BD? It's a rhetorical question.

I think the market has this wrong, especially if they think this is in anyway tied to the company gaining some new foundry customer.

This appears to me to be a typical financial leveraging exercise, where they take on a lot of debt in order to own 100% of the revenue from lagging node production.

Seems like typical short-term Finance thinking to me, all well and good unless demand falls off a cliff when the megacap tech hyperscalers are forced to pull back sharply on capex.

Why would they do that? Because (unlike the AI disruption they all face) the other corporate users of AI are not ready to run off an adoption cliff.

Each and every one of the megacap tech companies are in an existential race, scrambling to replace a good deal of their existing products with datacenter revenues. Users are already shifting to use of AI in place of the key products offered by the megacap tech companies, so those companies are moving to AI as quickly as possible, before their entire business model is destroyed.

Oracle is a great example of what is happening, where they are slashing headcount at the same time as they are going all in on debt-fueled datacenter construction. Amazon appears to be at the other end of the spectrum and that is likely because they don't feel as at risk from AI. Microsoft, Google, Meta..soon to be disrupted.

So much manipulation by so many to create competitive moats, all for naught.

Other companies are also adopting, but not at such a furious pace, and so don't need the datacenter growth being offered by the megacap tech companies. At some point (very soon) there will be a reckoning, which results in datacenter capex being probably cut in half (more or less).

AI is still a thing, just not quite as fast as megacap tech companies need it to be.

https://finance.yahoo.com/sectors/technology/articles/ibm-announces-strategic-collaboration-arm-040100144.html

This is far more strategic than first appears as it gives Enterprise customers options while feeding IBM’s strategy of buying SW innovations.

1. It grows IBM’s Mainframe moat for the Fortune 500 - 1000 (expands the mainframe monopoly)
2. It opens up SW acquisition opportunities thus allowing IBM to expand its distribution model while also shrinking IBM’s legacy SW in house development model

And therein lies the problem

Nike started acting like Shoe King instead of a Shoe Dog, and that is the problem....Go back to your Roots and begin again! Don't try to correct. Start with a fresh outlook with the same thrive and energy as PK and Bill Bowerman....Do not RESTART! Rather STOP and RESTART FRESH!

How far does the stock have to fall before someone realizes we have the wrong leadership? The Ferriswheel sold worldpay to FIS and then became CEO of FIS. Spun it as a great thing to jettison it. Wow! She really is amazing for her own net worth. While the shareholders and employees keep losing, she wins. Let me guess more cuts are coming because that is all she and her BFF can come up with when they catch heat. If McKinsey was public, it would have been a better investment than FIS. Meanwhile go tell the banks these are great changes for us. Look at the pretty dolphin.

Nike’s entire board ought to be scrubbed at this point too. Zero accountability for failings of successive leadership teams. Waiting on evidence they take their fiduciary duties to shareholders seriously at this point. Activist and buyout the best outcome at this point to break cycle of layoffs and restructuring to hide lack of real strategy and leadership…

One bad idea after a other - so many to list but let’s take MEC for example - we spent hundreds of millions to build - the “consultants” and internal Verizon lifers in leadership said it’s going to be revolutionary and make us billions.

Results …. Squat! Yet these 30yr veterans are still walking the hallways of basking ridge touting their accomplishments.

When will there be accountability ability to leadership and not just the people under them who executed the orders.

We need fresh leadership and new ideas - period!

How much is the Jordan brand, and by extension its ego and entourage, costing Nike?

Eventually, the absence of strategy and sound fundamentals comes due. And I won't even mention the unthinkable - a bold vision with a long-term payoff. Apparently that's just fantasyland.

Sorry, it never works.

Define the problem first. Not the "What number what you want" first.

Id--ts.

Oracle is making a major push into artificial intelligence, investing heavily across its cloud infrastructure, enterprise applications, and data platforms to position AI as a core part of its business strategy.

With stock price halved, Kyndryl is a very attractive options for Private Equities and India IT chop shops that would love to have the sticky managed services clients. What are your thoughts?

🎪 Step Right Up: The Traveling Fad Circus 🎪

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back—
where the lions are tired, the tricks are recycled,
and the real spectacle… is management chasing whatever just left town.

First act! The EV extravaganza!

Wall Street packs the tent, dims the lights,
and quietly slips out the back door.

The music stops.

The crowd is gone.

The confetti’s wet.

And just then—
right on cue—
Ford bursts through the curtain:

💥 “WE’RE ALL IN!” 💥

$20 BILLION (yes, with a B)
launched into a party that ended three quarters ago.

Fast forward—
the hangover hits. Hard.

Write-offs. Shrugs. “Market conditions.”

The trapeze artist misses the bar—
but don’t worry, folks…

Second act! The AI spectacular!

“Algorithms will save us!”
“Competitive advantage is now… vibes and compute!”

And again—perfect timing—
Wall Street starts backing away.

Quietly. Then quickly. Then all at once.

“Maybe… we overdid it on AI.”
“Maybe not every company needs to be a tech company.”
“Maybe… just maybe… build something that works.”

But the band keeps playing.

Because nothing says strategy
like arriving late, spending big,
and pivoting just in time to miss the next one too.

And off to the side, in a glowing crystal ball,
a cheerful voice reassures the crowd:

“Don’t worry—AI will be revolutionary!”
“Today!”
“…well, tomorrow.”
“Okay—next week.”
“Fine—next year.”
“Look, the point is—it’s definitely happening.”

Meanwhile, the acrobats are still falling,
the elephants are still expensive,
and the audience is starting to notice.

So stay seated, folks—
the show goes on.

New fad, new costume, same act.

🎪 Next performance: whatever just peaked. 🎪

Nike should be out of DJIA and don't mix with prima donnas.

Get out DJIA and start from bottom with hungry attitudes without worrying about trying to meet financial expectations of DJIA members.

Being in DJIA is hindrance to NIKE. Seems like Nike management is worried about it instead of strategic execution.

If layoffs were executed according to the following playbook Nike would almost certainly be better off.

Let go of employees at the Director level or above who:

1. Started at Nike post 2010
2. Have only worked for Nike
3. Were ‘promoted in place’ to receive their current title

While I’m sure there are a few good leaders that meet the above criteria, as a general rule this cadre of leaders are near useless in our current predicament.

Much like every stock investor is a genius in a bull market, leading when things are going well is easy. These folks have no experience managing through adversity - and it shows.

Nor do they have career experience outside of Nike to draw upon for other ideas. This means they will stick with the status quo: things that worked in the past at Nike that are no longer working now.

Lastly, because they received their titles without undergoing a competitive interviewing process, the scenario surrounding their original promotion bears little resemblance to the environment that they were re-orged into. Despite this, they retain the inflated title.

There must be a few hundred candidates that meet the above criteria, maybe more?