Eastman reviews

1- need to expand product portfolio in selected industry segment so that we are more relevant to our target customers. Expansion could be done through organic or inorganic bolt-on. 2- need to decentralize decision making unit and allow team to experiment, course correct and, as long as the long term vision is correct, this flexibility will allow for pragmatic and quicker approach to reach our stated internal goal. 3- focus on listening to customer need. It is ok to tear down our own hypothesis if multiple customers stated their preferred approach because sometimes not every hypothesis that we originally had is the right hypothesis. Be flexible.

The very aspects that make Eastman great are also the source of its own weakness. It is big company - it leaves some people feeling disengaged. I do think this is also because Eastman is the most centralized multinational company of this size I have ever seen. There are no global business leaders in Asia. Almost all middle-high appointments are in Kingsport, TN - I think this is really one of the reasons of disengaged employees in Asia (it pays well, so there is a reason the overall turnover is low) It has a high ethical standard - and it has caused some to actually be very afraid of making any bold decisions for fear of being questioned by the Ethical Compliance team. Balancing empowerment and control has always been a problem with the company. It is a company that has a great product innovation history and great current portfolio. It sometimes over rely on old set of products that historically has given good returns and do not refill the pipeline soon enough. It innovates well in product but not really in business practices. In my opinion Eastman will be near perfect company to work for if you are in the chemical industry if all these weaknesses can be addressed.