tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post6765224263613603420..comments2023-11-05T06:26:51.316-05:00Comments on Gannett Blog: What Maness' exit says about him -- and GannettJim Hopkinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16712746705871119746noreply@blogger.comBlogger40125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-57983344805898771472011-03-12T08:40:31.235-05:002011-03-12T08:40:31.235-05:00I think all good people should be fired. Then we c...I think all good people should be fired. Then we could have the hangers on running the company and I am sure they would do so much better. Yes. Please let the good ones leave soon.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-848158408870127212011-03-12T08:23:19.496-05:002011-03-12T08:23:19.496-05:00MM was personally responsible for pissing away mil...MM was personally responsible for pissing away millions. His "innovative" ideas never generated revenue and the bold italic initiative has spent nearly $3 million dollars to get off the ground versus a whopping $47 thousand in revenue. Fairly certain a 4th grader could have put that $3million in a pass book savings account and have earned the company more.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-81035170176314829332011-03-11T20:55:34.910-05:002011-03-11T20:55:34.910-05:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-41202089001630874132011-03-11T14:44:55.536-05:002011-03-11T14:44:55.536-05:0011:34, thanks for stopping by, Sue Clark-Johnson!11:34, thanks for stopping by, Sue Clark-Johnson!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-3412672493099171672011-03-11T13:33:27.369-05:002011-03-11T13:33:27.369-05:0011:23 again - Why did Wiliams, Donaghy, Lundquist,...11:23 again - Why did Wiliams, Donaghy, Lundquist, Maness, et al turn to other dying newspaper companies to form a "best in class" online display network in Quadrant One, and ignore, refute, even outright disavow guidance from USAToday.com and Saridakis? Because they're print vets who think it doesn't require genuine money-making digital expertise to be successful online. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-10054221644574808072011-03-11T12:05:32.797-05:002011-03-11T12:05:32.797-05:00What I learned was that he was put in a position t...What I learned was that he was put in a position to look like the Newspaper division is forward thinking, and protect the legacy cronies from actually pursuing digital success at a large scale. <br /><br />3/11/2011 11:23 AM <br /><br />And therein lies the fly in the ointment. Innovation is only good if it is put to good use. I don't think that the man had no ideas, but what did he produce Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-48944885694632836292011-03-11T11:23:17.467-05:002011-03-11T11:23:17.467-05:0011:34 - I didn't see "generated new reven...11:34 - I didn't see "generated new revenue" or "produced significant profit margin" in your effusive praise. Those results define major wins and game changers. I worked with Maness and our roles often overlapped and conflicted. What I learned was that he was put in a position to look like the Newspaper division is forward thinking, and protect the legacy cronies from Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-39181138538440914402011-03-10T23:34:35.441-05:002011-03-10T23:34:35.441-05:00I have known and worked with Michael on and off fo...I have known and worked with Michael on and off for almost his entire career with Gannett. His loyalty to the company was strong working for Gannett for 15 years. Michael consistently delivered unique perspective and insight. Working on a project with Michael was always a tremendous learning experience for me. He is that point person to be able to crystalize ideas out of a mess of random thoughtsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-34271115836468050782011-03-10T23:24:11.197-05:002011-03-10T23:24:11.197-05:00http://www.allamericanspeakers.com/celebritytalent...http://www.allamericanspeakers.com/celebritytalentbios/Michael-ManessAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-21859667927883598152011-03-10T22:04:32.160-05:002011-03-10T22:04:32.160-05:00There actually are good people in the Crystal Pala...There actually are good people in the Crystal Palace, like me. We work hard, we've watched our numbers sliced while the workload trippled. We worry about paying our mortgages, buying food and gas and saving for our kids educations. We too want good leadership and to be treated as valued employees. We are you, you are us. Please stop painting us all with the same false broad brush.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-59766990744349075742011-03-10T21:36:14.295-05:002011-03-10T21:36:14.295-05:008:43 - You have to admit that working on the GCI s...8:43 - You have to admit that working on the GCI side of Crystal Palace is a very cold, sterile, cut-throat, unfriendly environment - the atmosphere of a morgue. The higher the floor, the worse it gets.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-25007881905895922622011-03-10T20:46:09.806-05:002011-03-10T20:46:09.806-05:00He is “amazing”He is “amazing”Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-51120394081712619342011-03-10T20:43:56.432-05:002011-03-10T20:43:56.432-05:00I have no idea who this guy is, why we should care...I have no idea who this guy is, why we should care or have a clue of any impact this guy has had. And I've been in the building for nearly 10 years. I didn't have a clue about who this guy was until I saw his picture here.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-47637273111811862792011-03-10T16:21:17.679-05:002011-03-10T16:21:17.679-05:003:47 I have assumed that 2:36 was being facetious....3:47 I have assumed that 2:36 was being facetious. After all, as recently as Bob Dickey's Jan. 4 first-quarter furlough memo, Gannett's newspaper revenue continued to fall.<br /><br />Dickey wrote: "Our top line revenues, however, while improving, remain short of where they were a year ago."<br /><br />Indeed, in the fourth quarter, Gannett's overall revenue was mostly Jim Hopkinshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16712746705871119746noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-44811861158324246512011-03-10T16:15:16.011-05:002011-03-10T16:15:16.011-05:00The Knight Foundation, while great, can be full of...The Knight Foundation, while great, can be full of itself and has made missteps. Sinking money into the Newseum. Giving out tens of millions in innovation grants with little to show. There is no single fix for the collapse of the news business. And there is an increasing amount of cheaply manufactured junk passing for news that is replacing real journalism. Foundations and greedy companies like Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-78497968696365289372011-03-10T15:47:44.156-05:002011-03-10T15:47:44.156-05:00Anonymous said...
The innovations this innovation...Anonymous said... <br />The innovations this innovation chief produced have resulted in such an unprecedented flood of new readers and advertisements that we cannot handle them all and are turning people away.<br />3/10/2011 2:36 PM <br /><br />Really - well, than we are saved once again. So, despite advertisement revenue drop in the 4th quarter of 2010 - he single-handed rescued the Titanic. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-76616333306391336372011-03-10T14:36:01.106-05:002011-03-10T14:36:01.106-05:00The innovations this innovation chief produced hav...The innovations this innovation chief produced have resulted in such an unprecedented flood of new readers and advertisements that we cannot handle them all and are turning people away. The industry is all watching what we are doing because it represents such a breakthrough in creating a new business model. That's my assessment of his leadership.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-10137923660513682402011-03-10T13:05:58.397-05:002011-03-10T13:05:58.397-05:00I find this use of "crowdsourcing" to un...I find this use of "crowdsourcing" to uncover more about Maness in facts and perceptions is somewhat ironic.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-60967425266706427782011-03-10T11:44:15.831-05:002011-03-10T11:44:15.831-05:00Good or bad he's gone. That's it. That'...Good or bad he's gone. That's it. That's all.<br />So what is his legacy? Leaving the Bold Italic in the wild is a pretty telling tale.<br /><br />I think we may see traces of his decisions in certain products down the line. But, in terms of culture and innovation not so much.<br /><br /><br />As for being a true digital player. He was not, is not, nor will he ever be a true player. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-27026058701188132532011-03-10T11:18:57.371-05:002011-03-10T11:18:57.371-05:00My experience with Michael Maness is that he was g...My experience with Michael Maness is that he was great about making pretensions about innovation and using all the right buzzwords but that he was unable to come up with any ideas that were doable. You would roll him out so that people would think you were cutting edge while all the time there was nothing there.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-53645509340769380172011-03-10T11:12:06.399-05:002011-03-10T11:12:06.399-05:00I know here in broadcast his work with us has gene...I know here in broadcast his work with us has generated nearly 25 million in additional sales and that our Atlanta station was trained by him in innovation and their morning show moved from fourth (where they'd been at forever) to second. We see the impact of his work all the time. Change just takes time.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-53144020631797116432011-03-10T10:55:42.828-05:002011-03-10T10:55:42.828-05:00Maybe someone BOLD enough from DETROIT will explai...Maybe someone BOLD enough from DETROIT will explain to everyone on THIS blog how immature Laura Ramos was when Detroit was working with IDEO and Michael & Laura to redesign the paper and the delivery.<br /><br />There are about a few thousand people who remember her announcing on her facebook about how stupid Detroit people are and how lame the GMC is for dealing with Detroit.<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-29837654395182932672011-03-10T10:23:30.445-05:002011-03-10T10:23:30.445-05:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-32601296295859080812011-03-10T09:57:21.256-05:002011-03-10T09:57:21.256-05:00Michael Maness is not a digital innovator. In the...Michael Maness is not a digital innovator. In the newspaper world he may seem like a titan, but to the real digital "playas" (Google, Facebook, Groupon - the ones that actually make money) that's like saying you're tallest of the pygmies. Maness had a sweet gig - he didn't really have to produce results and was the newspaper division's designated digital counter-weightAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-33046039872622607682011-03-10T09:10:18.871-05:002011-03-10T09:10:18.871-05:00Use all the adjectives you want, but what did he D...Use all the adjectives you want, but what did he DO? At the end of the day, that's the expectation us worker bees have to meet. We can't get by on "character". What innovations, strategies, content platforms, etc. does Gannett use today because Maness identified and promoted it? Sure, Bold Italic is attractive, has plenty of resources to make it happen and seems to be quality-Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com