By Sid Chadwick “You can not teach a man anything….you can only help him find it within himself”………………………..Galileo Galilei INTRODUCTION: We not so long ago delivered a “2018 Customer Survey Analysis & Report”….to a client…..whose customer survey response rate ---was…….41%........! Subsequently, their Plant Manager…..sent me an unsolicited photo of...

By Sid Chadwick Q: “I hear your sense of uncertainty re. what to do next……..Does your senior management team know which customers value you most?................A: (After a 5 second pause)…”No, we don’t”……CEO Peer Group Check-in Discussion INTRODUCTION: That discussion occurred with a company that’s growing about 20% a year, and with a history of m...

By Sid Chadwick If “Cash Flow” is tight for what I desperately need to re-invest, how do I insure that we don’t lose money….any given month…?.........CEO, Peer Group Meeting INTRODUCTION: A highly respected, very profitable Peer Group member (we’re talking 20 – 25% ---year after year)… is observed to remark, “Most of our competitors are on a steady...

An American Printer Commentary By Andy & Julie Plata, Co-CEOs American Printer In this, our third Commentary related to the January 31 announcement of Fujifilm’s proposed Xerox takeover, we share actions taken by Xerox’s largest and third largest owners. Carl Icahn and Darwin Deason together own approximately 15.2% of Xerox. Their Xerox stock wo...

          In response to our Commentaries on the Fujifilm’s Xerox buyout, we received two messages from Xerox’s 2 largest Sabre holders related to their opposition to the Fujifilm $0 buyout offer of Xerox. Read Carl Icahn’s letter to shareholders here. Xerox’s Response Read Darwin Deason’s letter and his lawsuit to halt the transaction here. Xer...

New York, N.Y., February 13, 2018.  Darwin Deason, a long-term and third-largest shareholder of Xerox Corp. (“Xerox”), has filed a lawsuit against Fujifilm Holdings Corp. (“Fuji”), Xerox, current Xerox board members and Ursula M. Burns, Xerox’s former Chairman and CEO.  The complaint was filed on February 13, 2018, in the Supreme Court of the State...

ICON Digital Productions has built a unique and innovative approach to graphic communications. Their Toronto-based 80,000 square foot headquarters is the center of the ICON universe. The company’s four business divisions bring their services to a far-ranging international community of brand managers, marketers, creative consultants, and event plann...

By Sid Chadwick “We also  test for ‘desire to learn’…..if a prospective employee doesn’t have an innate desire  to learn, there’s no need for us to invest our resources --- when there’s a built-in limitation – from the very beginning.”….................Tony Tedeschi, President, Piedmont Press & Graphics Warrenton, VA Introduction: The days of cheap...

An American Printer Commentary By Andy & Julie Plata, Co-CEOs American Printer In our January 31 Commentary on Fujifilm’s proposed Xerox acquisition we stated the following: Although Xerox was valued at US$8 billion at the close of trade on Tuesday, Fujifilm announced Wednesday that they only paid $6.1 billion for the company. That seems like a bi...

By Sid Chadwick “You just don’t luck into things as much as you’d like to think you do. You build step- by-step, whether it’s friendships or opportunities.”………..Barbara Bush Introduction: Let’s see, Fuji just bought Xerox for ….almost $2 billion….less…  then the closing share price --- this week…!. Don’t you wonder what the buyer and seller(s) were...