| Author |
Message |
Rob Lay (Rob328gts)
Board Administrator
Username: Rob328gts
Post Number: 2090
Registered: 12-2000
| | Posted on Wednesday, September 11, 2002 - 9:34 am: | |
Umm Umm, I will refer all questions to my lawyer. ;) |
Dave (Maranelloman)
Member
Username: Maranelloman
Post Number: 371
Registered: 1-2002
| | Posted on Wednesday, September 11, 2002 - 9:26 am: | |
Agreed...but when your company is tanking (as this one obviously was), it is no time for lavish perks. And it is incumbent on the Board to make sure to prevent abuse (obviously they failed at Enron, WorldCon, Adelphia, etc etc etc etc etc ad nauseum). Heck, up until late 2000, Bill Gates flew commercial coach (he only changed to a private plane for security reasons after he was seriously threatened). John Chambers, CEO of Cisco, still flies coach. And these guys run profitable corporations.
Oh, well, their investors paid the price for taking their eyes off the ball in this case. Losers! |
Martin (Miami348ts)
Advanced Member
Username: Miami348ts
Post Number: 2768
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Wednesday, September 11, 2002 - 6:47 am: | |
Dave,
no never heard of them. But I have seen my share of "these" guys here in Miami. A few years back there was a new start up company called: UNICAPITAL. They started in my building and in one of my offices as a one man show to become Florida's largest IPO when the market was really hot. I saw the "Executives" they hired straight from University. Back then I told my wife, thee guys can go nowhere but BUST! Their stock went from IPO $19.00 to the highest $ 19.35 that day and closed at under $19.00 From there on it went down till they were taken off the board and declared bankrupcy.
That said, I do not think that an exotic car is a bad perk for an executive. It is the full package that makes the difference.
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John L. Jordan Jr. (Up2nogd)
New member
Username: Up2nogd
Post Number: 41
Registered: 8-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, September 10, 2002 - 11:31 pm: | |
Rob,
It's amazing how that 84 RX-7 was transformed into a super clean 89 328 -- so what your telling us is your "Ferrari" is actually a transformed RX7 kit car????? Sorry guys I've seen pics - See, Rob is one of the guys your discussing here - recent corporate sponsorship on F-Chat and already coverups and lies!! He He He!! Oh and by the way Rob -- go search Google under Ferrari Wrinkle Paint and look at number 3 -- Popularity is Hell!!
Johnny |
Mike Dawson (Miked)
New member
Username: Miked
Post Number: 43
Registered: 2-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, September 10, 2002 - 7:11 pm: | |
"FerrariChat.com is... run out of a trailer home in Hicksville, TX and the only company car is a 1984 Mazda RX7 with 110k miles. Anyone want to partner and share this lavish lifestyle with me? ;)"
Is this what is ment by "trailer queen"? |
Erich Walz (Deleteall)
Junior Member
Username: Deleteall
Post Number: 126
Registered: 12-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, September 10, 2002 - 6:43 pm: | |
"FerrariChat.com is... run out of a trailer home in Hicksville, TX and the only company car is a 1984 Mazda RX7 with 110k miles. Anyone want to partner and share this lavish lifestyle with me? ;)"
WOW! ultra-low miles. If that trailer you're talking about is a double-wide, count me in! |
Erich Walz (Deleteall)
Junior Member
Username: Deleteall
Post Number: 125
Registered: 12-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, September 10, 2002 - 6:41 pm: | |
"the only company car is a 1984 Mazda RX7 with 110k miles. Anyone want to partner and share this lavish lifestyle with me? ;)"
WOW! ultra-low miles. If that trailer you're talking about is a double-wide, count me in! |
Fred (Iluv4res)
Junior Member
Username: Iluv4res
Post Number: 84
Registered: 8-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, September 10, 2002 - 4:01 pm: | |
I want to be a Vulture Capitalist and find one of their "must sell" Ferrari's. |
Mr. Doody (Doody)
Member
Username: Doody
Post Number: 448
Registered: 11-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, September 10, 2002 - 3:08 pm: | |
hey - for all we know, two founders controlled 90% of Dataforce Corp's stock and spent the company's money how they saw fit.
if you get a valued exec a $2000 a month lease on a ferrari how's that any worse or better than giving them a $24K bonus annually? it really isn't any worse or better. people generally make business decisions for rational reasons. many execs have off-center demands. arguing over the form $24K in compensation takes is hardly a useful thing for a company to do if it's a zero sum game and could just piss off the employee.
these guys may in fact be ultra-bozos (i don't know 'em from adam), but i wouldn't jump to conclusions either.
doody.
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Tyler (Bahiaau)
Member
Username: Bahiaau
Post Number: 359
Registered: 12-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, September 10, 2002 - 2:32 pm: | |
I am always amazed at the way some people do business(for awhile). I'm amazed that in these tumultous times there are any VC left who don't watch their holdings closely. It's incumbent on the board to keep things like this from happening. |
Jim Schad (Jim_schad)
Junior Member
Username: Jim_schad
Post Number: 168
Registered: 7-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, September 10, 2002 - 1:47 pm: | |
I wondered how broke companies paid all these NYC firms tons of money to help 'em out of trouble. My company gave me some options when I got here and I negotiated for more (I am so smart). They were worth about $60 2 or 3 years ago, when I got them they were worth $3 and now worth $0.27. And I am not even fully vested!!!! |
Dave (Maranelloman)
Member
Username: Maranelloman
Post Number: 369
Registered: 1-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, September 10, 2002 - 1:24 pm: | |
No, never worked for Dell, although I do come out of the high tech space (enterprise software). For the last 2 years, I & a partner have been consulting, specifically with distressed companies on restructurings, turnarounds, wind-downs, disposition of IP,and other general operational & sales/marketing issues. Frequently, that has one or both of us taking an interim exec role within the company to put in place needed reforms or to wind them down with relatively little pain. There is no shortage of customers here, and in other cities where we have done engagements (LA, Phoenix, DC, etc.), but very few have enough cash to pay us...and the idea of taking options in a nearly-defunct company as out ONLY compensation is not smart business. |
Jim Schad (Jim_schad)
Junior Member
Username: Jim_schad
Post Number: 167
Registered: 7-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, September 10, 2002 - 1:15 pm: | |
Dave, what biz are you in? Thought maybe you were one of those Dellionaires from Austin. |
Dave (Maranelloman)
Member
Username: Maranelloman
Post Number: 368
Registered: 1-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, September 10, 2002 - 1:01 pm: | |
I agree that a private co. can do whatever it wants...but clearly the venture capitalists who funded it, and who sat on its board, were asleep at the wheel on this one. There is no excuse for a company that is losing investors' money to squander more on frivolous BS like company-paid exotic cars. Too many dot-bomb stories like that. 'Course, that means more customers for me, but it's still atrocious that the board slept through that gross fiscal abuse. IMO, of course... |
Rob Lay (Rob328gts)
Board Administrator
Username: Rob328gts
Post Number: 2085
Registered: 12-2000
| | Posted on Tuesday, September 10, 2002 - 12:04 pm: | |
I would think a privately held company can do anything they want with their money. If there were owners outside of operating partners, then they would still have to have the financials disclosed to them. I would love a private company like this, 5-10 partners that are friends and make smart and ethical business decisions to keep the business ongoing, but enjoy the success too.
BTW, FerrariChat.com is a loosing business venture and it's run out of a trailer home in Hicksville, TX and the only company car is a 1984 Mazda RX7 with 110k miles. Anyone want to partner and share this lavish lifestyle with me? ;) |
Dave (Maranelloman)
Member
Username: Maranelloman
Post Number: 367
Registered: 1-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, September 10, 2002 - 11:49 am: | |
From the F*ckedcompany.com site:
"Rumor has it Dataforce Corp., an ERP/CRM solutions firm based in Miami that once ranked #49 on the Inc.500 (1999) of fastest growing privately held firms in the US, is in the process of liquidating and ceasing operations. Word is the causes are numerous, including excessively lavish offices, exotic corporate cars on lease (look for DF Porsches and Ferraris in repo lots soon in Miami), equally lavish expense accounts, and excessive partner salaries and other perks. Combine this with the leadership void created by the departure of the founder and CEO in 2001, and this once-great company crashed into the Miami reef."
Martin, you knows these guys??
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