Changes are Needed to Ensure Product Innovation and Support Long-term Goals
| by MakerBot
MakerBot has improved substantially over the past two years.We started listening more closely to our customers to better understand their needs and how we can advance desktop 3D printing. We centralized our teams under one roof, significantly improved our quality control and operational processes, and successfully launched a new line of products. This transformation is not trivial. The desktop 3D printing business is growing in several segments at once, and we consciously chose to focus on the professional and education segments where we provide the best value proposition. We worked hard to further define our current strategy of developing 3D printing solutions that address the needs of professionals and educators.We are in a strong position and offer easy-to-use, clearly differentiated, and high quality products.Our new products have been well reviewed, awarded, and well received by our key segments. I believe that this is the right path forward for MakerBot. However, we have to make additional changes to lower costs and to support our long-term goals.The leadership team and I have been working on a new organizational structure, and as part of this new plan we will reduce staff at MakerBot by 30%. Greater focus on long-term goals is key to our success, and we must reduce the pressure and distraction of chasing short-term market trends. As part of Stratasys, we believe in the long-term opportunities in desktop 3D printing.We must deepen our focus on core products.The leadership team and I have further focused our roadmap on the essential products that are most relevant to our core customers in order to achieve our strategic goals. We have to reorganize in small groups around these offerings, then execute in the most efficient and agile ways. I’d like to thank those who are parting ways with us today for their dedication, hard work and friendship. MakerBot will be providing severance pay and will be offering career services to parting staff. As part of these changes, we will further integrate our hardware and software product development under one team. Our VP of Engineering, Dave Veisz, will now oversee all hardware and software R&D, and we’re promoting current Director of Digital Products, Lucas Levin, to VP of Product, leading product management across hardware and software.Stratasys remains committed to MakerBot, and will continue to support its unique culture, and products. The Stratasys leadership team believes in the core achievements and strengths of MakerBot and supports it in making the hard steps, it has the utmost confidence in our collective ability to deliver industry leading 3D printing solutions.
