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RadioShack CEO Resigns
xzvf writes to tell us Forbes is reporting that RadioShack CEO David J. Edmondson has resigned. Reeling from a 62% drop in fourth quarter net income the company has announced a sweeping restructuring plan. From the article: "Edmondson said in a separate statement Monday that new leadership was needed so the company's turnaround plan would have the best possible chance to succeed. The revamp announced Friday prompted mixed responses from analysts, who indicated the plan might be successful but, at that time, they doubted Edmondson's ability to pull it off after it became clear he had lied about his education."
"You have questions...we have cellphone plans."
SO YOU'RE GOING TO DIE: The Comic for Dealing with Death
Its been news for the last few days that he never gradudated college let alone had the two degrees he claimed. I'm suprised the article writeup only touched on this in italics in the bottom. One of the degrees he claimed wasn't even offered by the university that he claimed awarded it to him.
If religous zealots don't believe in Evolution, then why are they so worried about bird flu?
Example: In this month's Make Magazine...there's an article on how to receive free (not illegal) satellite channels by using inexpensive materials. Radio Shack should be the source for this material for those who don't want to scrounge!
I know this has been a huge plug for Make Magazine...but for goodness sake, when I used to need some obscure part, I knew it could be had cheaply at the Shack...now you have to order a lot of parts.
According to CNN's article on this topic, Edmundson "originally said he had received a Bachelor of Science degree, but now says he believes -- but cannot document -- that he received a ThG diploma, awarded for completing a three-year degree in theology."
Call it academic theology: "I believe that I got the degree, but cannot document it." Intelligent design, anyone?
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Don't they even bother to check people out?
They did ask for his mailing address...
For years now I've associated Radio Shaq with overpriced items... I only go there if they have something I can't get somewhere else and by that I mean something I need right this minute. That's like 3 times in six years for me.
Plus, what few things they have are all across the board. I always wondered what they held in common, now I see that it was profit margin. A slim range of digital cameras, handheld radios (do people still use these?), stereo wire and connectors and radio control cars (like its a place you bring your kids to?). For each of these if that's what I'm looking for there are other places that come to mind first. Even audio connectors I'll go to some local contractor electronics supplier who can make a custom cable if I need it...
"Waste not one watt!" - CZ
that he needed to be Realistic and not an Optimus.
new leadership was needed so the company's turnaround plan would have the best possible chance to succeed
Sounds like a Realistic(tm) plan to me.
Anybody want a peanut?
Big box consumer electronics retailers have usurped the role of the neighborhood consumer electronics store. Remember that not long ago, this was Tandy Leather Company. Although the company has changed over the years, each of their markets has big competition:
- Cell phones and 2-way phones are in the big box retailers
- Fry's and others have edged the electronic components and tech tool offerings
- TVs, computers, stereos, and others are the domain of Best Buy, Circuit City, etc...
- Tech toys have also been gnawed on by a slew of retailers
So it's no fun to be Radio Snack, as my uncle calls them. Closing 700 stores is only the first step on a long journey back to health for these guys, as they try to find identity and appeal in the major and tiny markets they once did well in.
Getting smeared because of their ex-CEO's dubious credentials is just another nail in the coffin if they're not careful.
---- Teach Peace. It's Cheaper Than War.
That's pretty surprising considering that Radio Shack normally requires background screenings in order to buy some freakin batteries.
I personally find little reason to go to RadioShack much anyways, they no longer have as much as the stuff I really wanted. Things like Audio and Video Adapters and cables are getting more and more slim, There IC selection is becoming non-existance. I can't find things like a basic Cable Tuner, Null Modem adapters and other adapters. When you walk in there are TVs Surround sound systems, Cell Phones, as their primary which I could get a better choices at a Circuit City, Best Buy, Rex, etc... stuff heck I had to hunt around until I could find a basic calculator. People go to radio shack for hand made electronics and custom configuration of their technology. I should be able to go in there and easily find a Stereo Splitter. So my old 5 speaker Surround sound system for my computer will work on my normal Stereo TV with all the speaker for 4 speaker Stereo. Or If I need a Cable Tuner to get an Old TiVo working like new again they should have some in stock. That use to be Radioshack value add. People may stop in once in a while to get Computers, Cellphones, or TVs for the bulk to their profit but the small stuff keeps many of the more technical people coming back and get the low end stuff and perhaps they will get an other High Margin product in the future.
Also customer service has went to crap. While they are friendly and everything, when it comes to ask about stuff in the far corner like Is there any RJ45 Connectors aka Cat 5 connectors, I will get a Blank Stare. In the old days the people were far more knowable about all the products then just the top sellers.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
It's interesting and more than a little depressing to see just how greatly Radio Shack has changed in the past ten years. In 1995 I got my amateur radio license. Everyone knew that Radio Shack's license exam preparation materials, done by one Gordon West, were rubbish that taught people how to pass a test without understanding any of the concepts between it. That's why I ordered the ARRL's dependable guide Now You're Talking from another store (check the book out if you are looking for an interesting hobby, it's also in many libraries). But Radio Shack was incredibly helpful for providing all the parts one needed to build little projects. Whenever I found an interesting project in the ham magazine QST, such as an audio amplifier or a QRP kit, I knew Radio Shack would provide the materials.
But now, things have changed, there's hardly more than a couple of soldering irons for sale in the back of a Radio Shack today. The hobby of tinkering with electronics is no longer profitable for a retail store, possibly due to the decline of amateur radio. Hams today order what they need from the Internet or the catalogues that a few specialty stores like to spam technophiles with. Instead, Radio Shack has decided to entirely focus on consumer electronics. But it can't win there either, larger stores like Best Buy or Circuit City will always have a better selection. I can't really see any way for this company to survive.
Are you nuts? People are too busy being at the mall or watching TV to do anything by themselves. Tinkering has become the pastime of penny pinchers and weirdos who can't or don't want to do what a good citizen does: CONSUME!
Let's face it. Making stuff yourself gets out of fashion. Remember, kids, only commies make stuff themselves, a good consumer buys it!
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
You must not work much with technology in a tactile fashion. Radio Shack is irreplacable in most mid-sized to small towns wherein it is the only place you can walk in and purchase certain eletronic parts to complete projects. Where else can you view and select from a wide choice of project boxes in a store front? Sure, there are tv repair shops and the like, but they do not special in the retail sales of these parts, and even if they do have it you'll pay an arm and a leg. This says nothing of such things as batteries for watches and the like. Walmart, Office Depot, Staples ... they will carry only the most popularly used battery watches. You'll most likely have to order online or from the company for the rest. But you can walk into a radio shack and get the same thing right away without waiting or paying for shipping.
/., but I doubt you're much of a geek beyond that....
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"All great things are simple & expressed in a single word: freedom, justice, honor, duty, mercy, hope." --Churchill
The reason why they probably never checked his education is because It was not not the most important part of his Resume. In real life Education is only a minor factor, especially when you get more experience. When you are staring out Education is a major factor because you don't have much to go on. But when you go further it becomes less important, unless you plan to switch paths, like say you have a BS and you want to get into management so you get an MBA. That way you can show the hirers that you are not just a Tech Egg Head and you have some business knowledge as well. But If you were able to work your way up in a company with a GED and proved yourself valuable (Bill Gates never graduated from college) then you could be work more then a person with degrees up to the kazoo. Sometimes I see people who may Flash their PHD in Engineering at me to show how smart they are, except they call me to fix the problem with their primary program when windows is putting up a little bubble on the screen saying you have loss network connection. So I tell them the program doesn't work without a network connection, then they just flash their degrees at me.
In Business degrees and education usually says the person was able to stick it out for at least 2,4,6,8 years and get a degree and they have the building blocks to learn to do the job. But when you start getting experience then that counts for so much more.
As for Lying about your education what that does is makes it easy to fire you for lying on your Resume if they don't want you. But they are not going to take the effort and check it unless they need a good reason.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
I tried to get some parts for an oscillator once and the guy just looked at me like I was crazy. I thought in the back of my mind, "This is Radio Shack right....??"
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I guess it's more understandable at lower levels, but you'd think that at the CEO level they might want to make sure they're getting what they paid for.
The thing is that he'd been with Radio Shack for 11 years, and become the top sales associate before being offered the job as CEO. Whatever checks might have happened, probably didn't happen 11 years ago. Since then, no one had any reason to question his education. He was a full time employee with an excellent record. What else was necessary?
After he crashed and burned the company, people started paying attention to who he was and where he came from.
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If you want to turn around profits, then stop selling the house-brand crappy electronics that are made in China that you can buy at a Dollar Store for a buck (but RadioShack sells for $20). People recognize quality when they see it, and RadioShack doesn't represent quality.
Even the name brands they sell tend to be the low end economy models that Sony, Panasonic, etc will sell at Walmart or grocery stores, of course for a far cheaper price then RadioShack.
There may have been a time when you can pass off a cheap Chinese boom box for $100, and that is when RadioShack raked in the money, but these days people are a little more discriminating in the quality of electronics they buy, and RadioShack hasn't offered those better quality products. They still insist on selling that cheap Chinese boom boxes for $100.
RadioShack should simply refocus on selling batteries and remote control cars, its about all they do well. Stop trying to sell cheap home theater and stereo equipment and televisions, drop computers period, and focus on smaller electronic gadgets that you can't find elsewhere. Either that, our start offering high end stuff you can't find anywhere else, open up a niche market that walmart, Best Buy and Target can't touch.
Just, don't go on as business as usual. It obviously isn't working, and those no-name brands you keep carrying and selling for the same price as name brands are not making you money.
I haven't thought of anything clever to put here, but then again most of you haven't either.
There's not really any national chains but it's not uncommon to find at least one really nice electronics surplus shop in most larger metropolitan areas. And by nice I mean they have a large range of components. But they rarely advertise and can be in off the beaten path locations, so it can be a challenge to find them. That and they are usually run by someone advancing in years who does it as much because they love it as to make money off it, and when they retire it's unlikely to continue as a going concern, so one by one these great places are winking out across the country. Unfortunate for people like us who love being able to physically browse all sorts quirky and hard to find electronic components, but in a changing world what are you going to do I guess.
This would make an excellent Ask Slashdot post I would imagine, to get a list going of all these out of the way shops as I'm sure there's a lot of slashdotters with favorite places they know about.
The closest to a national presence would probably be Fry's which has a pretty decent range of stuff if you live in a state where they operate (mostly west coast from what I understand).
Two things to consider: educational background has little relevance to one's capabiltiy of doing many corporate jobs. He's proven that with an 11 year successful internal record. I've seen it personally time and time again. The best development manager I ever worked for was a philosophy major in university. I personally have fired an MIT grad and opted to retain the community college grad, based on actual peformance, work ethic, and team mindedness.
The other is the peter principle...one rises to the level of one's own inability. Unfortunately, the role of CEO requires very diffierent skills from top sales associate, or even head of marketing. His lack of success as CEO can just as easily be explained by a) inheriting a mess, b) lack of board support, and c) not the right man for the job. The educational question is probably just a hatchet job done to justify his removal after the fact -- "We've got a problem with Bob...find a reason to fire him!"
John Maynard Keynes: "When the facts change, I change my mind. What do you do?"
the top sales associate before being offered the job as CEO.
How does being a good salesman equate with the leadership and organizational ability required of a CEO? I understand, CEOs must to some extent "sell their company", but many great CEOs are very introverted, out-of-the-limelight type of people.
I worked at a Radio Shack (a company owned store) for a few years, and the pressure to sell people expensive items, whether or not they needed them, was intense. Batteries were (and still are) the big killer profit-maker for them. They really beat it into our heads to sell those batteries. Why do you think Radio Shack gave out those coupons for free flashlights all the time? Because if just a few takers would buy batteries for them then they did very well.
Anyone that excels in sales in that type of environment plays dirty. Period. So the fact that he was a leading salesman tells me enough about his character to know that he is not someone that should be in charge.
Dan East
Better known as 318230.
I personally have fired an MIT grad and opted to retain the community college grad, based on actual peformance, work ethic, and team mindedness.
In the end, tertiary education does not count for as much as some people think it does, especially in the business world. Tertiary education simply primes your for a certain kind of job. It does no actual on the job training. Sure, you got an 4.0 in your business degree, but can you actually sell product and make money?
Once you begin working, that is when your true worth becomes apparent.
May the Maths Be with you!
It is *far* easier to teach an engineer business than it is to teach a business person engineering. I'd rather try to teach my dog diff eq.
I had a professor who was fond of describing the importance of putting your degree on your resume as "important only for landing that first job". After that, it's performance and experience based.
If this CEO fudged his education, it speaks more to his character, judgement, and ethics than his ability sell batteries and solder.