Dear Erik, Essex, and Steve,
I feel compelled to address an issue that I believe is undermining both our team and company culture. Jacob Nielsen’s leadership style and recent actions have become a significant hindrance, akin to a problem that needs resolution. Our company thrives on leadership grounded in encouragement, positivity, and teamwork. We succeed by lifting one another up, not by fostering fear, division, or hostile communication. Unfortunately, Jacob’s conduct contradicts these values, and it's affecting both morale and performance.
The best leaders, like yourselves, inspire us to stand alongside them, as equals working towards shared goals. By contrast, Jacob’s approach creates an unnecessary hierarchy, where his communication, particularly through his emails, has become a textbook example of how not to lead. His ranking plans, clawback strategy, and the manner in which he’s strained our customer relationships have all contributed to a toxic environment. The expectation to pressure customers into taking deliveries has further eroded trust, and the numbers he presented to Keith Reed were widely recognized as unrealistic.
Since Jacob’s arrival, there has been no clear framework for bookings. Instead, he encouraged us to secure as many orders as possible—only to later shift blame when this strategy inevitably backfired. It is alarming how he failed to take responsibility for these missteps, all while deflecting accountability onto the very people who followed his directives. This approach has caused irreparable damage, and it’s time to address the real issue.
Jacob’s emails, in particular, have been disruptive. In my 20+ years in this industry, I have never seen a leadership style choke productivity as his has. The weekly shipment rankings he introduced have done nothing to motivate; instead, they discourage our team from pushing beyond their limits due to the fear of public humiliation. These rankings are not fostering healthy competition—they are undermining confidence and morale. The COE rankings, which already account for shipment performance, are more than sufficient for measuring success.
Our sales force, composed of commission-based employees, is more invested in the success of this company than anyone. We have pursued every possible avenue to move systems out the door, but customer readiness is often beyond our control. Jacob’s failure to recognize this, and his continuous pressure, overlooks the real challenges we face daily. These struggles, invisible in his spreadsheets, are causing stress and frustration—something he appears to have little understanding of. Frankly, I would not trust him to lead my daughters JV softball team.
The morale hit caused by Jacob’s ranking system is undeniable. His lack of field experience and understanding of the sales process is evident, and it’s clear that his decisions are not grounded in the realities we face. This is not an excuse; it’s the truth. Furthermore, the focus on clawbacks, without providing clear booking and cancellation guidelines to begin with, has created additional stress for the team.
Jacob’s decisions have strained long-standing customer relationships. The pressure to meet unrealistic delivery timelines has damaged trust, driving some customers to competitors. We’ve spent years building these partnerships, only to see them crumble under the weight of conflicting messages about pricing and delivery schedules. In my 20 year career, I have never experienced such a decline in customer engagement—being sent to voicemail daily is a new and troubling norm. This isn’t a reflection of our team’s efforts; it’s a direct result of the flawed strategies we’ve been pushed to execute by Jacob.
Beyond the impact on performance, Jacob’s leadership has eroded the culture of our team. Many of our most dedicated representatives are actively seeking new opportunities because they no longer feel supported. For someone who has reaped the benefits of these hard-working individuals, it’s disheartening to see him switch gears and undermine the very foundation of our success. Leaders are supposed to be the stabilizing force, not the ones creating turmoil.
Jacob’s recent email, where he stated, “come win with us,” rings hollow. His actions have done nothing but destroy morale, impose financial stress through clawbacks, and ruin customer relationships. I urge you to consider the long-term effects his decisions are having on both our revenue and our culture. To salvage what’s left of this team’s spirit, it is crucial that we address this leadership issue before it causes further damage.
Jacob has created an unnecessary roadblock at a critical time in this company’s history. It is not the dedicated team members who should leave, but the source of these problems—Jacob.
I feel compelled to address an issue that I believe is undermining both our team and company culture. Jacob Nielsen’s leadership style and recent actions have become a significant hindrance, akin to a problem that needs resolution. Our company thrives on leadership grounded in encouragement, positivity, and teamwork. We succeed by lifting one another up, not by fostering fear, division, or hostile communication. Unfortunately, Jacob’s conduct contradicts these values, and it's affecting both morale and performance.
The best leaders, like yourselves, inspire us to stand alongside them, as equals working towards shared goals. By contrast, Jacob’s approach creates an unnecessary hierarchy, where his communication, particularly through his emails, has become a textbook example of how not to lead. His ranking plans, clawback strategy, and the manner in which he’s strained our customer relationships have all contributed to a toxic environment. The expectation to pressure customers into taking deliveries has further eroded trust, and the numbers he presented to Keith Reed were widely recognized as unrealistic.
Since Jacob’s arrival, there has been no clear framework for bookings. Instead, he encouraged us to secure as many orders as possible—only to later shift blame when this strategy inevitably backfired. It is alarming how he failed to take responsibility for these missteps, all while deflecting accountability onto the very people who followed his directives. This approach has caused irreparable damage, and it’s time to address the real issue.
Jacob’s emails, in particular, have been disruptive. In my 20+ years in this industry, I have never seen a leadership style choke productivity as his has. The weekly shipment rankings he introduced have done nothing to motivate; instead, they discourage our team from pushing beyond their limits due to the fear of public humiliation. These rankings are not fostering healthy competition—they are undermining confidence and morale. The COE rankings, which already account for shipment performance, are more than sufficient for measuring success.
Our sales force, composed of commission-based employees, is more invested in the success of this company than anyone. We have pursued every possible avenue to move systems out the door, but customer readiness is often beyond our control. Jacob’s failure to recognize this, and his continuous pressure, overlooks the real challenges we face daily. These struggles, invisible in his spreadsheets, are causing stress and frustration—something he appears to have little understanding of. Frankly, I would not trust him to lead my daughters JV softball team.
The morale hit caused by Jacob’s ranking system is undeniable. His lack of field experience and understanding of the sales process is evident, and it’s clear that his decisions are not grounded in the realities we face. This is not an excuse; it’s the truth. Furthermore, the focus on clawbacks, without providing clear booking and cancellation guidelines to begin with, has created additional stress for the team.
Jacob’s decisions have strained long-standing customer relationships. The pressure to meet unrealistic delivery timelines has damaged trust, driving some customers to competitors. We’ve spent years building these partnerships, only to see them crumble under the weight of conflicting messages about pricing and delivery schedules. In my 20 year career, I have never experienced such a decline in customer engagement—being sent to voicemail daily is a new and troubling norm. This isn’t a reflection of our team’s efforts; it’s a direct result of the flawed strategies we’ve been pushed to execute by Jacob.
Beyond the impact on performance, Jacob’s leadership has eroded the culture of our team. Many of our most dedicated representatives are actively seeking new opportunities because they no longer feel supported. For someone who has reaped the benefits of these hard-working individuals, it’s disheartening to see him switch gears and undermine the very foundation of our success. Leaders are supposed to be the stabilizing force, not the ones creating turmoil.
Jacob’s recent email, where he stated, “come win with us,” rings hollow. His actions have done nothing but destroy morale, impose financial stress through clawbacks, and ruin customer relationships. I urge you to consider the long-term effects his decisions are having on both our revenue and our culture. To salvage what’s left of this team’s spirit, it is crucial that we address this leadership issue before it causes further damage.
Jacob has created an unnecessary roadblock at a critical time in this company’s history. It is not the dedicated team members who should leave, but the source of these problems—Jacob.