We had to implement large-scale layoffs affecting the majority of employees at several mid-Hudson Valley sites. The mid-Hudson Valley was where I grew up.I had to lay off friends and former classmates, people I considered family. Many lives were affected by these difficult but necessary actions. It was a very tough, emotional time. Nothing
I’ve experienced has been worse than that.
When late 1992 forecasts suggested continued losses, the board began looking for a replacement to preside over the breakup and sale of the once-proud company.High-profile candidates such as Jack Welch (General Electric), Larry Bossidy (Allied Signal), George Fisher (Motorola), and John Young(Hewlett-Packard) declined to be considered. The board’s choice, Louis V. Gerstner, had been chairman and CEO of RJR Nabisco for four years, a top executive at American Express for 11 years,and a consultant with McKinsey & Co. He was the first outsider CEO in the history of the company.