Does anyone have any details on this? There's a formal meeting about it tomorrow evidently.
107 replies (most recent on top)
@dby
One of them still exists in the company undisturbed by HR… go figure
@d8y the same people mentioned are masters at gaslighting and sabotaging female employees.
@d8d
It is hard to explain how they treat you especially the 3 people mentioned in this thread (and more ) as you have to experience it. It has been really hard as an Asian moving up the ladder in R&D organization. You are continuously ridiculed and many hurdles thrown in our way. Don’t know why
Interactions depend on who you are.
If you are Asian, then it is very different than if you are a Caucasian.
As someone said earlier, racism comes in various flavors in 3M.
@ctx
Are you talking about Dr.Shark ? The same one mentioned here? If so no way is he nice. But very close to SVP
@ctx
I am sorry but you may not be Asian. Similar to Dr. Claw. Worse behavior
I worked with CS for a number of years. I never saw inappropriate behavior or comments towards anyone. In fact, he is one of the best managers & leaders left in 3M.
Who are the Dr. Claw's and Dr. Mess's still left in 3M ?? Spill the beans bro.
@aw8
The sad part is that 3M HR turned their faces and acted as though they did not see or hear anything. Why? Many suffered because of them and their gossip and stretched their tentacles across the other VPs. One wonders why such behavior. More than that why the company supported it and did not take action on them?
Racism in 3M come in all sorts of shapes and forms. You have to actually feel it to believe it. Really !
BM (Dr. Mess) was in general a nice person to work with. However when it came to promoting 3Mers of Asian origin in both EMSD and CRL, he used to develop severe cold feet. There are many examples of genuine cases for promotion and career growth that were delayed or denied by him.
Whereas TC (Dr. Claw) was very hard to work with for Asians. He would openly shout at them in team meetings and 1 on 1s and would sometimes behave like a strict old time school headmaster, reprimanding his students in the rudest way possible. This behavior was exclusively reserved for Asians.
Hence different styles for Dr. Mess and Dr. Claw but it served the same purpose; blatant discrimination on the basis of race.
oh, got it. Thanks.
Sorry your experiences were so negative. I worked a bit with B and he seemed to be a pretty good guy, but I guess my experience wasn't the norm.
@aqt
In the first place, I know how the son of the retreat Corp scientist from MRD got the job and before that 3M internship as well. Not a good manager either.
Then comes the next problem, fast promotion in that ladder. That is only possible in CRL and that to CRPL and CRML.
This son of rtd Corporate Scientist has now been promoted to the equivalent of a T5 (JG14).
If one starts at a T3 level and works at the bench it takes anywhere from 11 to 15 years to get here. In management all you have to do is to stay put in your seat for a few years and keep higher ups happy. Promotions are a given, no accomplishments required. Looks like promotions in this lane are simply a function of time. How come everyone in management have avgreat career, promotion to a Director level is pretty much guaranteed, while so few lab scientists can ever make it to a T6? How is this system fair? What incentive does someone have to work in the lab anymore ????
@aqk
I only remember him as a shouter, te---r and liar and of course boss pleaser. Not a business conscious at all
@aqh
and the 1st wave of six (sick) sigma black belt!
R&D VP of EMSD who retired and he was also CRML Vp before that
Further info please on who BM is.
Another one who was as rude , had same attitude as BM, still has and served as birdie, unfortunately VP R&D is an Industrial business. Loves to pontificate
@ahb I worked with him early in his career at CRPL, you are spot on, he was good at inserting himself into projects, doing the minimum, then claiming all the credit.
Yup, BM was another of them. Old school and racist style of thinking. Deliberately delayed and denied promotions to numerous folks of Asian orgin both in CRL and EMSD.
Now comfortably retired with portfolio 1 pension plan. God bless him 🙏
@ahq
There were two VPs who listened to the birdie…. BM and JB
@afg
Little birdie was Dr. Claw …
I am one of them who was affected by his dislike towards foreigners. Later he poisoned my boss as well. Both together made a mess in TEBG R&D. My boss was VP but still listened to him. What a waste both of them.
- Dr Claw* was accomplished at taking credit for other people's work as he aptly demonstrated early in his career.
Also just like most middle managers, he was good at doing horsework for upper management.....toeing the line if you will.
Hence, he was given the coveted title of Special Projects Director.......no direct reports and no worthwhile work expectations in that role, when his position should have been eliminated in Jan, 2026.
3Mers of Asian origin, both in the HQ and in Asia, will celebrate the day when Dr. Claw is finally out of 3M for good! Certainly good riddance.
I recognize your words are English, but they fail to make any logical sense. Can you clarify what you are trying to say?
@acn interestingly one of the 'messedup' vp thanked for his 'whatever' little birdie type information about lab working people
@ab2
Good riddance. One wonders what the upper management saw in him to promote to this high level. He has affected many people lives
@3c8 it absolutely is connected to IT.
Modern Material development uses AI. Enterprise systems that support R&D are versions behind. IT prohibits access to any AI tools, poorly supports critical R&D systems and has forced divisions to go rogue to simply use digital solutions to accelerate product development.
MSmurphy will go down as one of the worst digital officers in corporate history when 3Ms story is finished. Expect more layoffs while he is in a leadership position.
R&D performance or lack of new products from 3M is not connected to IT. But CDO might be a bad leader.
As posts have said here CrL cannot do much with division approval and strategy. Then the question is, why so many people in CRL??
@3a9 Agree 1000%
R&D should adopt “too many new products to fail” with the divisions but are unable to because of the insane mess that is IT. All it takes is one try to partner with IT and it burns you out.
Why do you think everyone leaves IT? Smurph is an MBA playing at ‘chief digital officer’. He doesn’t inspire or enable, and leads by backing up with constraint approach with a team of MBAs under RayQ.
@373 the CRL SVP, and even CTO in some regard, are beholden to what the Divisions will allow to commercialise. In most cases, new products are viewed as either a threat or will cannibalise existing revenue streams.
The facts are the Money Potty laid off too many people and there is no energy to sell and risk a very predictable revenue stream. This, and trying to do anything digital with Smurphy in power makes it almost impossible.
The Smurph is the #1 problem.
@346 and @2z6
Working at the SVP level, please be good leaders. Spend your time supporting and creating products rather than these kind of rebuttals. You, CRL have so many equipments and people at your disposal. You have a lot of constructive work to do for the company. Save your energy for the progress of the company.
@346
Another question arises. @34x and others are clearly mentioning products that are for short term. As somebody working with SVP CRL do you see that the research organization is balanced to meet short term products to survive and something beyond 3 years? All that long term 10 year vision that 3M did in those days cannot be done now. Take your people to the customers, please.
I concur. The short term focus from the divisions was driven by Wall Street overall, of course, but 3M mgmt really succumbed to that way of thinking in the Inga and certainly Roman/Monish eras. Monish whispered in Roman's ear and for some reason, Mikey listened to the advice. Monish just had no concept of innovation and how it drove 3M's successes over the decades. He was just a money guy with no vision, and Roman was too weak to chart his own path.
3M has become an old school, and increasingly irrelevant, materials science company. With every passing decade, it is falling more and more behind in the market. Shake and bake stuff makes top CTEI awards, since these are the projects that VPs and managers are aligned with. Decades of yes - menship, cronyism and favoritism, and risk averse decision making in CRL has taken it's toll. It was inevitable.
Divisions have no or little appetite for risk taking or taking on challenging new programs. It is all about tweaking existing products and incremental improvements.
Whatever innovative technology, of course by 3M's own low standards, is developed in CRL has little chance of ever being adopted by divisions because of their short term thinking.
@332
Re: "so many are saying" I suspect that it's really one one person making those negative comments....they all sound very similar if you read them.
But, as to your point about innovation - fair criticism! Now, it's not just CRL's responsibility to innovate, and CRL can't commercialize on its own, but for sure more innovative projects could be implemented. And, perhaps more importantly, better alignment with division strategic directions....helping to develop what the divisions can actually sell.
Different faces. Wonder why so many are saying that CRL SVP is not fair and promotes people he is close to while very few like the comment below say otherwise. At the end of the day no innovation, no new products in new markets, no competitiveness and CRL direction is ambiguous. May be the leadership should consider communicating better and show results.
- learn the difference between cronyism and nepotism, please. It's not hard.
- Wow, someone really has it in for the CRL SVP, huh? Some of the stuff you say sounds absurd, you do realize that, right? "shower with praise"? What so you think meetings with him are like? No one does that (speaking from years of immediate experience, BTW). Just doesn't happen. That would be so weird.
If you know somebody you can become Tech manager in CRL. For eg there is a son of a corporate scientist (rtd) in CRPL. People doubt how he got into 3M and then became a manager so soon. It’s only possible under this SVP in CRL. One VP has never left the building since he joined 3M. Same org from T3 to VP. No product experience whatsoever. These are our leaders ….
@2qh Many highly paid "leaders" in CRL do little more than making power point slides that outline their "strategy", and that is good enough for the CRL SVP.