We had a pretty big spend plan for this year for this plan to hit these double-digit targets and they’re not there. So we pulled back like any good operator would. I think we’ll end up the year up 100 to 200 people, but not the 300 to 400. I think the salespeople is the biggest risk. I think there is a productivity hit we probably took in the last quarter or two off of 1,000 people turning over last year, a full third of the company that is probably unappreciated. And that will also level out going forward. But we’re watching that very carefully. We’re working it hard. We’re changing. We’ve done a lot of market upgrades as wage inflation is a big hit. I mean, I think we’ve done a remarkable bottom line considering all the wage inflation we’ve actually had to absorb this past year.
And we’re on fighting it like everybody else. But we have a great portfolio, a lot of great sexy new products in our road map, and we’re still in the business of helping people and helping people develop drugs, and that interests a lot of people to come on board. Demographically, we’re a much younger company now than were three, four, five years ago and that makes you want to have more changes too. ESG is very important to us here. We have a lot of different new groups and clubs and dealing with different levels of diversity. The company has never been more focused on that. We’re over 50% female in our management. We’re 25% Chinese. So we’ve got a — award this year for our diversity and stuff. So we’re focused on all that. But youth and diversity are key in managing.
That is a key to attrition, I think.
Puneet Souda: Appreciate all that color, Chuck. And my follow-up question on China, I’m not sure I know how to quantify the word explode, but when it comes to the RMB1.7 trillion loan package. What are you seeing on the leading indicators on that? Are you seeing quote activity tied to that spend? Are you seeing RFPs? Is there anything that gives you confidence that money is going to start flowing beginning that June quarter?
Chuck Kummeth: I had a meeting on that, just asking those very same questions with the leadership in Asia. And, yes, tenders are going out and there is discussion. So it looks like it’s very real. It’s about a two-month process so I don’t think we’ll see much of that here in Q3. It’s a Q4 activity. We kind of have them at over 100% to plan in Q4. Of course, they’re trying to negotiate that. But I think it’s well over 100%. If there’s a reality around this RMB1.7 trillion stimulus, which is really instrument driven, then it will be real. I think there’s pent-up demand already. We’re already — we had mid-single-digit growth the last quarter with nobody working. So I think it will be a quick comeback story. We have data on that, right?
This happened two years ago as well after the COVID quarter, and I think it will be similar. And government is very focused on prioritizing healthcare. I mean that’s what the stimulus is for. I don’t think anything changes there. People just got to get back to work. Kind of tough to read right now, too, because they’re just coming off a new year now, right? So they just come back to work, I think, this week even so. And we’re coming back fast. I mean, we had the whole office. 90% of our people are sick at the same time. Like within a two-week period, they all got hit, that was actually similar anywhere in Shanghai.
Jim Hippel: Customers the same way.
Chuck Kummeth: So in customers, too. So it’s going to snap back pretty fast, we think, unless there’s some new variant. But I asked questions about that too. About when do they expect the second wave and they don’t really expect one for a while. According to the people we talk to, everyone’s already got it.
