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Snacks, but not smokes! In 1999, RJR Nabisco announced it would be divesting its tobacco holdings, confirming years of gossip and conjecture. Bowing to investor pressure after years of run-of-the-mill returns, RJR Nabisco spun off its U.S. operations to shareholders and sold its international business to Japan Tobacco Inc. for $8 billion. The divorce brought an end to the 14-year union of two of America's best-known consumer products companies. Stacked with lawsuits, R. J. Reynolds Tobacco had long been considered a controversial asset. The producer of Winston and Salem brands, it is the second-largest cigarette maker in the U.S. History Nabisco Foods produces such famous brands as Life Savers, Planters peanuts, Now & Laters, Nilla Wafers, Triscuits, Barnum's Animal Crackers, and - every American kid's staple snack - Oreo cookies. Lately, Nabisco has been riddled with problems. In 1998, Nabisco sold its tablespreads units to ConAgra. Only one year earlier, the company had cut its workforce by 10 percent. Smoke signals Before Nabisco/RJR split, the company's resilience had been tested by both relentless media coverage of class-action lawsuits against the tobacco companies and consistent pressure from the federal government. In 1997, the company ended its Joe Camel campaign, which anti-smoking groups had long excoriated as a device to lure in unsuspecting children and teenagers. In 1998 RJR Nabisco also announced it would cut 315 jobs, or 3.6 percent of its domestic workforce by March of 1999. Nabisco may well be pleased that its cancer-causing cousin has departed. Not all it's cracked up to be... The single life is tough, and Nabisco found out that it just wasn't cut out for it. In June 2000, the company was sold to Philip Morris for $14.9 billion, but not before purchasing British . In a seperate but related deal, R.J. Reynolds agreed to buy Nabisco Group Holdings, whose only asset is 80.6 percent of Nabisco Holdings, for about $9.8 billion, giving R.J. Reynolds a stake in the company which spun it off only months before. Also, Geoffrey C. Bible, the chairman and chief executive of Philip Morris announced that once the deal is complete, the company will spin off 10 to 15% of Kraft early in 2001, a sale which is expected to net the company between $5 to $10 billion.
Experienced employees are still at a premium at Nabisco, despite the company's split with RJR. The "Townhall section" of its perky web site, located at www.nabisco.com, features job postings in the following departments: Headquarters, Data Center, and Bakeries & Field. The company emphasizes that it will contact only those candidates who best meet their requirements. Note: the web site is designed as a small town, with each building representing a different aspect of the company (Mainstreet, School, Uptown, Downtown, etc). Although a little confusing - and more than a little corny - the site breaks down its content under the "Directory" section. Computer hackers are offered warm greeting at Nabisco, which "has an ongoing need for experienced Information Systems professionals." While most IS specialists are based in the company's Northern New Jersey HQ, there are some field-based opportunities in Winston-Salem, NC and Wilkes Barre, PA.
Now that there's no nicotine... Despite the thrashing Nabisco has suffered in the press on account of its nicotine-driven twin, RJR, insiders generally give the company high marks. Informants extol the casual dress code, "generous" travel budgets, and "diverse" workforce. Most of all, they are pleased with "bonuses of peanuts, candy, cookies, and other tasty treats from the Nabisco warehouse." Parents, meanwhile, laud the "matching Scholastic Savings plan for children" that is "truly top-notch."
Nabisco, Inc. H.R. Staffing Center 100 DeForest Ave.1 East Hanover NJ 07936 (201) 503-2000
Breath Savers;Bubble Yum;Chips Ahoy!;Cream of Wheat;Doral;LifeSavers; My-T-Fine;Nilla Wafers;Oreo;Triscuits
Danone;Heinz;Wrigley More Company Profiles For more career information, go to Vault.com ©2000, Vault.com Inc
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