
Apparently, Softbank's Chairman Masayoshi Son is trying to develop some mystique surrounding his newly appointed Sprint CEO, Marcelo Claure. In a recent quarterly results discussion, Son called Claure a "Streetfigher" and said he looks like a "bandit." Perhaps Son is trying to turn him into a "rockstar" like John Legere? If so, it's a strange way of doing it...
Here's a more direct quote,
“Marcelo is just like a street fighter. His face is like a bandit. When I first met him, I said, ‘You look like a bandit,’” Son said today, pointing at a picture of Claure during a discussion of his SoftBank Corp.’s quarterly results. “He is a man who has a very similar culture to SoftBank.
According to the report, Chairman Son is expecting Claure to start aggressively pricing Sprint to help it compete with T-Mobile and the other U.S. carriers. Here's another quote in which Son calls Claure a streetfighter again,
“Marcelo, a street fighter, has enlarged Brightstar from zero to a wholesale firm crossing more than 100 countries,” said Son, who acquired control of Brightstar last year. “When he came to the U.S., he had only $100 in his pocket and then he made a company with sales of 1 trillion yen. In that sense, he is the street fighter.”
Claure, 43, this week said he will look at Sprint’s costs “extensively” and the company must continue to improve its network. Son, 56, the company is discussing new pricing plans in the U.S., Son said today. The billionaire declined to comment on T-Mobile at a briefing in Tokyo after the earnings.
Maybe it will take a "streetfigher" approach for Sprint to become competitive again. What do you think?
Source: Businessweek