Anecdotally, 3M seem to suffer more than I'd expect from fake products flooding the market place.<p>I've lost count of the number of reviews of products I've read which advertise "3M tape / adhesive" or alike, where it turns out to be something cheap with a 3M logo on it.<p>Likely a drop in the ocean of 3M's business, but every little helps, I guess.
Given the prodigious use of sticky notes involved in Agile transformation, and the apparent commitment to 3M’s bottom line, perhaps this is a leading indicator that agile consulting is in decline? /s
Typically, when companies are having trouble generating top line growth they cut costs. And, unfortunately, since people are often the highest component of costs, they are among the first to be cut.<p>Also, it makes sense that the amount of people being laid off is at an all time high, there are more people working now then ever before.<p><a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/192356/number-of-full-time-employees-in-the-usa-since-1990/" rel="nofollow">https://www.statista.com/statistics/192356/number-of-full-ti...</a><p>In other words: "There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics."
Did anyone read the article at all? It cites dismal performance of the Chinese market. If anything, it's an indicator that China's growth is slowing, not the U.S.
I struggle to see how this can be seen as a bellwether of the economy. 3M sells things that should be reasonably recession-proof: people don't stop buying scotch tape in hard times.