Maybe it isn't (and my name ain't Joe), but what made HP the great company it once was came from the efforts of 2 outstanding people who didn't let a growing company shift them away from what they believed in. Those sorts of people don't come along very often - invariably when a manager climbs the ladder of success they pull up the ladder behind them and sever links with where they came from - that wasn't the case with Bill and Dave who were quite happy to chat to the lowest level of staff right up until the end.

There was this thing called "The HP Way" which we were taught about when I first joined. And Managing By Walking Around (MBWA) was practiced by all levels of management. You could have a cup of coffee and a chat with the MD or any other high ranking person in the company and they were always on first name terms - and had to take their pick of the car parking spaces in the general employee car park like everyone else. There were no reserved parking spaces for them or a door for their office - it was all open plan.

Sad to say, but before I left a few years ago MBWA was still being practiced, but had metamorphosed into Management By Wandering Away. Managers no longer made themselves available to chat with like they once did. It is unfortunately those managers who were relatively low level back then that have brought the company to what it is today, after having made a success of their own career.