Do You think CSX can surrivie with bad mangement

[Anonymous]

OK we'd give you the VP of OPERATIONS

[BaltACD]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Doggy

QUOTE: Originally posted by BaltACD

The coninuing problem that CSX has had since it's creation is that it has been run by bean counters and not Railroaders.

Hays Watkins, John Snow, Michael Ward have all mastered the art of counting beans. Railroads need to haul beans, not count them. When every switch, crosstie and rail, every locomotive, car and drawhead and every man an woman on the payroll are 'bottom lined' individually rather than as a part a whole the entire operation is wothless.

The bean counting mentality has destroyed CSX as an operating property.

That's fursure maybe if we have real railroaders come in like Me as the Chairmen of Board/President Limited Clear Chairmen Antiono FP45 as CEO and BaltACD as CFO we'd give other jobs all the others[:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)]

CFO is not up my alley....Operations all the way.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by BaltACD

The coninuing problem that CSX has had since it's creation is that it has been run by bean counters and not Railroaders.

Hays Watkins, John Snow, Michael Ward have all mastered the art of counting beans. Railroads need to haul beans, not count them. When every switch, crosstie and rail, every locomotive, car and drawhead and every man an woman on the payroll are 'bottom lined' individually rather than as a part a whole the entire operation is wothless.

The bean counting mentality has destroyed CSX as an operating property.

That's fursure maybe if we have real railroaders come in like Me as the Chairmen of Board/President Limited Clear Chairmen Antiono FP45 as CEO and BaltACD as CFO we'd give other jobs all the others[:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)]

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Limitedclear

Doggy-

NS is bigger than CP and financially stronger. Don't hold your breath.

LC

I think if CSX were to merge it would UP then CN would buy BNSF+NS+KCS+TFM = North American Rail Company. Wouldn't that be a colorful Railroad?
OH yes didn't NS borrow a million dollars from BNSF and didn't pay it back?
DOGGY

[Anonymous]

So Micheal Ward gets rite of COO didn't he say he going to keep it now they need a new Chairmen like Rob Kerbs to fix that darn company

DOGGY

[bowlerp]

In short, my opinion is no. Meaning no Class 1 can survive long with poor managment. Its inherent strengths may carry it along for a good long time, but eventually it would be forced to merge again or perform some other ind of major asset change to survive as a separate entity. I don't think this means the railroad will go away. It means that the legal entity known as CSX might not survive a period of incompetent leadership.

Railroading has always been a brutal business in the sense that only the strong survive. Whether it be 1904 or 2004, the same is true. Look to the Canadian example for strength of leadership if you want to see the best today. It looks to me that BNSF anad UP are very strong, I don't know about others.

The railroad itself will survive based on national or regional traffic needs, but the company who owns it can change from one year to the next if it is not sufficiently well run.

As an observer, it appears to me that railroaders the continent over grouse about their own management, and locally or regionally, they may be telling a true picture. The financial results, and the reasons behind the numbers tell the real tale over time. Even if you have a good year or two, but buy the fiscal results with deferred maintenance or safety diligence, it will catch up to you. The story about any CEO's "track" record often cannot be judged until years later.

[BaltACD]

The coninuing problem that CSX has had since it's creation is that it has been run by bean counters and not Railroaders.

Hays Watkins, John Snow, Michael Ward have all mastered the art of counting beans. Railroads need to haul beans, not count them. When every switch, crosstie and rail, every locomotive, car and drawhead and every man an woman on the payroll are 'bottom lined' individually rather than as a part a whole the entire operation is wothless.

The bean counting mentality has destroyed CSX as an operating property.

[oltmannd]

CSX seems to change their operating philosophy every couple of years, never sticking with one long enough to do any good. They've been thru Conway, Snow, Carpenter and Ward as the head operating guy just since 6/1/99! I guess they're going to try the old-time Southern Railway style now.

[Anonymous]

It's a pretty scary day when CSX management may be harder than NS...whew... From what I have seen I have to agree. Set job insurance to maximum....

LC

QUOTE: Originally posted by ValleyX

Tony is hardcore, coldblooded. Whoever said to up their job insurance had better do just that. If his attitude and management methods filter down through the ranks, look for a bloodbath in management and/or transportation. Terrific person? Yeah, if you're Attila the Hun, you and Tony might do just fine.

[rrnut282]

Understand also, that economic theorists continue to hammer on the "big three" concept. i.e. every industry can only support three big players in the marketplace. Look at automotive and steel and TV in the U.S. You have three big companies with a few others scrambling to break into that group. The airline industry is in the final throws of consolidation that started with deregulation and 30 big carriers and now is down to 6. Prospects aren't good for all 6 right now. Does anyone see the parallel to the railroad industry here?

[wallyworld]

The rest of them do just fine by snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. And so it goes...

[ValleyX]

Tony is hardcore, coldblooded. Whoever said to up their job insurance had better do just that. If his attitude and management methods filter down through the ranks, look for a bloodbath in management and/or transportation. Terrific person? Yeah, if you're Attila the Hun, you and Tony might do just fine.

[jgiblin]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Doggy

QUOTE: Originally posted by jgiblin

May not have long for answer here. Keep hearing persistent rumors about CN buying CSXT. Would be a great fit/coup for CN and probably have much better chance of getting past STB than a UP-CSXT combo.

I think it would be great but Wouldn't CP RAIL oppose it then would they buy NS?

CN-CSXT would definitely be the beginning of the end for CP Rail but best guess is that UP would end up with CP. These two have been doing lots of joint stuff since CN-BNSF was first announced. NS would probably end up with BNSF under this scenario.

[Anonymous]

You think it's bad now, just wait 'til Tony Ingram gets started. When he came to Conrail on tour to Conrail before NS took over it was like a visit from Darth Vader. Get that job insurance paid up boys!!

LC

[Anonymous]

CSXT NAMES RAIL VETERAN TONY INGRAM AS CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., March 15,2004 - Michael J. Ward, CSX Corporation (NYSE:
CSX) chairman, president, and chief executive officer and CSX Transportation
(CSXT) president announced today that Tony L. Ingram has joined the company
as executive vice president and chief operating officer. Ingram, who will
report to Ward, joins CSXT from Norfolk Southern Corporation where he was
senior vice president-transportation network and mechanical. Ingram will be
responsible for all rail operations including transportation, safety,
engineering and mechanical, and service design.

"Tony is a terrific person with proven transportation expertise, coming from
Norfolk Southern's excellent team of industry experts and leaders," Ward
said. "He is committed to the continued implementation of CSXT's vision and
core values, especially our focus on improved safety, consistent and
reliable customer service, efficient network design and continued employee
development."

Ward added, "Tony will bring an intense focus to our operations, which are
neither as effective nor efficient as they need to be. For example, in the
first quarter our expense levels remain too high and are largely offsetting
revenue gains. I have every confidence that Tony will be a key contributor
in transforming our operations and helping realize our productivity and
revenue growth goals."

Ingram, 57, a native of Dothan, Ala., and a 33-year railroad veteran, joined
the NS predecessor Southern Railway in Atlanta as a management trainee.
During his tenure there, he held positions in engineering and labor
relations before moving to train operations. Ingram holds a bachelor's
degree in business administration from Jacksonville State University,
Jacksonville, Ala., and attended Northwestern University's Advanced
Transportation Management Program and Duke University's Management
Development Program.

CSX Corporation, based in Jacksonville, Fla., owns one of the largest rail
networks in the United States. CSX Transportation Inc. and its 34,000
employees provide rail transportation services over a 23,000 route-mile
network in 23 states, the District of Columbia and two Canadian provinces.
CSX Corporation also provides intermodal and global container terminal
operations through other subsidiaries.

Contacts:
Gary Sease or Dan Murphy
[phone]
www.csx.com

[Anonymous]

Doggy-

NS is bigger than CP and financially stronger. Don't hold your breath.

LC

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by jgiblin

May not have long for answer here. Keep hearing persistent rumors about CN buying CSXT. Would be a great fit/coup for CN and probably have much better chance of getting past STB than a UP-CSXT combo.

I think it would be great but Wouldn't CP RAIL oppose it then would they buy NS?

[AntonioFP45]

I realize that the mega-mergers started in the late 80s were intended to maximize efficiency, transfer times, etc. Seems like this has backfired, as the upper and middle management teams of CSX continuosly drop the ball. Bigger is not better! The bueracratic layers are thick and even efficient common sense decisions that are made by the professionals that really do care get lost in the tidal wave of egos, poor planning and prioritizing.

(Remember the Union Pacific "Meltdown" after the merger with SP. EX-Southern Pacific managers tried to help the UP management with the conflicting train operation styles. They were curtly slammed by UP management).

Seems like CSX , while a viable transportation company is in serious need of a house cleaning in the management ranks.

[Anonymous]

as far as i can see, being an engineer for csx, the whole kit an kaboodle is going down the crapper really fast. insistently the management sends out 140 car cn trains when our passing tracks can only hold 80 cars. and to top it off our yard is plugged and another cn train shows up. then the fun begins as the 3 oclock local comes on and low and behold a road job is called at the same time. now we have 4 trains with no place to go and now they have to empty the extraboard just to recrew all those trains. kinda funny because we never had this problem when we still had conrail around.

[jgiblin]

May not have long for answer here. Keep hearing persistent rumors about CN buying CSXT. Would be a great fit/coup for CN and probably have much better chance of getting past STB than a UP-CSXT combo.

[BaltACD]

The non-contract 'Re-organization and de-layering' that has been in progress since November 2003 has brought any form of creative or positive thinking to a complete and total standstill if not being fully regressive. NO....REPEAT....NO non-contract employee can view any problems of tomorrow for the realistic FEAR that... tomorrow they won't have an employment relationship with CSX. The FEAR is endemic throughout the middle and lower levels of the non-contract totem....the very levels that HAVE to perform if CSX is to prosper.

[Anonymous]

NS is doing better than CSX

[Anonymous]

My two cents
Sadly,CSX will most likely find a way to keep going as-is. For the reasons I stated in the 'opinions on local corperate decisions' thread, I would rather be seeing Black & white or Locomotive shaped Jack o lanterns.

[Anonymous]

jwobryan,

yeah, I think NS in Danville could be picking up a few more customers. We almost lost Bunge Milling, heck all they'd have to do is tell NS to start picking up, the track and crossover are already there!! But, things have been looking better with the management change. Brewer Yard is finally not a quagmire, the only problem we have is not enough crews to man the trains! We have dead trains sitting daily on Voorhees St. and then on the runner as well, and it takes as long as five hours to get them moving again. The extraboards are at their limit, guys who come home are already 2nd out, lucky me when I mark up in May!!!

[Anonymous]

I think that Micheal Ward should step down from one or 2 of his positions currently are CEO/PRESIDENT/CHAIRMEN/COO I think he should step down from CEO and Chairmen and has a RR Excutive take over as CEO like Rob Kerbs or former Pumba of Conrail Dave LeVan and bring in an outsider as Chairmen and Ward would stay as President/COO I think it will work to restructure CSX to make it more attractive

DOGGY

[Anonymous]

Here on NS's Illinois Div. I'd say were in good shape with additional crew in place to handle the surge in traffic with the rebounding US economy. The management has addressed some of the capacity issues that we have, all we need is more locomotives!!!
I'd say that NS placed themselves in a good position to STEAL all the business from CSX
that we can!!!
ps. "SD40's are leasing for dirt-cheap right now". BRING IT ON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[JoeKoh]

QUOTE: Originally posted by mudchicken

QUOTE: Originally posted by JoeKoh

QUOTE: Originally posted by mudchicken

Ooops, sorry....Findlay =Stanley = Flat old northwestern ohio

i think were higher than kansas though[:)]
stay safe
joe

Only if you've been smokin' the funny stuff and are now 550 feet off the ground. Odd, I don't seem to remember any 55 story buildings at Defiance[:D], or are you into sitting on top of radio towers these days?[:D][:D][:D][:p]

oops!never argue with the surveyor.somedays your a broken clock only right twice a day.thanks mudchix.[:)]
stay safe
Joe

[Anonymous]

BaltACD,

You're completely right about those dang remotes. It takes forever just to link up with those things, and then their range is poor, they shut down often. We can switch about 300 cars with an engineer, and now we're lucky to switch 200 with a remote, and that's if the remote behaves itself all day. We may have to go back to engineers though because most of our remote units have broken down and we've sent them back up to Chicago. I hope they never come back![}:)]

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by BaltACD

Prosperity will kill CSX....The physical plan is sized for a Depression Level of traffic....If we truly have an economic recovery in the US (and W's math and John Snow's theivery make that unlikely) an increase in business will bury the CSX physical plant.. The terminals have been downsized to be mere shadows of their former status. Holding trains out of the major terminals is chronic. They run 9000 foot trains on territory with 7000 foot sidings and wonder why there are problems. Remote control T crews produce about 60 to 70% of the former T&E staffed crew and even when a T crew is replaced, grudgingly, with a T&E crew the moral of the work force is so bad that the T&E crew only produces to the level of the T crew. Maintenance on Locomotovies, cars, track and signals is being cut to the point that line of road Engine failures and car failures are rampant. Let the tempurature change 20 degrees and you are faced with either broken rails, pull-a-parts, or sun kinked tracks. Signals go red in the face of trains with regularity.

What a way to run a railroad.!

Sounds like moral is down woth Remote Controls and they need massive hiring and Capital improvements also John Snow's Math is terribe prosscube him for mismangement and leadign the economy to worse grounds