Many of you may not know Tom, he was the CEO before Chris. He was a brilliant guy who focused on winning and judged you on performance and performance alone. Tom was no BS, and had the unique ability to completely destroy you with just one disapproving look. He didn't have to say a word, just one look and you knew you sc--wed up. To Chris, you know the look I'm talking about and I hope right now, at this moment, all you can see when you close your eyes at night is Tom staring at you with complete disdain for what CDW has become.
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I remember when Chris first took on the role I had a couple thoughts the first was she is going to put CDW into acquisition mode because her background was in legal and acquisitions. The second I thought was if she did this right it could be an amazing trajectory. In the beginning she was very approachable. This was 8 years ago, and I can't express how disappointed I am with how these acquisitions and culture had change. She missed the mark on some significant industry changes and opportunities to build into areas where emerging VARs are owning the market. CDW after all is said is done does not have a vision on who they are in the market. It's almost a case of arrested development. The acquisitions have failed because while the companies they acquired had a clear vision, CDW still lacks this and its evident with the people they have kept versus laid off. No one is visionary there and this is the behavior and ideology they reward and it's why they're struggling now.
This is one of the first things I thought about when I heard about the layoffs. Tom Richards was approachable, personable and a true leader. Back when Tom was at the helm, CDW was a great place to work, I was proud to say I worked there! I'm so sorry to see all the LinkedIn posts, many of them from people I worked with for years.
Can u you imagine the company CDW would be today if Tom was still around and Chris wasnt even in the picture? AMAZING
CDW died when Tom passed. He was the heart and soul of the company. A true leader. Everything that Leahy isn’t.
I loved how Tom would fly commercial coach everywhere. I would upgraded frequently on flights where he wouldn't and I was just a field consultant.
there's a night and day difference between the two, when he had to do layoffs (and they would be rare) he would email the entire company in the morning explaining what is going on and how unfortunate it was (unlike leahy's email coming after 5pm when all the employees are gone). I met him a few times and I don't have a higher up role at all, but he remembered my name and had a small discussion.
Gone are the days where he would shake your hand and give you your christmas bonus, instead Chris shakes us down for more pennies to pay out her lavish bonuses
I concur! CDW su-ks and their stock performance confirms it!
CDW is not the company it used to be for sure. There were a ton of people that would have taken buyouts but management refused to offer them. I'll be retired from them soon and can't wait to put them in the rearview mirror. Ever since Tom Richards left the place has spiraled down hill. Their stock price confirms that assessment.
@a5 I’m so sorry to hear this. You gave your blood and sweat to this company. May you find a new job soon like a lot of us here. I put in 7 years and was let go today.
Does anyone know how many people and were the layoffs were just in the US or Canada/UK?
I would say this often about TR. He was the man and I consider myself fortunate to have ran into him leaving riverside at random while going out on a lunch break. I was in sales and got fired for performance after 10 years. Once he left, the shift was too big to ignore. First came the holiday bonuses. Followed by the six flag trips. Then skimming the sales comp plan every year. You’d think after so many years, the reward of showing loyalty was to bump your pay, instead you get the matrix and then the super matrix. I fell out of love for the game years ago, but had such great customers it was hard to ignore the work.
Cut today after 25 years with CDW