Shareholder Value?

Today, it’s reported that NBC Universal is in talks to buy Dreamworks SKG.

Why is it that the term “shareholder value” no longer applies to having healthy profit margins and respectable dividends and earnings?

It is outright foolish to me that our market has this hellbent notion that a company MUST ALWAYS GROW LARGER. As a matter of fact, I think it’s a notion that is hazardous to the health and well-being of a company.

A healthy company is better than a big company any day of the week.

Teamsters Split

I’m definitely watching this labor split with a close eye today, and an even closer eye in the future.

In my opinion, labor unions in general have become little more than their own self-absorbed dollar sucking entities that help themselves (the organizations) more than they help their members.

We’ve run into union reps in our business that straight up tell us that we’re going union, or they’ll shut us down, no matter what our budget is. And if we only have XXX number of dollars a day for a particular position, well then XX% of that is coming to the union, and we’ve been told to pay the WORKERS less per day, in order to pay the UNION instead. (by the union reps).

So, instead of actually looking out for their members, they’re stealing money from them.

I would rather give my employees more money to take home in their pocket than pay them less. And I have a sneaking suspicion that workers who are treated properly, would say the same. For example, those at most of the Honda auto plants who still haven’t unionized, because their employer treats them fairly.

Better idea.