People often think journalists like to ask gotcha questions, when what we are trying to do is separate fact from fiction.
Last week, the St. Paul Pioneer Press wrote a story about Medtronic cutting more than 200 jobs in its Heart Rhythm Division.
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It was another sign that growth continues to be elusive in Medtronic’s largest business.
When I read this, I wanted to confirm whether this job cut was part of a previous announcement or whether the Pioneer Press had unearthed new information.
So I emailed one of the corporate communications folks who shall remain nameless. Her response went like this:
This year we restructured our CRDM business into a GM model, with general managers leading our tachy, brady and heart failure businesses in addition to our AF Solutions and Cardiac Connected Care businesses. We believe this is the right model to assist us in bringing innovative, new life-saving products to market faster and more efficiently.
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Uh, OK, but that doesn’t really answer my question.
So I ask again. She replies that yes, the cut was previously announced in February.
I head over to Medtronic corporate and glance through all the press releases in February.
Zip, zilch, nada.
Now I am a bit annoyed and I reach out again to mention that I found no press releases. She responds that there were no press releases tied to the job cuts. So I ask if the job cuts were disclosed as part of an investor conference.
It must be. Why else would the spokeswoman have used the word “announced” previously?
And then there was dead silence.
This leads me to conclude that there likely was no announcement and that the Pioneer Press reporter indeed reported new information as good reporters do.
Now, Medtronic is a very press-savvy organization. They are a pleasure to communicate with. Unlike many healthcare firms that generally shy away from the media or shun it, Medtronic’s corporate communication folks are open and eager to engage reporters. After all, CEO Omar Ishrak tweets.
But Medtronic, like most corporations, is very defensive about layoffs.
I get that no entity wants to look heartless, nor do they want to spook the stock market by admitting problems in a division, even if these issues are well known. But whoever came up with “rightsizing” and “right model to assist us in bringing innovative, new life-saving products to market faster and more efficiently” must believe that our collective brains have turned to mush.
Capitalism is an efficient and ruthless system. You cut jobs in areas where you don’t make any money. We get it, savvy shareholders get it, analysts get it. Can we please admit that, not play word games and move on?
