From what I've read, most guys were from the PR department. How good they were to begin with?
One can argue they were crippled because of internal politics, but fact is: AMD PR/Marketing sucks. Always have. Even when they had good performance products, it wasn't "out there". It was all about the GeForces and Pentiums.
They need new blood, someone who can get the word out about AMD. I just hope they don't FOCUS on low-end. As someone said here, you focus on high-end and let the low-end spawn from that, not the other way around. Raw performance isn't what brings in money, but surely it's what makes people want some brand instead of other, even if you aren't getting the most expensive offer.
You clearly don't understand the internal situation at AMD. I'm sorry.
AMD's PR has always sucked. I got turned onto AMD from reviews and post on this very site way back in the day. Not from any AMD marketing. I'd have to agree with JohnB on that part.
All that aside what the layoffs tell me is there is nothing exciting coming down the pipe over the next year at least. I'm so disappointed with AMD. Bulldozers performance is terrible enough but did they have to tarnish the FX name with it? They should have called it the Phenom 8 series. Since all it's possibly meant for is windows 8. Word is still out on that.
AMD's PR has always sucked. I got turned onto AMD from reviews and post on this very site way back in the day. Not from any AMD marketing. I'd have to agree with JohnB on that part.
To be fair, though... How do you think sites like ours got the documentation and hardware needed to give you that info? AMD PR.
One of PR's jobs is to identify and work with the very sites that you get all your information from. They do their jobs well.
Prime, when I say back then, I'm talking PII/III athlon days. I don't think Icrontic did reviews back then. Back when OPPAINTER was laying down overclocks. Maybe a little before then. It was pretty much just the geek community on its own. I've strictly bought AMD ever since.
Now AMD did do better with fusion. That is the best effort marketing program from them I've seen.
Maybe AMD doesn't need great marketing because they know their core customers are on a budget. And their best just happens to be budget grade CPU's and chipsets. It's why I went AMD on my last upgrade. But in another year, if I can swing it, I'm going blue.
Not to be a picky prissy patty but Icrontic did do reviews and interviews with important people from the enthusiast market as far back as 10 years ago.
I'd like to see a news story where some laid off employees took their families and moved into the CEO's mansion and made the CEO pay them money they would have earned if they were not laid off. True, it probably would not last long before the cops came in, but it'd be nice to shake up these CEOs a bit. Just to remind them that they aren't untouchable.
I hate reading their prepared speeches with all the buzzwords. It's a bunch of pure BS, and I see right through it. They don't fool me at all.
My last AMD CPU was my Athlon XP 2500+ in my old NF7 PC. I take time to read the performance tests, and I'll spend the extra money for Intel products if I think it is worth it.
I'm a shareholder. I've been a shareholder since 2006 when I bought at over $30 per share, stupidly believing that the momentum that AMD had gained in the CPU arena would carry forward.
As a shareholder, I am NOT comforted by this move by the company. It is the sheerest folly to lay off employees from your profitable arm - effectively killing morale in the one place you're making money.
What would make me happy as a shareholder is if AMD's management put their big boy pants on, and decided to do what it takes to become competitive with Intel again.
Near the top of this article is a partial list of some upper echelon folks that recently got the axe. It is all too obvious that these folks are being removed so that Rory can move in "His" people to occupy these posts, and cover his ass. In addition to marching into AMD HQ and getting a pat on the back for executing a 10% redux in workforce, he can also begin immediately to rebuild his own inner circle, one that will better serve and protect him.
Out of respect for those that were effected, I will only list the positions which they held, and then unceramoniously eliminated:
UPDATE 2:48PM EST:
- Director of the Products Group
- Senior engineer
- PR Manager
- PR Rep
- FirePro Product Marketing Managers(2)
- Corporate VP of Strategy and Fellow
- VP of Marketing
- Corporate Marketing Fellow.
For the record, I have always loved AMD processors, and built my first desktop computer back in the mid '90's using an AMD K6 500Mhz processor. Built many others since, Sempron, Athlon, and my most recent build uses a Phenom II X6 100T. I suspect that my next build will consider an Intel processor, depending on price-point/performance comparisons, and not blind loyalty to AMD products. Seems Intel also has that wonderful policy of 10% layoffs each year. I have lost a lot of respect for AMD over this recent action.
Comments
Have you ever actually worked in PR & marketing in the technology field?
Seriously and politely, your post is so wildly off the reserve and fact free, it's actually scary.
Before you ask if I am, I am not. But have worked in technology an appropriately long time.
I'm fairly certain the people you're saying they need are the precise ones who got laid off. Ironic.
You clearly don't understand the internal situation at AMD. I'm sorry.
All that aside what the layoffs tell me is there is nothing exciting coming down the pipe over the next year at least. I'm so disappointed with AMD. Bulldozers performance is terrible enough but did they have to tarnish the FX name with it? They should have called it the Phenom 8 series. Since all it's possibly meant for is windows 8. Word is still out on that.
To be fair, though... How do you think sites like ours got the documentation and hardware needed to give you that info? AMD PR.
One of PR's jobs is to identify and work with the very sites that you get all your information from. They do their jobs well.
Now AMD did do better with fusion. That is the best effort marketing program from them I've seen.
Maybe AMD doesn't need great marketing because they know their core customers are on a budget. And their best just happens to be budget grade CPU's and chipsets. It's why I went AMD on my last upgrade. But in another year, if I can swing it, I'm going blue.
I hate reading their prepared speeches with all the buzzwords. It's a bunch of pure BS, and I see right through it. They don't fool me at all.
As a shareholder, I am NOT comforted by this move by the company. It is the sheerest folly to lay off employees from your profitable arm - effectively killing morale in the one place you're making money.
What would make me happy as a shareholder is if AMD's management put their big boy pants on, and decided to do what it takes to become competitive with Intel again.
Out of respect for those that were effected, I will only list the positions which they held, and then unceramoniously eliminated:
UPDATE 2:48PM EST:
- Director of the Products Group
- Senior engineer
- PR Manager
- PR Rep
- FirePro Product Marketing Managers(2)
- Corporate VP of Strategy and Fellow
- VP of Marketing
- Corporate Marketing Fellow.
Rory Read has begun his empire building. Phhhht