Thread regarding SAS Institute layoffs

The more SAS does the DEI agenda, the more they look guilty and are trying to save their image. SAS always was diverse, that’s one thing I notice when I started over 18 years ago. I find it all very demeaning and unnecessary, but I guess they need to keep their DEI score high.

The thought that anyone could become JG's successor is nonsense. Have you folks not watched "Succession" on HBO?

Any "offer" of being "the successor" is simply a tease - the treats are visible, but always out of reach. If there were to be a successor, there would be one by now. Same with an IPO. Wise up, folks.

There was a reason why Oliver who was to be JG successor left because the direction the company was going.

Of course the variables you speak of played a role …. but wasn’t Marketing and Product Management supposed to help increase SAS’ “luck” as markets evolved? They’ve been in power @SAS for about 20 years now and during that time the analytics markets grew by double digits YoY.

https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/advanced-analytics-market

What the he-l happened? Certainly can’t blame it all on R&D, boomers or children of questionable parentage.

Let's make something else perfectly clear. Luck and market timing also play a role in growth and success. SAS filled a niche long ago. Now there are other players. Talent, diversity, or not, sometimes the market doesn't want what you're selling. Like it or not, those variables also contributed to the downturn of SAS.

Let’s make something perfectly clear. SAS has had ”diversity” for decades. Women, minorities, LGBQ, etc. and folks from around the world have had opportunity at SAS since the 80s. JG has supported this and I heard him say (within the last 5 years) that SAS “already does plenty in these areas”

Make no mistake about it. Making SAS more “woke” is not going to improve its products or stature in the world of business and industry. Sure, the major West Coast tech companies are very woke. The difference is they can afford to hire truly 99+ percentile world class engineers and product design people. It stands that many of these folks will represent “diversity” because talent is more or less equally distributed and when you can pull from the largest pool of the best talent you’re going to increase your chances of hiring the best across a range of social/racial/gender/whatever demographic.

At the end of the day, it’s not how diverse or woke a company is that makes it successful. It’s about how good it’s leaders and people are and whether or not they generate an execute upon great business ideas.