"You're priceless to me, Waste Management"
Hey Snackers,
9-9-6.
9am to 9pm, 6 days a week. That's Alibaba CEO Jack Ma's new preferred work/life "balance." Bummer.
US stocks lost enthusiasm to start the week as Goldman dragged down markets.
Let's get together... Shares of both Waste Management and Advanced Disposal jumped Monday on word the trash titans are merging. That crams the #1 and #4 solid waste companies under one lid. Investors like Houston-based Waste Management's new, polished look:
Consolidate trash into 1 can... Then save money. That's basically why this happened. Waste Management thinks it can save $100M every year on "synergies" — Cutting redundant costs and using its bigger size to negotiate lower prices. Now regulators just have to stamp approval that this keeps the trash industry competitive.
Managing waste is hard... Waste Management is on it. First, it hauls trash from residential, government, and corporate customers. Then it sorts recycling. Then it compacts. Then it packs landfills. That all requires humans and machines (lots). But it's not all dirty — Now Waste Management renews gas from landfills into electric energy. Power move.
Blame the new firm-wide "flexible dress code"... Profits at Goldman Sachs fell 21% last quarter, sending shares down 4% Monday. Wherever you look on Goldman's investment banking revenue menu, it was probably down:
Less harvest, less bacon... Slower business meant Goldman just cut comp. Salaries are generally fixed, but Goldman tightens its belt through bonuses — The average employees' pay fell to $91K in the 1st quarter of 2019 compared to $119K in last year's (that's 24% less $$$).
Time to pivot... Exotic/risky investment banking is Goldman's historic money-maker. Now management wants more reliable, steady, and boring businesses. At Goldman's age, it's trading in the Ferrari for the Buick. And the answer is "Marcus" (named for its founder):
Amazon-proof yourself... Since 2012, Best Buy CEO Hubert Joly pulled that off. Now the turnaround magician from Minnesota is stepping down as CEO, but will remain Chairman of the board — Current CFO Corie Barry takes over in June. While Circuit City was dying, Joly did this with Best Buy:
Operation "Renew Blue"... That's the actual plan turnaround artist Joly kicked off in 2013. We ID'd his 4 strategic moves that transformed Best Buy into a retail phoenix:
"There's no room for mediocrity in retail"... We'll let Hubert's words take our takeaway today. He realized early that Amazon can't completely replace in-person shopping experiences — Ecommerce just raised expectations. As a leader, Hubert saw Best Buy's physical stories as a "wonderful asset," so they became just that.
FYI, just check out these Glassdoor employee reviews of Hubert.