A CEO in control would have issued a statement, saying he was pleased to announce Gannett had appointed So-and-So as senior vice president and chief digital officer. There'd be the obligatory quote from Dubow (left), explaining why this was such a perfect fit. Then there'd be the oh-by-the-way paragraph, announcing Saridakis was leaving to pursue other interests, followed by another cheerful quote about all the wonderful things he'd accomplished.Instead, we get this: Corporate resorted to disclosing Saridakis's exit with a one-liner in a regulatory filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Does that sound like a happy and well-planned parting of the ways?
Next: techie vs. retread
As for the question I posed in my headline, watch how quickly Dubow picks a successor; that will signal how seriously he takes a position charged with leading what should be the fastest-growing segment of the company, at a time of punishing competition online and across mobile networks. Then look at his choice: If Dubow picks an outsider with a strong technology background and a history of challenging conventional wisdom, I'd guess Saridakis left as a result of something akin to a personality clash.
But if Dubow resorts to the good ol' boy network, hiring a retread expected to say, "how high?" when President Gracia Martore says, "jump!" -- then you'll know Saridakis, 41, willingly ran for the hills from a company that doesn't take digital seriously at all.
'Old Guard wins, again'
No doubt echoing the conclusion of many, one Gannett Blog poster is betting on the second scenario. Anonymous@6:59 p.m. said yesterday: "So now the digital transformation has come to a screaming halt, where will the brains at the Crystal Towers turn next? Looks to me like it's going to be cautious adoption of technology as it comes along, such as the iPad. But innovation is out, and someone thinking of bigger pictures need not apply. I expect there will follow a departure of digital staffers. The Old Guard wins, again."
Who should replace Saridakis? Please post your replies in the comments section, below. To e-mail confidentially, write jimhopkins[at]gmail[dot-com]; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the rail, upper right.
Innovation is out? What about that powerhouse brain trust in the DIG? "Innovation" is their middle name! Oh, wait. I forgot -- they did make a web site, right?
ReplyDeletePushed, jumped, either way, he's better off.
ReplyDeleteDuring the various rounds the layoffs there was a lot of chatter about what the higher-ups were thinking in ditching a lot of talented, extremely competent people, while keeping a lot of the dead weight, good-is-good enough folks. Some even speculated if the company was attempting to go out of business by sidelining so many of its "heavy lifters."
ReplyDeleteNow, I think that assessment is even more poignant: What are they thinking letting Sardakis go? Are they trying to go out of business even faster? Does anyone in DC still have their "thinking caps" from kindergarten? Seriously. WTF?
Saridakis jumped. No question about it. Take a look at the circumstances:
ReplyDelete1. He received a bonus for 2009, as well as a healthy dose of options and restricted stock (according to recent proxy filings). You wouldn't get that if you are pushed.
2. It appears that he is the spokesperson on strategy for the company. He is always the main presenter when the management team speaks with analysts. I believe the last analyst webcast, he was presenting with Dubow and Martore.
3. He is in charge of Pointroll, the darling of Gannett and he has some of the industries strongest relationships. Not sure Gannnett would risk that by pushing someone so popular.
4. No one pushes someone who can write his ticket anywhere. In fact, they probably bent over backwards to accomodate him.
5. Gannett has no back up plan and we all know that this management is very calculated. If they were pushing, they would have had a replacement.
6. Saridakis stated to several people yesterday that he is joining "another public company" and could not discuss it until a few weeks.
7. I heard from my very reliable "executive" that Craig and Gracia are scrambling to find a replacement and that they might bring in a consultant.
8. This guy has so much F-U money that he doesn't have to deal with the Gannett crap.
9. If they pushed him, then according to the proxy, they would have to pay him a lot of money. Which we would have seen a filing supporting that yesterday.
10. This guy is a risk taker, he sounds like a jumper to me.
I am surprised that with all of Dubow's hype around Saridakis since he joined a few years ago, they would remain so quiet. Clearly they are not prepared to speak about it because they have nothing to say other than..."we are screwed".
Separately, I have worked with Chris on several projects and I think he is a very unique person. He is so different than the suits at the top. He was a breath of fresh air. I thought at one point, maybe Gannett is really "transforming" by bringing more people like him into the executive ranks. With his leaving, there are a lot of disappointed employees.
Is there ANYBODY out there who can articulate what Saridakis did that helped the company financially? From what I see, he missed financial targets repeatedly. And I don't see one winnint initiative that has come out of his part of the company. I just see a bloated staff that seems to push one lame idea after another, none of which have realistic money-making potential.
ReplyDelete"Innovation" and "Gannett" are two words that should never be used in the same sentence, especially when it involves technology.
ReplyDeleteSaridakis was not pushed, but gave plenty of signals and warnings to Gannett about his intentions. Everyone is surprised by current behavior of Dubow and Martore. No plans for comments until they find someone to replace him. There is serious egg on their face.
ReplyDeleteSaridakis definitely had strong opinions about upcoming projects that were not well received like his protest against Yahoo consortium and Gannett initiative and the paid content strategy that is being rolled out.
Overall, the talking points is that "we will move ahead and find someone to replace him", but they want to minimize the PR nightmare that is surrounding his resignation right now.
Execs are worried people close to him will start to leave. They tried to retain him several times.
He is going to a public company and it is not Google.
IMHO, if the guy couldn't articulate or operationalize "transformation," there was no solid transformation to begin with.
ReplyDeleteAnyone can shoot from the hip, but it takes someone special to develop and then implement something solid.
What fool would step into this job from outside the company? Here's a job where you get stabbed in the back regularly, and second guessed by executives who are clueless about these new technologies. Saridakis didn't make his numbers because Internet ad prices collapsed. But volume and reader use is up. With newspaper monopolies, corporate can manipulate prices they charge during a turndown, giving favors to some. But there is no similar mechanism for doing that on the Internet, and no control, and revenue reflected that. Saridakis jumped. He saw the long knives circling. He was the most innovative and creative person ever to hold an executive position at the Crystal Towers, and this company is in a deep pile of sh*t now he's gone.
ReplyDeleteGannett is not innovative. You can bring in Larry Page from Google and he wouldn't be able to "transform" Gannett. Saridakis is smart for jumping and running from this complacent dump.
ReplyDeleteNice to see My Boss again. And he/she is correct: Saridakis is NOT going to Google.
ReplyDeleteNo doubt in my mind that CS left on his own. Why would any young(er) person with fresh ideas and a sense of innovation want to devote any more years than he already has in an organization that stifles creativity and independent thought? CS is lucky that he didn't have to spend a lifetime compromising himself in order to rise to the executive ranks. As an outsider, he hadn't been brainwashed and couldn't settle for mediocrity. Good for him that he left with his mind and principles intact.
ReplyDeleteDoes Anonymous 6:39 AM, or anybody else, know when GCI bonus checks were mailed? At many Wall St. firms it happens in March, which was what, just a week ago? If that was Gannett's schedule too, then it sounds like Saridakis had this planned out for a long time.
ReplyDelete