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A zippy company Founded in 1980, Iomega has had a rocky road to stardom in the competitive disk drive industry. The Utah-based company is the maker of the extremely popular Zip drive, which has sold more than 5 million units. Established as an offshoot of an IBM research facility in Tucson, the company's first product, the Bernoulli Box, was a disk drive system used by the government. After abandoning the Bernoulli Box, the company hit pay dirt with the 1983 launch of the Bernoulli storage drive for PC users. Iomega went public the same year. Poor management and lagging sales hit the company with a $37 million loss in 1987. Cost-cutting measures included shutting down plants for 4 months, firing nearly half of its employees, and shifting the company's focus to tape backup systems. The times they are a changin' With the 1995 debut of the revolutionary Zip drive and Jaz drive, sales were zooming again. Offering high storage capacity and portability, the 100-megabyte Zip drive and 1000-megabyte Jaz drive transformed the external data storage devices. Aiming to make storage devices smaller and more powerful, the company introduced a slim Zip drive for notebook computers in 1996. Ruling out the competition In late 1998 one of Iomega's biggest competitors, SyQuest technology Inc., announced its plan to shut down due to low profits and industry success. Syquest's demise has left only one major competitor for Iomega, a company in the removable computer storage market called Imation, that has remained a competitor but experienced trouble in recent times as well. Imation did gain on Iomega after the introduction of the Apple i-Mac, a computer which is famous partly because of its lack of a disk-drive. Imation quickly rolled out a USB compatible disk-drive which gained overwhelming support from the i-Mac community. Getting in focus Iomega's most recent product release results from their partnership with Agfa Desktop Products Group to create and promote the Clik! digital imaging drives and disks. Offering a drive made for the digital camera, one made for the mobile computer, and a special version that works with both digital cameras and mobile computers, the 40 MB Clik! disk allows easier and faster transfer of data between the digital camera or PDA and the personal computer. A bright future In addition to the improvement in products, Iomega's sales and profits have increased in recent years. In early 2000, Iomega announced that it had shipped its 200 millionth Zip disk. The company is bringing back its popular "Johnny Crash" character in a new line of TV ads that will debut later in 2000, and is creating a computer-modeling system that will link ad and promotion programs directly to sales and manufacturing. In doing so, it hopes to provide more efficient marketing and meet consumer demand. This is perhaps in response to the growing popularity of CD-R drives, which can store up to 650 MB of information on one disc. Despite the recent troubles, layoffs and reorganizations, Iomega is a company back on the rise. Its profits for first-quarter 2000 were 50 times larger than first-quarter profits in 1999.
With sales on the rise, Iomega is a prime destination for job seekers. The firm looks for individuals with top-notch people skills, who aren't afraid of hard work. Being at the top of your field doesn't hurt either. Visit the Human Resources section of the company's web site for the lowdown on current job openings, locations, and employee benefits. Send, fax, or e-mail resumes to human resources.
Iomega veterans report, "It's a great time to be working for Iomega." With a new CEO and booming sales, one insider reports, "The company is a totally different environment than it was about three or four years ago. It's a great place to work and I'd recommend it to anyone." One contact at Iomega's Roy, Utah headquarters notes, "We've really been growing and prospering. We used to have just seven buildings. Now there are several more nearby, and a huge new headquarters building was just built across the street." Another reports, "The last time I looked, there were over 300 openings for all types of people. It is pretty dynamic and sometimes can be pretty stressful." Though most contacts cite "fairly standard work schedules," long hours can be expected around project deadlines. Dress code varies by position, and ranges from "jeans and polo shirts" to formal business attire. Everyone goes casual on Friday. Pay is "consistent with the rest of the industry," though one employee reported, "The pay is not what you'd be making in Silicon Valley, but the cost of living is less here in Roy, and the quality of life is much better, in my opinion." While not everyone is a fan of the bucolic environment, we hear mostly rave reviews of the company's Utah headquarters. "The main HQ is located in Roy, Utah, which is about 40 miles north of Salt Lake City. It's a great place to live and work, and there's always something going on," comments one employee. Another reports, "If you like outdoor activities, you can't beat our location." Though minorities and women aren't a common sight, employees report "everyone is treated with high regard and respect." Perks include a flexible health care plan, profit sharing, and tuition assistance.
Human Resources
Imation;NOMAI;SyQuest More Company Profiles For more career information, go to Vault.com ©2000, Vault.com Inc
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