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Software Giant Autodesk to Axe 13% of Global Workforce

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Re: Software Giant Autodesk to Axe 13% of Global Workforce

#51

Post by sitkack »

wlesieutre wrote: post #48
pzone wrote: post #2

The 2016 layoffs of similar magnitude didn't seem to make a noticeable impact in their software's update cadence. They are a company formed though an old sediment of mergers and acquisitions and I'm not surprised they've built up inefficiencies.

I don't think the update cadence will change, their yearly release numbers are a big marketing point that they're locked into. Press coverage from skipping one wouldn't be good, especially since people feel like that cadence is what they're paying for with the subscriptions. That said, Autodesk has entire industries locked into subscription pricing with very little real competition. If they wanted to cut costs, they…

They have only picked up development speed in the last 5-8 years or so. There was the previous ten years where things were largely stagnant. They used their market position to scoop up everything industrial design. Hell, they even bought EagleCad.

Re: Software Giant Autodesk to Axe 13% of Global Workforce

#52

Post by sitkack »

adventured wrote: post #33
bhouston wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Autodesk continuously touts that they are in a big transition from product sales to subscription and that huge growth is just around the corner. Do you discount those claims?

I don't see why it would be necessary to discount such claims. The claims are worthless. They're not worth considering at all, until they prove something (and right now they're running a substantial credibility deficit). Ten years of zero net growth, and four years of declining profitability, should tell you everything you need to know about what's actually happening. They've spent most of their profits from the last…

> Or put it another way. The cost of the share buyback announced last year could cover the cost of the 13% of workers that are getting fired, for at least two decades.

Do you have any pointers on how to do this kind of financial analysis of a public company?

Re: Software Giant Autodesk to Axe 13% of Global Workforce

#53

Post by pmorici »

analognoise wrote: post #3

I hope this doesn't effect the team working on EAGLE. EAGLE sucks, but it has gotten much better since Autodesk took over and actually started making improvements.

Once you learn how to use Eagle it's great. When Autodesk bought Eagle and changed it to a subscription based sales model that required an Internet connection I started trying every alternative I could find. I've found nothing I like better in the price range.

Re: Software Giant Autodesk to Axe 13% of Global Workforce

#54

Post by mcguire »

Ericson2314 wrote: post #40
Ericson2314 wrote: post #38

I worry that Soon there will be no real investment in "professional" software, the type with a learning curve that makes us more productive rather than more ad-addicted.

(Unlike Photoshop, AutoCAD, etc, most enterprise software is insanely arbitrary one-off stuff that essentially exists as hack for $megacorp to avoid teaching their non-devs any programming.)

I don't know that it is to avoid any programming, but the point is pretty well made. Most of the internal enterprise software I've worked on was intended to follow insane and arbitrary policies that wouldn't stand up to scrutiny as a public product.

Re: Software Giant Autodesk to Axe 13% of Global Workforce

#55

Post by JBlue42 »

sitkack wrote: post #51
wlesieutre wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think the update cadence will change, their yearly release numbers are a big marketing point that they're locked into. Press coverage from skipping one wouldn't be good, especially since people feel like that cadence is what they're paying for with the subscriptions. That said, Autodesk has entire industries locked into subscription pricing with very little real competition. If they wanted to cut costs, they…

They have only picked up development speed in the last 5-8 years or so. There was the previous ten years where things were largely stagnant. They used their market position to scoop up everything industrial design. Hell, they even bought EagleCad.

Yeah, I think they'll have to be on a faster cycle to justify the their new licensing scheme vs the old perpetual ones.

Re: Software Giant Autodesk to Axe 13% of Global Workforce

#56

Post by pmorici »

bhouston wrote: post #25
adventured wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's much worse than that unfortunately. Pre-tax income 2013: $310m on $2.3b in sales Pre-tax income 2014: $279m on $2.26b in sales Pre-tax income 2015: $83m on $2.5b in sales Pre-tax income 2016: -$20m on $2.46b in sales Pre-tax income last four quarters: -$544m on $1.95b in sales Net income for 2013 was $247m, for 2014 it was $228m, for 2015 it was $81m. For the last eight quarters, it's nearly a negative billion d…

Autodesk continuously touts that they are in a big transition from product sales to subscription and that huge growth is just around the corner. Do you discount those claims?

Frankly their change to a subscription model caused me to look for alternatives to the one product I use from them; Eagle CAD. It's really ticked a lot of people off.

Re: Software Giant Autodesk to Axe 13% of Global Workforce

#57

Post by mcguire »

bhouston wrote: post #25
adventured wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's much worse than that unfortunately. Pre-tax income 2013: $310m on $2.3b in sales Pre-tax income 2014: $279m on $2.26b in sales Pre-tax income 2015: $83m on $2.5b in sales Pre-tax income 2016: -$20m on $2.46b in sales Pre-tax income last four quarters: -$544m on $1.95b in sales Net income for 2013 was $247m, for 2014 it was $228m, for 2015 it was $81m. For the last eight quarters, it's nearly a negative billion d…

Autodesk continuously touts that they are in a big transition from product sales to subscription and that huge growth is just around the corner. Do you discount those claims?

I'm not sure how you can get growth out of subscriptions if their market is effectively saturated. It will prevent complete collapse, but growth?

Re: Software Giant Autodesk to Axe 13% of Global Workforce

#58

Post by JBlue42 »

galfarragem wrote: post #46
dragonwriter wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Isn't BIM an extension to rather than alternative to CAD?

In practice not so. The design process is different: in CAD you draw 2D like you would draw by hand. In BIM you don't draw, you build a 3D model. That model will contain all the data about your building (materials, dimensions, etc) and you can analyse it on realtime. With a traditional CAD system (BIM is still CAD - Computer aided design) all data must be gathered manually. Despite BIM existing for a long time, hardw…

Not as big as standard architecture but landscape architecture still seems to be stuck in CAD world and relying on plugins to do its dirty work. It doesn't work out so well with Revit. So there's a market that could use a good product.

The issue our office had was getting people to put in the time to go from CAD to Revit. We went big and got a BIM manager too to help with that but even he will confess he thinks the company doesn't really know how to utilize him.

BIM also seems to come with a certain mindset and philosophy vs CAD where you would just design, which might throw people off.

I still find it surprising, like others, that Autodesk would lose money give their market dominance and I assume that's why they're switching to subscription.

Re: Software Giant Autodesk to Axe 13% of Global Workforce

#60

Post by kqr2 »

pmorici wrote: post #53
analognoise wrote: post #3

I hope this doesn't effect the team working on EAGLE. EAGLE sucks, but it has gotten much better since Autodesk took over and actually started making improvements.

Once you learn how to use Eagle it's great. When Autodesk bought Eagle and changed it to a subscription based sales model that required an Internet connection I started trying every alternative I could find. I've found nothing I like better in the price range.

OT but there is a special on OrCAD Capture & OrCAD PCB Editor for $430.

http://go.ema-eda.com/OrCADPCB4Free

It ends today though on Nov 30, 2017.

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