Alterian cuts itself in half to show us what it’s made of
Unprostituted image courtesy of Gleenz Tees http://store.glennz.com/
Sad news and a reflection of our times as Alterian announces a workforce reduction from 441 to 260 .
It’s at times like this that some age-old wisdom used with reference to the Web Content Management sector in the past seems particularly prescient.
“A rising tide floats all boats”
It was Warren Buffett I believe who added the more graphic punchline to this …
“It’s only when the tide goes out that you learn who’s been swimming naked”
As a long-term participant and observer in this area of business I must admit I have always struggled to understand Alterian and find the substance behind the facade. There’s been far too much ‘talking the talk’ rather than ‘walking the walk’ with regard to its social media developments and it seemed to get carried away on the wave of unsustainable hype. Meanwhile, the web content management offerings became de-emphasised and increasingly confused at a time when alternative solutions have been moving on at a pace.
For the sake of old colleagues from the Immediacy days I had hoped Alterian would use recessionary opportunities to get bigger rather than contract, because that would seem to be the wrong direction to be going in an increasingly commoditised market space.
Time will tell but I believe, personally, that the company is currently making a big mistake in rejecting SDL …
