Sprint: Yet Another Bad Decision

What is it going to take for these guys to get it right? Sprint (S) rejected an offer by South Korea's SK Telecom and private-equity firm Providence Equity Partners to invest $5 billion in the company and to install NexTel's former Chairman, Tim Donahue, as chief executive officer.
Mr. Donahue's group proposed a deal in a Nov. 10 letter to Sprint's board. The board didn't grant Mr. Donahue or the investors a meeting before declining the offer, these people said. It makes sense, with shares down 36% since early June and subscribers fleeing faster than the Saigon evacuation after Vietnam, why even consider an alternative or hear what they have to say?

Let's not forget that Mr. Donahue, who was CEO of Nextel, negotiated its sale to Sprint in 2004 for $35 billion and became chairman of the combined company after the merger closed in 2005. He stepped down late in 2006. The proposal said he would return as CEO and would bring in a full slate of executives to handle marketing and operations. Sprint's fortunes have decline precipitously since his departure. In short, this guy knows what he is doing. He took NexTel from a bit player to a major force. Maybe current management longs for those good 'ole days?

Some Sprint directors say Sprint bought a wireless carrier with a "creaky network that needed major upgrades and a user base susceptible to being lured by competitors." If that is so, why was NexTel adding subscribers by the bucket full at the time of the merger, and if the network issues are true, why pay $35 billion for it? NexTel users became "susceptible to being lured" only after being treated like an inconvenience by Sprint customer service reps.

The Donahue group said in the letter to the board that it would invest $5 billion or "potentially substantially more" in the form of securities convertible into equity after some period of time at a stock price 20% higher than Sprint's current price as well as a noncash dividend of 3% to 4% and said they were prepared to sign a definitive agreement with Sprint within 10 days. In short, they were putting their money where their mouth was.....

Activist investor Ralph Whitworth, who before former CEO Gary Forsee quit had threatened a proxy fight for board seats unless Sprint directors immediately dealt with the company's leadership issue, praised the Sprint board. "I don't think the CEO job ought to be up for auction," said Mr. Whitworth.

Mr. Whitworth's Relational Investors LLC owns just under 2% of Sprint's shares. "It's bad business to link minority investments with CEO selection decisions," he continued. "If I had been a board member, it would have been dead on arrival. The board did the right thing."

HYPOCRISY!! So, I guess it is ok to link boards seats to a minority investment Ralph? Am I the only one who caught that? Now, we should listen to Mr. Whitworth, after all he is the one who led the charge at Home Depot (HD) to get rid of then CEO Nardelli, sell supply and take on massive debt to fund an ill-conceived share buyback. How did that work out Ralph?

I feel bad for Sprint shareholders, it will be a long hard slog with these guys at the helm. The only way this makes any sense is if they are going to sell to Google (GOOG) soon, which given the news Google is officially bidding for wireless spectrum, is less likely every day.

Comments

[Annoyed]

You point out the bad that Sprint has done and the sing the praises of Nextel (Donahue), yet lose sight and forget to mention the Nextel network was in a bad place before it merged with Sprint. You state Donahue “knows what he is doing” yet you fail to mention that Nextel’s network was near capacity. Their lack of strategy and planning left them no choice but to merge with someone because they were being pushed to invest large amounts of capital into their network and move off a good portion of their spectrum due to interference with emergency channels and capacity issues. It’s no mystery Sprint is in need in of a CEO and capital, but you actually believe it should give the helm to a man who lacked the strategy to take a network not even half the size of Sprint’s into the future? Come on, your simply looking at the money and spewing how it was a bad decision to pass it up when this is the same cowboy mentality Nextel had that eventually forced it to join forces with another company. I suggest you perform a bit more research on the facts of both companies and former CEO’s before you make such broad assements and statements regarding the decisions the company is making. You can’t simply look at the financial statements as they don’t tell you the whole story; MCI and Enron are but 2 examples

[your dad]

I get really sick of always reading you bashing Sprint. You show serious bias toward certain company's and I find it distasteful. Your article is all glaze with no real meat underneath. A man does not bid to become a CEO what kind of childish tactic are you buying into here? Tim has no new ideas to offer the company or even the industry as a whole other than (cue Doktor Evil voice) 5 BILLION DOLLARS.

[xnext]

Ah, the revisionist history of legacy Sprint employees. The midwestern, myopic vision of their treasured company, led by people who couldn't manage themselves out of a paper bag. Where process pre-empts results, and preservation of position and the cumbersome, overmanned, labyrinthian bureaucracy in OP supercedes network integrity and subscribers. As a former employee, it has been no surprise how they bungled the Nextel acquisition (it wasn't a merger). They purged most legacy Nextel management and employees, and you're seeing the results. Tim Donahue is not the panacea, but he offers a much better alternative than another OP retread. He'd get the company moving forward, since he was silenced by the board in deference to the incompetent Foresee (ever wonder why he left before his contract expired?). He knows where the bodies are buried, and would get the company moving forward, in unity. If he gets in, say goodbye to OP. Say hello to lean manpower with multi-tasking employees and managers, with accountability. In fact, any new CEO would probably do the same.

[The Disciple]

Bravo Todd!
Bravo for speaking out on the inability of Sprint Corp to see past the ends of their noses (mostly because they are buried in reports touting "red, yellow, green"). If they would take their noses out of those reports, they might be able to smell the burning rubber of tire tracks left behind by the countless subscribers who are fleeing, yes FLEEING, Sprint together with Nextel.
Your points are entirely valid - why would a major corporation like Sprint acquire (not merge with) a robust wireless carrier like Nextel in its heyday? There must have been something becoming about the Nextel Corporation that Donahue helmed. It couldn't have just been for the coveted Nextel Cup [LOL], but it may have been for the cohesive, high-energy team that Donahue assembled and managed. Nextel was a place were the smallest players, even those on the front lines, were treated with respect and valued for their contributions. A place where the customer could still speak with a Customer Service Representative who lived in this country, understood American economics and the value of a dollar (not to mention speak AND understand the English language).
In the early days after the “acquisition”, Sprint management trumped Nextel wisdom, energy and forward-motion at every turn. They never achieved salary parody between legacy Nextel and legacy Sprint managers on many levels. They lost an incredible number of hardworking people through their cold and impersonal management style. They were happier turning Nextel’s sales managers into Sprint operational managers. Reminds me of the “Borg”, “ . . . you will be assimilated . . .”
Internally, Nextel’s legacy employees and their beloved radio phones were treated as a “substandard”. Even now, 2 years post merger, you will still find representatives in the Sprint Corporate Retail stores who have refused to learn anything about how a Nextel phone functions or is activated. Nextel brought Sprint all the “redneck” consumers with their “walkie talkies” and trusting nature, as well as their hardworking lower-middle-class dollars, and Sprint’s chin hit the floor in astonishment. What the heck were they going to do to keep these people happy? Their solution: “The Powersource Phone” - a marriage of two networks that has been about as amicable and successful as the Sprint Nextel deal. The legacy Nextel customers HATE the hybrid devices and their 1900 MHZ frequency cellular service. Ask them and they will tell you it is a roaming piece of crap. They’d rather go back to their OLD devices on a network that is being held together by wishful thinking and fancy rhetoric.
Granted, Whitworth has a point about CEO positions NOT being given to the highest bidding investor (perhaps a bit of jealousy on his part), but it does make sense. Heads of companies that are publicly traded like Sprint should have representation at the highest level that will accomplish the goals of the corporation. Additionally, they should also make stockholders richer, or at least feeling comfortable about leaving their money in those stocks. Right now, Sprint has neither.
Donahue was a Wall Street Darling who many watched and joyfully listened to - he was like the E.F. Hutton of the cellular industry.
Sprint doesn't have much left to offer these days - the glorious performance of the past has given way to an image as laughable as derailed pop-star Brittany Spears . . . Sprint can't sing anymore, she's losing her children, alienating her fans, and still thinks that people want her. How delusional. Sprint Corporation should have grabbed that fat 5 billion – with Donahue attached – and used it to fix their network and image.
Lord knows, even Brittany would’ve.

[your dad]

You have no idea what the fuck you are talking about. Comparing a company to Britney? You guys are so off base its laughable.
look at this www.youtube.com/watch?...

[your dad]

I love it when a limp wristed liberal makes fun of hard working midwest folks. Rush really is right about you people.

[xnext]

What is the basis for the limp-wristed liberal comment? Because the author is from Massachusetts? Or, is it that you simply don't like his analysis, and instead of formulating an intelligent reply or alternative, you utilize a stale, snarky remark? The right-wing drug addicted pundit hardly has the credibility to comment about anyone's political views. He is to legitimate political analysis what the WWE is to professional sports.

[your dad]

My basis is that he is a limp wristed liberal faggot. And he is completely wrong in his analysis. A man does not "bid" for a job he is not thats what a libtard does.

[Penzugyi szakember]

Nextel's last days of Pomeii: juice adds by lowering credit, and low credit adds have high ARPU, until they churn 3 months later. Party Poker play (a.k.a. M&A run up to you IBs).

[stupid head]

"borg" comments? You watch way too much Sci-Fi what a weird and totally whack assessment.

[Shark]

How much is Tim Donahue paying you?

[A Sprint employee]

Todd, and The Disciple are dead on. Listen to them. Learn from them. They speak the truth. I know. I am there. I watch in amazement as the current Sprint staff blame everything on that crusty old one-of-a-kind push to talk thing. They blame the incredibly inept 1st, 2nd and even 3rd marketing campaigns on the merger. They blame the complete lack of unoriginal phone selections on the merger. They blame the highest prices for me too handsets on the merger. They blame the lackluster plans on the merger. Their strategy was that if they could piss off all those icky walkie-talkie carriers they would all convert to Sprint technology and allow them to shut that creaky old iDEN network down. Out in the field, we know the truth. For 4 quarters in a row we have signed up almost as many new customers as VZW and ATT...but we have lost even more than that for a net loss. Why? The complete lack of customer focus, customer service, and customer feeding and caring. The phones on both networks are fine (if unoriginal and overpriced) and the networks themselves are what they are...pretty damned good. But if a customer ever has occassion to be in touch with Sprint customer care they will do something (or not do something they told the customer they would) that is guaranteed to make them leave. And then the Sprint management will blame it on the merger. How disingenious. I continue to be amazed at how most analyts seem to buy this story line.

[your dad]

And so what you just said justifies bringing in a guy who: won’t be loyal to the company, has no vision for the future, has no industry talent, And apparently has no integrity? Yeah right. You people want Tim only because he has a stack of cash. Your shortsightedness is scary. I hope you lose your job with Sprint. You can get yourself a union job and hang out with the rest of the elitist liberals. Would you like some cheese with that whine?

[Shark]

The foolish remnants of Nextel management that remain at Sprint continue to push Direct Connect...Sprint now has a Direct Connect Task Force. The legacy Nextel management is pushing a technology that is old and dead. It was a fad - and the fad has gone. If Sprint is pushing Direct Connect - maybe they should also be marketing the Windows98 operating system. Give it up and move on.

[NY]

That is exactly what happened with the merger. Sprint management gave it (W-T) up and tried to move on. They wanted to do things their way (very typical of Sprint) without trying to understand what is really going on in the field. Control the world from OP. I worked for Nextel over 5 years and due to family reasons I had to move and found a job in Sprint a year before the merger. That being said can compare the two but the ultimate question of this blog is not Nextel vs. Sprint (guys admit it and endorse it, we are one company now) but is Tim wordy of the job. Seeing him in action the answer is yes. This is a guy who understands how sales channels and network teams need to work together with customer service support as apposed to every desicion is controlled in the big silos (historic Sprint functional organization where front line can not make desicions and no communications between functions). I believe he is CAPABLE to EXECUTE and have the track record to prove it.

[still in the middle]

Not sure what any of this has to do with liberals vs. conservatives, but I think the main issue is inability to retain customers. The network is not really as big an issue as the competition would like to think. The big difference is failure to execute on a winning strategy and keep customers. I worked close enough with both Forsee and Donahue during the merger to notice one big difference. Forsee wanted to stop the bleeding, and took many small steps in every direction as he could to turn the company around. In the end, it was just too many complex issues to fix with baby steps. And it was very reactionary. Tim brings revolution, and throws all his effort into a couple big items that he is willing to bet the farm on. This is risky, which is why the board is afraid to bring him on. He is a rebel, and sometimes unpredectible. However, after seeing the stock price plummet, bonuses revoked, and high value customers evaporate, it may just be time for a revolution. Otherwise, SPrint might as well sell itself to Google or someone else that will turn the company around.

[Playfair]

I am a former Nextel employee and I love Rush Limbaugh. What's that mean dyou spose...

[Playfair]

This isn't about conservative/liberal or faggot/straight. Folks spit and spew insult when they don't have specific facts. There are hard working conscientious workers on both Sprint and Nextel sides.

St Theresa once said, "fish rots from the head". The betrayal was at the top - not the workers. With unselfish leadership, this could have worked. The "merger", seen as an acquisition by Sprint after the fact, was supposed to mesh the assets of Sprint with the management style of Nextel. That was clearly stated at the beginning. When this didn't happen, and the Nextel teams were treated with derision and contempt by Sprint people, things went sour. But had management stepped in and controlled this clash, and leveraged what Nextel had to offer, the results would be different today. Why didn't management recognize what Nextel people brought and why wasn't this advertised? And vice-versa? How could two camps possibly work together, knowing nothing about the good each brought? Instead jealousy, suspicion, contempt and passive-aggressive behavior became the norm.

Donahue was Chairman, not COO, not CEO. "Chairman" typically doesn't manage operational issues in a large company. When Donahue recognized the disasters occurring down below and started to get involved, he was way too late and his efforts were blocked. He threw up his hands and left early. Didn't want to be associated with ongoing failure. Don't blame Donahue for the chaos. When he tried to intervene, he was rebuffed violently. The violent emotions being expressed down in the ranks were even more vitriolic at the Board level. Why would Donahue stay for that?

The Nextel network worked until the merger. The Network started to fail after Sprint engineering sent the network into a death spiral. Sprint would not listen to the Nextel engineers on tuning the iDEN network. Sprint would not agree to Motorola's maintenance and support. Sprint refused to consider the pleas of the Nextel folks when Sprint decided to stop maintaining integral pieces of the cell towers, arguing that these pieces weren't necessary! Sprint CDMA engineers had no clue how to manage this different network, but shut down any appeals from the Nextel folks. The Nextel folks were let go, or left in disgust. Motorola's support dropped. So DUH, guess what happened.

Sprint's struggles with customer care really start with the poorly-designed product. The lowly care rep has no control over the complexities of how the systems work, or how confusing each disparate product is to figure out. Plus they are trained inadequately. Care organizations have high turnover anyway - its a frustrating, low-paid job with no perks, and little encouragement. Confusion on how to help an angry customer only exacerbates the pitiful situation into which the rep is put, and adds to the turnover problem. The complicated systems, quirky products, the Rube Goldberg gerbil-powered bubblegum links, passwords, commands, etc. would make anyone crazy trying to figure it out. Lay this on a high-school educated rep with no technical knowledge, poor training, and you have no customer support. To solve the customer care problem, I challenge a product person to walk through just one single Sprint product end-to-end with its attendant add-ons, support systems, call detail records, billing systems, voicemail etc. This would be an eye-opener to understand why a lowly rep can't help a customer turn on or off services and products.

The Nextel folk are bewildered by the figurehead Sprint VPs who don't understand the business, yet report to work. The rank and file Sprint employees are bewildered by the brashness of Nextel people who regularly speak to their Nextel VPs and Officers. At Sprint, the model appears to be that the company is run by the managers, not the Directors or the VPs. The managers do their own thing and work in isolated silos. The Nextel model is that everyone is involved, no silos, and get specific direction from Directors and VPs. The Nextel folk are bewildered by the lack of empowerment of the stock Sprint worker, and wonder why nobody asks questions or do running analyses.

Nextel folk are bewildered by the apparent contempt that Sprint managers have for their VPs and VPs for their managers. These two echelons never communicate with each other. The managers are running the company. These managers, who may have been managers for 20 years, know they will never be Director or VP. There appears to be a line that is not crossed. The VPs have plenty of letters following their titles, and degrees out the wazoo, but no concrete understanding of the cellphone business. Sort of like stuffed white shirts and a closed society that disdains using bad language or asking questions, the VPs are in the ubiquitous 'ivory tower', fed false information by their managers who know the VPs don't understand anything anyway. The VPs don't recognize that this information is bogus, because, like I said, the VPs don't understand enough to recognize good information from junk. There are bewildered knowledgeable Nextel VPs who are shocked when their Sprint employees repeatedly ignore direct orders. These employees are completely unused to informed VPs and ignoring them is acceptable behavior. Meanwhile, the managers do their thing, make the decisions, and run the business, lacking the cohesive oversight that a strong upper management offers in a typical company. But having lacked this kind of authority for years, the stock Sprint worker doesn't know that it is missing.

When layoffs occur at Sprint, the lazy VPs never get whacked ... why is this?

Is it my imagination or does Sprint get rid of the get-it-done workers? A few years ago, they got rid of the PCS folks, the shoot-from-the-hip; manage-by-the-seat-of-... beat-the-competition-to-the-door-guys. Then many competent workers left with Embarq's spinoff. Now the new idea being considered, is selling off the worthwhile WiMax. I don't understand this pattern of cutting off the arms and legs. Sprint used to have a lot more conscientious workers - it couldn't've gotten where it is today without this. But where are these folks now? It appears that remaining Sprint worker gets angry when asked to do work or to change their routine in some way. This is not the recipe for success.

Embarq took the funds generated by landline. Sprint is now a cellphone company. Cell phone companies survive on fast and imaginative analysis, empowered workers, fast work, the make-it-work and get-it-to-market approach. Unlike guaranteed income on the end of a landline phone bill, cell phone companies don't have the same kind of guaranteed cashflow. Cell phone companies really have to work for their paycheck. Mean, lean and fast. The masses and VPs at Sprint don't seem to recognize that this guaranteed funding and cashflow is no longer coming in. When Sprint comes out of its slumber, figures this out, and reacts accordingly, the numbers will rise.

But where has management been all this time?? When does the betrayal of Sprint stop?

Bring back Donahue. He took Nextel from the brink of bankruptcy to number five. He is a get-it-done guy who can make things happen for Sprint too. Many of us would follow him to hell and back.

[xnext]

Playfair, I couldn't agree with you more. You perfectly described the legacy and present Sprint management. They act like an RBOC in a wireless world. Their "if we build it, they will come" mentality does not work in a totally wireless company. Legacy Nextel people left in droves due to Sprint's stifling of initiative, condescending mangement and their hubris of tenure. Unless you close the OP campus and flatten and/or purge the managers and employees with a sense of employment entitlement due to longevity as opposed to merit, nothing will change. Donahue could do it, but the board won't let him; they prefer the status quo and a dive into irrelevance in the marketplace. Two months after Foresee was fired and they still can't find a CEO. Surprised? Expect to see another OP re-tread lead the company to an acquisition by Google or other entrepreneurial company seeking mobile spectrum.

[your dad]

This is just B.S I am SICK of reading Nextel libs in here whine and cry like a bunch a kids. The company needs someone who has no history with either company. Someone who will say Why do we have 2 of this and 2 of that 2 engineering departments. Then will lay off some folks. I Have seen nothing here to lead me to believe Tim is worth a shit. I see ex Nextel people who are bitter about the PURCHASE of NEXTEL. It was NEVER about wanting Nextels management. It was about wanting spectrum.

[your dad]

What tim did to Nextel was stop building out.

[your dad]

As soon as things got a little bit tough Tim said forget this noise and packed up and left. That says a lot about what kind of a man he is. If you can call him a man. Now we have the Nextel folks slobbering all over hell because this has become some sort of competition for them. Tim has no integrity as a man and he does not deserve to be a part of Sprint or Nextel.

[your dad]

"Folks spit and spew insult when they don't have specific facts"

Or they just quit their job and walk away then try to come back. I see your bias here.

[Playfair]

I wonder about the embittered legacy Sprint employee and the reason for this attitude. In the past, isn't it true that layoffs occurred every quarter? Isn't it true that retaliation and punishment was the consistent response to bad news? Did pay, bonuses, and rewards drop? Did the employee learn to just duck and cover, leave at five, and stop caring? Is it true that accountability now hides behind procrastination and onerous process? Is the anger, passive-aggressive attitude an expression of despair? The campus is full of zombies who report to work, join endless non-productive meetings. There is little sense of trust or teamwork. There are no emails or meetings after five or on the weekends. To that employee, what's the point? Work gets you nowhere and no rewards. Just collect the paycheck and preserve what job there is.

Does selfish leadership that breaks the backs of the employees cause people to shut down?

Sprint has perfectly intelligent and capable people who have lost heart and given up. They exhibit resentment and hatred for the bright-eyed Nextelians who care and ask questions.

The company needs a charismatic leader of integrity who is willing to make changes, knows how to make light-speed changes and fire those who resist that change. The leadership must care about the employee and reward and encourage. Drop the fear, hubris, sense of entitlement, and self-interest.

The Sprint employee has generally only known the Sprint environment. The Nextel employee has experienced the two environments, Sprint's and Nextel's. Sprint is a miserable place to work in comparison.

Nextel people were overworked and overwhelmed but we saw the results of our blood and sweat. Nextel was an exciting place to work where we had leaders who paid us attention and rewarded us well for our efforts. The once-empowered Nextelian is used to making a difference. Recognizing a problem and fixing it quickly is hugely encouraging to want to do it again. No, the environment wasn't perfect, but many of us after the merger recognized how really good we'd had it.

Sprint is slow, unrewarding, full of despair and passive-aggressive behavior, upper management is utterly unengaged and uninformed, the gun-shy employee is afraid for his job security, The result is labyrinthine product design, poor customer service, contempt for the customer, contempt for the employee, disinterest in financial accountability, inability to respond to immediate market demands. The tangible customer experience is symptomatic of the core issues at the heart of every Sprint department and division.

The merger didn't result in identifying good processes to keep and those to optimize. There was never deep analysis of department structures, objectives, and methods. The opportunity to fit experience of upper management to the positions they hold was never addressed. Instead, employees were simply merged apparently based on location and little else.

The change must come from the top.

[your dad]

"The company needs a charismatic leader of integrity who is willing to make changes, knows how to make light-speed changes and fire those who resist that change. The leadership must care about the employee and reward and encourage. Drop the fear, hubris, sense of entitlement, and self-interest."

I agree, though TD is not the woman to do this. he proved that when he walked away. I am sure Sprint people would disagree about "oh it all fell on OUR shoulders, We were SO over worked, We had it so good before Sprint, and cry, and moan, and whine some more please. Thats the elitist BS tudes I am talking about. I can understand why Nextel people must feel somewhat overwhelmed as the company didnt even have a network so to speak of. But I do find it funny that all you Nextel folks have time to come here and post dissertations about the whys and whats of every little thing that is wrong with the company. Then I dont work there so I dont know what really goes on but I assume they have wifi at the campus coffee shops. Dont you have work you could be doing?

[Playfair]

Then Tim really is a genius to have attracted and held so many customers if it’s true that Nextel "didnt even have a network ". After Sprint got hold of Nextel's users [apparently using a non-existent network??] and contemptuously lost them, the customer loss was so high, didn't Sprint's churn become the highest in the industry?

Aside from that, who would fit the characteristics needed to lead Sprint out of its RBOC inertia?

[your dad]

They had no network, ILEC's carrying their traffic. I dont have a name in mind but it needs to be someone new with new ideas and no history with either company. "Tough but fair" is what I hope to see.

Sprint does not act like an RBOC I cant seem to understand why some people feel that way. It is the largest non-unionized carrier though and there is something to be said for that.

[Playfair]

xnext, thank you. Your description is apt - you definitely sound like you worked there!

Todd, The Disciple, An Invested Observer, NY are right.

Still in the Middle makes valid points.

Its hard to live through life at Nextel then have everything change in the Sprint environment without identifying all the differences. Nextelians are used to making observations, running the analysis, and making the changes. So here we are noting the problems we see. Will it make a difference?

Reiterating a point already made, this isn't about Sprint vs. Nextel. The two entities combined because each had something to offer. Now its one company that needs extrordinary leadership.

[Playfair]

Tired, Nextel's was the only network that worked when Katrina hit. Whatever you think of the design, whether you understand it or not, it worked. The ILECs failed but Nextel's COWs moved in and there was communication.

I agree, 'tough but fair' is the leadership needed. You are not alone in wanting someone untied to either side. The Nextelians really did love the Tim experience. You didn't know him, and this allows you a different perspective.

The approach of a wireless carrier and Sprint is terribly different. If you had worked in both environments, you'd see. I've worked for a few ILECs/RBOCs and the environments drastically and deeply differ. This is the basis for the shock that most Nextelians underwent at the merger.

Yes, non-union is a huge advantage.

[xnext]

I worked for Sprint-Nextel, but not at OP. I travelled there for meetings, and was wholly unimpressed. The contempt for Nextel employees, and especially our processes and procedures, was palpable. At least in my group, they had no interest in how we did business.

[Playfair]

Can anyone make a stab at the specific differences between the two companies? The list is long... For instance what first comes to mind is the length of time things take. It isn't an exaggeration to say what we did in a day or two take months at Sprint, if achieved at all. Another is that one Nextel person would do what Sprint's 4 to 10 people would achieve. At Sprint, there are meetings about what meetings should be about. Casts of thousands at meetings with unempowered and uninformed Sprint employees contrasted to Nextel's four- to six-man meetings with an achieved objective at the end. Or no meeting at all at Nextel - somebody would just do it and then report its achievement.
The Sprint environment is similar to my experiences with government and the RBOCs/LECs. The disparity with Nextel is huge.

[still in the middle]

tired, you got it all wrong about Tim walking away. He went to the board and Forsee and said it was not working out and that they needed new direction. Forsee disagreed. Tim tried to have Forsee removed and have himself re-inserted as CEO. The board was forced to make a choice between Tim and Gary. They picked Gary, and forced Tim out. Then they made Gary chairman of the board. Several ex-Nextel board members resigned as a result.

Even if you don't think Tim made the right decisions about the network that is not what kept Sprint Nextel from being successful. The iDen network has been at best ever performance levels for several quarters yet the high ARPU business customers are still fleeing at alarming rates. There are much more fundamental issues. One positive thing about Tim was that the stock went from $2/share to $30+/share with Tim at the helm. Shareholders sure did benefit from that..... As much as 1500% growth is great to dream about, I sure would like to see Sprint Nextel stock even return to its price at the time of the merger.