寶潔CEO雷富禮缺席季度業績電話會議
????寶潔公司的旗下擁有大量品牌。圖片提供：寶潔公司
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????上周五早間，寶潔（Procter & Gamble）舉行的2014財年第一季度業績電話會議缺了一個人：董事長兼首席執行官雷福禮。這個消息并不令人意外，因為上周早些時候寶潔已經宣布，雷福禮不會再參加季度業績電話會議，公司希望能擺脫季度收益是否達到預期這樣周而復始的比較。不過，問答環節只有首席財務官喬恩?默勒參加還是有點不同尋常：分析師和記者們通常都會利用這個環節，通過對公司領導人話語的解讀來評估這家公司的干勁與士氣（姑且不論這種做法是否公平）。 ????但要解讀默勒卻不容易。他是一位擁有多年經驗的專業人士，也是一位沉穩可靠的管理者，長于提供數據。寶潔重申了全年計劃，還發布數據稱，內生性銷售額增長率為4%，凈銷售額增長2%至212億美元，基本與預期保持一致。繼幾年前競爭對手聯合利華（Unilever）停止提供季度業績指導值之后，寶潔也停止了提供此類預期。默勒宣布稱，在近2/3的市場中，寶潔的市場份額正在增加。這是一項重要的指標，過去一年的大部分時間里，寶潔的市場份額都在呈現下降趨勢（但當被追問到長期疲軟的美容業務市場份額趨勢如何，他的回答非常含糊。）他展示的都是事實，按分析師們的說法就少了很多“色彩”，而且，值得慶幸的是，他也不添油加醋。
????公平地說，從電話會議的語調中解讀或成功或失敗多少有一點不靠譜。很多CEO會在這類電話會議上滔滔不絕地描繪美好的圖景，結果日后由于無法兌現而被迫下臺。有些CEO一開始并不那么能說會道、熱情洋溢。而有些人，比如我，似乎也沒有什么第六感，能解讀出輕笑或停頓背后的真正含義。 ????那么，如果有可能，我是否愿意聽到雷福禮在上周五早間的業績電話會議上說點什么？那是當然。畢竟，他是公司老板，他是一名令人振奮的發言人和領導者。但假設他的確會通過其他論壇與投資者和記者們進行溝通，他是否出席業績電話會議又有什么關系？我認為沒關系，只要他在利用這些時間更好地理解公司的業務、發展公司的業務。股票市場顯然同意這一觀點；寶潔股價上周五基本持平，略低于80美元。（財富中文網） |
????There was only one thing missing from Procter & Gamble's (PG) first-quarter fiscal 2014 earnings call on Friday morning: The CEO and chairman of the company, A.G. Lafley. That was no surprise, as P&G had announced, earlier in the week, that Lafley would no longer be participating in quarterly earnings calls as the company tries to get off the hamster wheel of meeting or missing quarterly expectations. Still, it was unusual to hear only the CFO, Jon Moeller, during the Q&A: Analysts and journalists alike typically use this period as a way in which to evaluate -- fairly or not -- the energy and morale of the company through the proxy of its leader's voice. ????It was hard to do that with Moeller, although, as a longtime pro and steady hand, he did his job of providing the numbers quite well. P&G -- which also has stopped providing quarterly guidance, following the lead of competitor Unilever (UL), which stopped years ago -- reaffirmed its full-year plans and posted organic sales up 4% and net sales up 2%, to $21.2 billion, roughly in line with expectations. He announced that P&G was gaining share in roughly two-thirds of its markets, an important indicator after much of the past year showed market share losses (he was rather vague when pressed on market share trends in the long-struggling beauty business, however). He presented the facts without too much "color," to use a favorite word of analysts, and, thankfully, not too much embellishment either. ????To be fair, it was always something of a fiction anyhow to imbue the intonation heard on a phone call with the import of success or failure. Many, many CEOs have waxed eloquent on these calls about just how wonderful things are, only to get booted days later because they aren't. Some CEOs just aren't that articulate or enthusiastic to begin with. And I, for one, don't seem to possess any particular E.S.P. when it comes to divining the true meaning behind a chuckle or pause. ????So would I have liked to hear A.G. on the call this morning? Absolutely. He is the boss, after all, and he's an inspiring speaker and leader. But -- assuming he does continue to engage with investors and journalists in other fora -- does it really make one bit of difference whether he speaks on the call or not? I say no, as long as he's using that time to better understand and grow the business. The stock market apparently agrees; P&G is flat today, at just under $80. |
