Free Bird

"If I leave here tomorrow
Would you still remember me?"

Lynyrd Skynyrd

I got several reminders about birds and freedom last week. Could have been Mike Tyson's collection of pigeons which are annoying his neighbors. More likely, Morgan Stanley CEO Philip Purcell having to resign when he could not stem a flock of fleeing executives. Ironic that some one who understands capital liquidity, did not realize that intellectual capital is also pretty fluid

Then there were other conversations around other "birds". An exec described to me his company's focus on its aging workforce and the use of knowledge management and other technology to prepare for coming transitions. Microsoft has a section of its site dedicated to the implication (and opportunities) around graying of the baby boomer generation.

SAP has been on a recruiting tear especially from its competition - including two execs - Nimish Mehta and Doug Merritt I really like. While it is pretty common for salespeople to jump around quite a bit, SAP is gathering a varied set of talents as it begins its ambitious re-positioning.

An offshore firm executive casually told me his staff attrition was around 20% - but still lower than the "industry average". He did not appear to have a "fuel hedge" for his clients.

I heard about an analyst firm CEO who threatened a key analyst with a non-compete if he left. Smart are they are, analyst firms take their non-competes seriously - a vestige left over from the 17th century. He is likely to lose this "caged bird"

"For I must be traveling on, now,
'Cause there's too many places I've got to see. "

PS: Skynyrd fans - you may find this WSJ article amusing or annoying, but worth a read.