Planar Systems Reviews

Pros

Pays well, respects ideas and contributions of employees, offers good benefits, provides flexibility in allowing employees to determine their projects and contributions based off their skill set, flexible work hours and good, friendly cohesive atmosphere among employees.

Cons

Some minor internal changes taking place that are confusing, some sense of frustration from a few employees about management/productivity/their roles but overall most employees seem to be happy and are making proactive contributions to improve the company as a whole.

Advice to Senior Management

A little bit more communication/access to top executives and managers as well as a clear idea of where the head leadership wants to go with current internal changes would be nice moving forward otherwise company seems to be doing well.

Pros

The amount and availability of PTO is the one good benefit left, as all the others have been reduced or taken away completely.

Cons

No clear leadership direction at any managerial level, lower benefits, low wages.

Advice to Senior Management

Do more in-depth industry research to determine what future customer needs are; set clear goals that are measurable and attainable, and hold key players accountable to performance related to those goals.

Pros

Planar offers Great benefits. Work life balance is good. Very pleasant people and team. Individual business units vary a lot in terms of growth opportunities. There are some employees that have been there for a while and know the markets really well, but it is hard to retain talent if the company performs this bad.

Cons

Company is not doing good. The overall strategy the company has chosen seems to be headed in the wrong direction. All time low stock price, employee morale seems to affect productivity and confidence in a recovery is lost. Acquisition seems to have been done on the fly with limited due diligence on the segment. This has put a lot of burden on the current business units.

Individual business units vary a lot in terms of growth opportunities, but overall layoffs have demanded more work and less rewards.

With 17M in cash, and 12M market cap, if the company is not buying back shares, or going private, it shows the confidence they have in themselves and the market.

Advice to Senior Management

Some good business units should be spun off, and some shut down. At 12M market cap now, planar should just buy themselves out and go private. There is no reason for this company to be public. They are spending more money auditing and maintaining staff to meet sarbanes oxley that they can cut. With 17M in cash, and 12M market cap, if the company is not buying back shares, or going private, it shows the confidence they have in themselves and the market.

Pros

Used to be a wonderful place to work unforunately now its a shell of its former self.

Cons

worst management at al levels. Hire bottom of barrel instead of the TOP quartile as in the past. Everyone is just waiting for more layoffs.

Advice to Senior Management

Fire non-performers. Look for results and be accountable. Get rid of the home threatre business unit. They have never made money and will ultimately bankrupt this company. Respect the Industrial business unit and recognize that they have been carrying this company for decades.

Pros

Money, desperation - it's good enough if you have no other alternative

Cons

Layoffs, poor compensation - not the worst in town but you'll have entirely precarious employment and sub par compensation.

Advice to Senior Management

Retain employees, cut your own salaries

Pros

Good company with excellent products and an aggressive growth plan. The recent aquisitions of Runco and Vidikron have greatly enhanced the product offerings to the residential market and should boost the bottom line greatly.

Cons

Some of the management are known for running other display companies into the toilet. With the recent departure of Scott Hix this is hopefully no longer an issue. The biggest risk faced by Planar is the potential destruction of the Runco and Vidikron brand names. If these products are all just turned into different Planar models, without the emphasis on performance and brand discinction, this experiment is doomed.

Advice to Senior Management

Don't run Runco and Vidikron into the ground