Hunkering down is what Conway is setting out to do. Almost 10 top-level managers left the company last year, as did several hundred employees. Dave's team was intact until one year ago partly due to loyalty to Dave. But new blood and a fresh perspective is necessary to keep a company in the growth mode, said Jim Holinchek, analyst with the Giga Information Group. Conway is not setting out to become the Bad Cop, he said, but is doing what it takes to get the company back on track.
Nothing succeeds like success.
But as this race has become more competitive, everyone has to sharpen their skills. Duffield's niceness formula seemed to work as PeopleSoft grew tenfold in its first five years after the IPO and became a billion-dollar company adding workers at a rate of 250 a month. Business became tougher as we were approaching it, and we should have seen the signs. He was more focused on the bigger industry picture. My strength is the big picture.