It’s no coincidence that the mighty Clipper started to sink when the acquisition of IBT occurred. IBT management came in and took high position and kicked out SSC folks. Now that most high level VPs come from IBT, are they to blame for the current situation?
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I was hired when the IBT merger took place. I was still an outsider but always noticed that IBT managers were much nicer and down to earth compared to tense SS employees.
If anyone ruined the company it is SS Top Management looking for quick bonus and acknowledgement by hiring million dollar Prof Fees companies who always advised of quick outsourcing and brainless expense cuts that ruined any IT , Client service quality and employee morale. Then they picked up some good bonus and got laid of when things were falling...new management comes in and does the same.
I don't blame the former IBT management however the cultures of the two companies did not blend together very well in my view and that led to many unintended negative consequences.
In addition however I blame the overall revenue model used by the entire industry. Clients would complain or threaten to leave and the response would be a fee cut. Eventually the fees are cut so low that the only thing left to do is to cut expenses (people).
The cost cutting mentality also led to massive underinvestment in system modernization.
Next---the company was facing a lack of revenue growth (something the Wall Street analysts hate) and so the executives tried to buy growth by doing a series of bolt on acquisitions (for which they overpaid).
It became a vicious cycle. Low growth business, culture clash between existing SS staff and newly acquired staff, no revenue growth, ongoing staff cuts and outsourcing to low cost locations, overpayment for new acquisitions etc etc.
End result---a big mess overseen by a group of overpaid executives (see the other thread on this).
No the company started to sink with CEO Marsh Carter retired, and from there on the company never
had another great CEO, just cost cutters.
The start of the yearly layoffs since 2001, the hiring of H1-B workers to State Street.
Buying up smaller companies and have redundant staff which was an excuse for more layoffs
I agree that in the Mike Roger days he took care of the IBT folks. Today it seems a mix of people but there are pockets where the EVP, SVPs and VPs are highly concentrated by IBT. I also see pockets where there are a lot of SSC people like GTP.
I believe IBT had roughly 3,000 employees when State Street acquired them. At that time, State Street had roughly 25,000 employees. To suggest IBT management ruined SSC is a curious statement. Due to the employee head count, to suggest most high level VP's are from IBT doesn't make sense.
I never really had an opinion of my peers from IBT but I was hired by State Street Corporation and was a long-time employee of SSC. From what I can recall many former IBT employee's were the first to be laid off when the current outsourcing began. Someone who I know ended up getting hired by Brown Brothers and is very thankful he was let go by State Street.
I think some of the IBT people that spoiled SSC have been shown the door over the past year. There are still some lingering around but surveys show their organization are the least satisfied so their time should be coming to an end. State Street needs new blood running the show.
When SS acquired IBT, IBT had satisfied customers, happy employees or at least employees who didn't think they could be laid off on any given day, decent earnings and yearly raises and bonuses for employees. Obviously I was an IBT employee and do not believe that currently at SS "most high level VP's are from IBT."