While the CEO of Intel may be firing off angry memos to employees about recent missteps, it’s a different story at rival chip maker Advanced Micro Devices, according to a report in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal.
Hector Ruiz, AMD’s CEO, sent an all-employee e-mail that effusively praises the company’s employees for their recent performance. While never mentioning Intel by name, the memo makes the case that AMD is no longer a technological follower of its larger rival.
Mr. Ruiz’s tone is strikingly different from that of a July 21 memo sent out to Intel employees by CEO Craig Barrett.
“You have seen a lot of news about Intel lately that is disturbing and unsettling,” Mr. Barrett wrote. “This includes manufacturing issues, product delays, and changing roadmaps. There are many reasons for these, but in the end the reasons don’t matter because the result is less-satisfied customers and a less-successful Intel. I believe, as you do, that this is not the Intel we all know and that it is not acceptable.”
There are times when you have to lay it on the line, and I don’t know Intel’s internal communication plans. Maybe this is such a time for Intel. But the snippet quoted in the WSJ report doesn’t paint a very attractive picture of Intel’s CEO, nor positive perceptions of Intel as a caring employer.
At least Mr. Ruiz didn’t use a PowerPoint…
Full story: WSJ.com – AMD’s Chief Praises Employees, Chip Maker’s Progress vs. Intel