Operating at the Intersection of Technology and the Capital Markets
Tag: Salesforce
When it comes to Technology companies, headcount reductions are rarely "one & done". This used to be especially true of Bay Area Technology companies which are famous for lacking operating discipline (i.e. cost discipline). However, the Bay Area aversion to running profitable businesses has permeated the Tech sector over the past 12 years of easy … Continue reading Tech Company Layoffs Are Rarely “One & Done”
I have never witnessed a Technology company that so obviously lacks Product Market Fit ("PMF"), choose to ignore this existential weakness and instead focus on M&A litigation. Twitter (ticker: TWTR), has its priorities out of order. Perhaps it is because Twitter knows that it lacks PMF and the culture to solve the problem that it … Continue reading Twitter Is A Dumpster Fire
Naming Bret Taylor Salesforce's Co-CEO is hardly a surprise. In March we wrote that Bret Taylor - Salesforce's then COO - could be next in line for Salesforce's CEO chair. Mr. Taylor was named Co-CEO effective immediately. Read the press release HERE. See our CEORater profile of Mr. Taylor below. Salesforce Co-CEO Bret Taylor https://soundcloud.com/ceorater
CRM acquired Tableau in August 2019 for $16 billion. Tableau generated approximately $1.5 billion of trailing subscription and support revenue in the fiscal year-ended January 31, 2021. Investors think nothing of applying a 20-30x revenue multiple on any Technology company that is growing. Thus, why wouldn't Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff consider taking advantage of this … Continue reading Salesforce (CRM) Should Spin-Off Tableau
Earlier this week Amazon (tkr: AMZN) announced that Adam Selipsky would become AWS' next CEO. Current AWS CEO Andy Jassy will become Amazon CEO later this year as founder Jeff Bezos will hold only the Executive Chairman title. Selipsky previously spent 11 years at AWS before becoming CEO of Tableau which was acquired by Salesforce … Continue reading AWS Would Do Well To Focus On The Healthcare and Government Sectors
Director & Officer ("D&O") insurance premiums spiked and coverage narrowed last year as a result of COVID-19. As vaccinations are distributed COVID-related underwriting risk will begin to soften which will be reflected in lower premiums and broader coverage. All of this is to say do not expect every mid-to-large-sized company to be fully back to … Continue reading Back To The Office Will Look Different Compared To 2019
Salesforce (tkr: CRM) president and Chief Operating Officer Bret Taylor may soon succeed company founder Marc Benioff as Chief Executive Officer. That's the rumor as reported by a number of news outlets this week. If true, Taylor's operating experience - particularly on the product side (Taylor was Salesforce's Chief Product Officer prior to becoming COO … Continue reading Is Salesforce COO Bret Taylor The Company’s Next CEO?
Given inflated Technology company valuations and a weakening U.S. Dollar, we expect for stock swap M&A transactions to continue - especially as it relates to cross-border M&A. The DXY Index continues to drop as the USD falls relative to the currency basket (click chart below). The U.S. economy remains soft. Companies continue to cut headcount. … Continue reading Stock Swap Transactions Are Likely To Continue
Whether or not Co-CEO arrangements work in general is a mixed bag. Co-CEO arrangements can be effective when responsibilities are clearly defined. Less than optimal outcomes occur when responsibilities are not well-defined. Below are a number of current and recent Co-CEO arrangements primarily across the Technology industry. Reed Hastings and Ted Sarandos of Netflix (ticker: … Continue reading Co-CEO Arrangements Are A Mixed Bag
Regardless of who wins November's general election we expect higher corporate income tax rates in 2021 or more likely 2022. Today's 21% U.S. corporate tax rate will likely climb back to 35% or higher should Trump win re-election or to 40-45% should Biden win the Presidency. We expect companies to control expenses as a result … Continue reading Higher Corporate Income Tax Rates and Advanced Automation Are Coming
You must be logged in to post a comment.