SNC newco
Gabriel this is for you. I appreciate your honesty and I thank you for hard work here and your willingness to reach out to me privately.
if I were CEO and CFO at SNC now.....
1. Restore SNC's reputation and gain back the respect of the investment community, customers, and shareholders. This is the most important job the CEO has. "The Quan" (Jerry McGuire)...
Love, Respect, community and the dollars too.
How?
1."SNC goes green slogan"...save the world and make greenbacks for shareholders. I would spend a lot of money on this in a marketing campaign but more importantly make it a culture with in the company workforce. Reward green behaviour and make it the number one priority across all platforms. Use BP (look at what SNC is doing with BP) as the story and do joint marketing with them and other clients projects that promote this movement. This is the most important move for SNC right now. There should be substantial resources of time and money spent on this...SNC owes the world for a small piece of their past...time to make it up. This is the way to do it...action.
2. I have thought about it Gabriel.... and now agree the only way to unlock the value in Capital's value is to sell some or all of it with the intention of buying back shares with the proceeds. This is ratings agency, analysts and shareholder friendly as the value will be unlocked and balance sheet asset will no longer be hidden from the public. More importantly, the share buybacks will ensure cash flow per share in the future will rise on a smaller share count.
3. Integration and execution of 1. And 2. Know your strengths and weakness. A CEO cannot do it all
alone SNC is a big company. I would hire a team of Green specialists to build on the culture that is progressing and for passsing this message on to the public. Make it the number one priority it will be worth it monetarily as well...It is the way of the future in business.
Retain an advisor specifically overseeing the value of internal assets and to over see the buyback program. Why? Short sellers are manipulating the share price in over the counter market OTC...management is unaware because they are running the day to day business. Hire someone to take advantage of this by looking for block trades during times when your share price is down. In other words, let the short sellers do it because it will allow you to buy back more shares cheaper! Have a strategy, you need someone who is looking for sellers to buy big volume at the lowest possible price to maximize the return to shareholders on the buy back program. On the evaluation of assets...is it bettter to sell the capital assets off in pieces or as a whole? What is the maximum price SNC can get? SNC needs someone internally to be evaluating this. Should they do a Spac or IPO of their Carbon Capture techonoly now while they can get a great return on that asset? These aspects of SNC are outside of a CEO and CFO normal job. Warren Buffett or a Prem Watsa are not running SNC...hire the best investment banker in the buiness for this as part of your strategy.
As the CEO it is my job is integrate 1. And 2. SNC pensions are a function of the stock price and moral at a company is largely effected by their share price. If 1. And 2. Are done properly then the shares will likely triple at least. Lastly, the past. If were CEO I would be closing the book on the past now..Governemnet lawsuit over and Lstk cash drain over I would let shareholders know that future is 1. and 2. And stick to your plan.
Good luck Garbriel, if you can have these two plans implemented you will have restored a great company and all involved will become very wealthy doing a good thing.