|  |     Bob,
    
    This conference reflects both Digital's strength and Digital's
    weakness.
    
    Our strength is multiple open lines of communication and management at
    the highest levels that (like yourself) that listen to the troops in
    "the trenches".
    
    Our weakness is, it's so easy to talk, but based on limits our structure
    imposes on empowering the individuals that shake hands with the
    customer every day (the lowly rep, not AM, AGM, NAM,...) to make change 
    happen and/or perhaps the troops believing that based upon past experience 
    that their input won't effect the battle plan... we just talk.
    
    I'm optimistic that most of the generals have seen enough casualties that
    they're pride is gone and it's been replaced with a humble willingness
    to listen. 
    
    That makes this conference very timely!
    
    I am still very concerned that the "lowly rep" will not be empowered as 
    a team leader until they have direct input to support team members reviews 
    or some other mechanism which provides direct authority along with
    responsibilty rather than our current & from what I can gather planned 
    model which only gives them "influence" over their "team".    
    
    Thanks for listening!
    
    Stu
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