Abundant widespread communication was an element in SAIC’s success story. I’m curious to know what you think were the most useful forums to SAIC’s employees, and why. I suspect the most useful was the Management Council, but I’m not sure.
Click on the comments link to share your thoughts.
– Bob
Here are my responses to previous weeks’ comments:
Jim Naber (Week 17): Sorry SAIC didn’t change your life…but we tried. And I’m sure Larry Kull had a lot to do with influencing your success at SAIC. I’m curious what you’ve been doing nowadays, if you’re still working with the same customers.
Joe Carlini (Week 17): I remember all the good times we had visiting you and others in Virginia Beach, and participating in the AMSEC Hall of Fame. AMSEC was clearly a turning point in SAIC history because it showed we could run a cost-competitive operation and still make money. If you see Carl Albero, give him my regards. In addition, if you feel like writing more about your experiences with SAIC culture — what was good and what was not so good — I would love to read it. And good luck with your new company. I’m sure Dave King must visit you periodically in the Tidewater area.
Peter Cohen (Week 17): I’m glad to hear SAIC had a positive impact on your getting an advanced education. I just finished clearing out my bookshelves, keeping only what was most important. All of my academic books from the University of Michigan were thrown out since they’re now dated. However, I’m still impressed with some of the papers I wrote a number of years ago. Hope your new job permits you to publish and talk on information systems to keep your brain ticking.
Andre LeCault (Week 17): We used every device we could think of to motivate employees to express themselves in a variety of forums at SAIC, hoping to pick up good ideas, and to detect flaws in ongoing programs or in proposal efforts. Meetings Week was the most important forum we established for exchanging ideas and I hope you got an opportunity to present your opinions there. The pre-board dinners were established so the employees and key managers had a place where they could meet the board members and express their feelings regarding actions the board was taking. What’s happened to you since you left the company? Or did you?
Hal Brode (Week 17): We are slowly making progress on the book we are writing on SAIC. Fourteen chapters are in some state of repair, and we have a publisher. Your book sounds interesting and I will be curious to read your comments on notable figures I had the good fortune to meet, like Albert and Dick Latter, Fred Wickner, Jim Woolsey, and of course Albert and Roberta Wohlstetter.
Telal Wassel (Week 16): I agree that the EPRI work was a turning point in the energy area. In addition to what you mention, Erdman and others were able to initiate the probabilistic risk analysis program at EPRI, which spread to other people in the company. An East Coast group (Joe) was also able to build a successful business based on our probabilistic risk analysis work. I have often wondered if the Egyptian business you started is still active at SAIC. It was certainly successful when you were running it, and it contributed — in my estimation — to other programs in the range business.