We are dying in the northeast by having our territory served out of Chicago instead of having a sales person living here like the other territories. I remember when we hired Mike McEneany, he was suppose to move to the northeast to replace the guy who retired and then after getting the job, he refused to move. I need a person living amongst my customers and future customers. We are at a major disadvantage when B&N has their person living in the territory and ours isn't. Mikes boss needs to grow a pair and insist that the person invested in our territory needs to make a personal investment and move here. If Mike refused to move, then find him a job in Chicago and hire us a new person to partner with here in the Northeast. I'm tired us watching us lose new potential customers as well as establish customers because our person taking the lead doesn't know anyone since he leaves Chicago on Monday and travels to our region and then works Friday's out of his home in Chicago. Come on Mary Lee, help us out.
43 replies (most recent on top)
Tell OPEC the same thing. Companies act in their own best interest....especially in the short term as short term bonus is the primary driver of decision making.
Follett and Barnes --wake up and listen. The financial model of paying 12-13% rent to schools with text book sales tanking and all the competitors on-line plus the cost of renovations, text returns to publishers, etc. spells one thing----DISASTER. The only response is dramatically cutting of overheads which weakens the value proposition and leads to poor customer service. Someone needs to blink first and get rents back in line that allows a return to the company while at the same time allowing a better return to the college than they could generate themselves. But I sense the scorpion and frog game will be played to both company's demise. And while you are growing a pair--tell the colleges to invest the additional gain they receive from you and to renovate their own facilities. These schools are taking your renovation dollars and as soon as it clears the book--they bid you out. Learn from the airline model--make changes to your model and pricing and if the competitors follow, then you are heading down the correct path to profitability and if they refuse to follow, you can change and go back to losing money. This is actual depressing to type. No wonder consultants get paid to say what is so obvious.
It's your market-now act like it and determine what the market will bare and move forward or move out.
Not sure if the lease model is dead just yet. Schools like Kentucky and UMass Boston are changing vendors not the way their stores are run.
The lease model is dead. Pubs and schools working together.
Concerned, how many times has Pat Usher been on your campus? Deaton and Dowdy constantly visited campuses! If you get Usher to visit your school, Mike will be right "behind" him. Literally and physically!
5 yrs ago, Follett had the best marketing/sales team in all of higher Ed to include multiple companies. Now, not so. I suggest letting Deaton put together another team to reclaim that reputation. The team today is depending on RFPs and they simply don't know their territories. My marketing VP must be in the Witness Protection Program since we constantly have golf outings, fund raisers, anniversaries, etc-- and he hasn't attended one in 3 yrs here in the east.
Interesting comment on Flanagan. Last Fall my contact mentioned that he visited campus and they went out an had a great lunch.
Joe Flanagan was on my campus last week! He was with the VP of Finance and the AD attending a basketball game. Gone but still around. Hell, I see him more than Mike!
You hit the nail on the head.... I think they keep SD around to keep him off the opposition’s team. He could do a world of hurt to Follett.
Couldn't agree with you more Fred!!! The value of those individuals is reflected in the won loss numbers since their departures. The loss of a single school was unacceptable and those involved were held accountable. Explanations of the loss had to be explained to Bob Follett, Dick Litzinger and Dick Traut. In those days anything less than a 99% renewal rate was viewed as a failure! Unfortunately, I can't see any of them working for the current management team. They wouldn't tolerate the culture that now exists.
I agree with much said. The smartest thing Deaton did was hiring Bill Dowdy who bought new ideas and higher standards to the marketing team. And during those years we won far more contracts than B&N. Deaton was a brown nose horses ass but knew the business and was always involved on the deals that lead to new business. Follett never recovered from losing Flanagan, Dowdy, Sullivan and Deaton all within 3 years.
SD isn’t a warm and fuzzy kind of guy but at least he knows the business. Make no mistake, TC ran the company and SD followed TC’s direction. But, TC was smart enough to listen to ALL his senior management team whom all knew the business. Can you say that about MLS or any of her crack team from RD or K-fart or Sears? I think they keep SD around to keep him off the opposition’s team. He could do a world of hurt to Follett.
Scott Deaton may be a "jerk" but if you had to choose between him and any member of current management including her highness who would you pick? Scott has more knowledge of the industry than anyone in the home office. He ran the company during Christopher's presidency.
SD might be the biggest jerk I met when I was with Follett.
Scott D is alive and well in Westbrook - still part of Follett.
60405 so true
Some of them have worked in the trenches but they seem to forget once a promotion occurs. They will never turn this ship around. I'm a positive person. Always see the cup as half full but I'm not an idiot. This is a long time coming and I don't give a $!#* anymore.
Question. Who in the Home Office, i.e. executive management has ever worked in a bookstore? Worked a "rush"? Dealt with either students, irate faculty, out of stock texts etc? An irate VP of Finance? If memory serves me well, wasn't that a commonality all the previous Home Office executives shared? Some people are book smart and street stupid.
60389 gave a shared outline of the situation.
At this point it doesn't matter anymore. If he lived on campus it wouldn't make a dam bit of difference. You need focus on the real issue. That Follett has run itself into the ground. We're losing contracts because we suck. Systems suck. Registers freeze and shut off. It takes so long to update one rental account etc etc etc etc etc etc etc etc etc etc etc etc etc etc. I could write a thesis on what they've screwed up. They never listened to anyone at store level and they don't now. I gave up years ago. The Nov 2013 firings were the icing on the cake.
The fact remains that Mike has reneged on his condition of employment by not relocating. How does the Company allows it's largest and most important territory to perform the way it has? Lost contracts far exceed new ones. Who signs off on his travel expenses incurred to basically commute from home to his territory, i.e. hotels, flights, food, car rentals, parking? If Mike's initial salary took into account the higher cost of living in the East, shouldn't he have had his salary adjusted to reflect the fact that he's not living in the East?
Honestly Joe Flanigan shoes were hard to fill. Amazingly charismatic man. Mike is faced with technology and a company that is going downhill. I don't even know that Joe Flannigan or anyone can save the northeast. Amazon is taking over. You have to have a good product to sell people. And the Follett brand is in the dumper.
Fact! The only marketing region suffering staggering losses is the one without its VP residing in it. Fact. The loss of old profitable accounts are devasting and never come back. Fact. New stores usually take years to turn a profit. Fact The Marketing Department lost direction and leadership with the departure of Dowdy and Deaton.
Fact! The only marketing region suffering staggering losses is the one without its VP residing in it. Fact. The loss of old profitable accounts are devasting and never come back. Fact. New stores usually take years to turn a profit. Fact The Marketing Department lost direction and leadership with the departure of Dowdy and Deaton.
As an FYI - Mr. Usher IS a family member. Like Pimp Juice, if you write the narrative, success is subjective. Hey, we’re doing great! We NEVER fail! Follett = failing company run by losers.
Physically relocating is not the answer.
Changing the student gouging is where to start.
One of the 47 schools Mike lost was one that was with Follett for over 25 years and wanted to satay with Follett, and it was lost because of Mike (according to school administration)
How can an organization tolerate lying? Where is the moral fiber of the company? Guess it left with the previous generation of the Follett family.
FYI, since Mike took over the territory, he has signed 26 new accounts. That's the good news. The bad news is that the territory lost 47 accounts. Where's the accountability?
i know the facts on Mike and yes he lied to the company and said his house was on the market but it wasn't and he had no intention of moving. We are getting our a-- kicked in the northeast and need a marketing person that actually lives here. Mary Lee is too busy to get involved here but please assign me someone who can solve this mess
B&N, B&N, ........
Question 1. Who ran the Mass State System before FHEG?
Question 2. Whose marketing VPs have been routinely visiting each school's administrators?
Question 3. Who won the contract with Westfield State?
Question 4. Which company is viewed as a stable national brand with stable management and approach to the college bookstore industry?
Answer? If you can't figure it out, you must operate on Mars or in Westbrook!
Alas the "Prophet" has spoken.
Da Mess..whatchoo talkin' bout, Willis?
Comments are based upon facts! The mess will come this Summer when Marketing loses the Mass State College System and Marshall! That's DA TRUTH!!!
SIMPLE SOLUTION: SEND DAVID ROTH REGIONAL MANAGER SUPERSTAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You guys are a mess.
"Follett Values" they haven't been practiced since the days of Dick Litzinger and Bob Follett.
Sounds like an opportunity for leadership to demonstrate the Follett values.
If the pre employment document signed by Mike in which he commits to relocate still exists, why hasn't it been enforced? Who has allowed this situation to exist?