I recently heard a story where one of the larger vendors in the talent management space sent a prospective client a complete slide deck regarding the weaknesses of one of their top competitors including a statement saying the vendor was due to get acquired any day. FUD (Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt) in its greatest sense. With the increased pace of M&A in the space, some may consider this a brilliant move. I think it downright stinks!
I personally think all of the verbal bashing like this (and that done between SAP and Oracle) does a tremendous disservice to the industry. Not only does it create doubt in comparable products, but it ultimately damages all participates in the market in some form and fashion. I understand "business is business" but where have individual and corporate ethics gone? The fact of the matter today is that, like politicians, the negativity does resonate. The problem, though, is it damages everyone in between good, bad, or indifferent. Why do you think most Americans despise politicians? Don’t you think if Oracle complimented competitors, and promoted healthy competition, the market would respond favorable?
I make it a practice to say nice things about my colleagues at competing firms like Jim Holincheck (Gartner) and Lisa Rowan (IDC). I may disagree with them sometimes but that doesn’t give me the right to tell them their research & analysis stinks. Hopefully, it does a service to the industry and shows the market how we can all provide value in our own unique way.
Bring back the good old days of true…fair competition. The company with a better fit and principled execution wins.
