Heard around the rumor mill there were layoffs yesterday. Anyone know anything about it?
8 replies (most recent on top)
" KM Gutted the VSS " yea saw that too. Brings the total US cuts to about 200 I'd estimate since the April announcement. That's almost a 4% cut in the US... and no WARN notice in NJ... so much for "minimal impact to the US business" although I guess there are 2,200 still go somewhere in the KM world...
Another round today. KM Gutted the VSS - Mobotix Group on Zoom.
RIP
There May Have Been Mistakes Made? ??
Omg. Damage Control All Stations!!!
Dive …..Dive…..Dive… brace for Impact.
Realizing you are on the bottom of the sea. 2 miles below crush depth is not a good thing. Just saying. …
You can’t even send a guy to the surface without giving them the bends and dying
Now that is an accomplishment. 👏👏👏
Time for you guys to turn to coal 🪨
Konica Minolta's future ....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ofIyU-_nzs
There may have been many mistakes made but the root problem is that print volumes are dropping like a rock and neither KM or any other OEM in this business has a viable plan to transition away to anything else. All the bs about IT services, AI etc is empty chatter. They don't have the knowledge, skills or technology to compete in those areas and make a substantial profit and ongoing business.
Who will be the next Kodak? Xerox or KM? Hard to tell which is in worse shape.
Eventually, manufacturers will realize that they need to stick to manufacturing and stay in their lane. MF Direct branches (of all OEM’s) were never built and designed to be successful long term. KM buying up all those companies over the years in an attempt to be something they will never be, was the nail in the coffin in my opinion.
There is no better distribution channel than the independent dealer (small or large). They know how to run a business and know how to be profitable.
KM is collapsing under its own weight, not by any one competitor. It’s death by a thousand cuts there. What’s funny is that there’s a lot of people on the direct sales side that are the people from the old Danka regime, and we all know how that turned out. They still wear their KM underwear and socks and act as if nothing is wrong, like zombies marching all the way to the cliff and then right over. Really sad to watch, but impressive to say the least to see the extreme amount of dedication to insanity.
KM already had a test run of shedding of a few direct branches in the Southeast (to Dex). Not many employees survived that transition as Dex wasn’t in the market for zombie employees.
I think now that this Fiscal 24’ announcement is out, the shedding will continue, mostly from AllCovered and its subsidiaries, but there’s still lots of middle management layers that will likely go too. My point is this: You are likely to see Dex, POA, and maybe Marco buy the KM direct base of business soon, not take any of the zombies, sell off all that expensive real estate, and convert that base to whatever they want it to be.
The end result (looking three years out ahead of us) will be much more than 2,400 jobs gone. Those in sales and management (and administration) will all eventually be gone too and the large independents buy all the business and not keep probably 90%+ of any of the current employees.
There’s no one to be upset with except KM, it’s all on them, they created this monster, as have other entities too like Xerox.
It’s funny to meet long term KM employees because they are so different (not all, but most) in their way of thinking. Lots of arrogance and they are delusional too when you ask them what’s next after KM fails. They look at you like you have three heads and/or even get upset. Then there’s those that will post on places like this site (to complain) yet never take action in their own lives to change it for the better (leave).
So whatever dr-g KM is feeding people over there, they could sell that stuff to the government and make a profit.
Best of luck to all those trapped in Zombie land and I even wish the best for those living in denial. The end is near.
hear that 100+ gone this week already at kmbs;, seemingly from the AC and Mobotix groups? Many high level leaders left in March before the cuts such as Dino moving to Sharp. 2400 apparently still to come in MK global.