Are you one of the Lockheed 600?

When the news came out that more than 600 executives had taken Lockheed Martin’s offer of a buyout, I was stunned at the number. A quarter of the company's execs will be leaving in short order.

As one commenter to our story said, It’ll be interesting to see how this affects Lockheed’s long-term prospects.

I couldn't agree more. A couple questions in my mind are along those lines:

Are they losing any future superstars? And if it is Lockheed’s loss, then who will benefit from that loss?

Let’s say even a third of these people were dead weight at Lockheed or were ready to retire anyway. That still leaves 400-some who I have to assume will be hot commodities among small and midsize companies looking for experienced executives. I'm sure some of the larger players will be interested as well.

Not that Lockheed is asking for my advice, but one thing I’d do is set up some sort of Lockheed Martin alumni organization for these folks.

Think about it: A network of former Lockheed executives will form across the market, holding positions of responsibility at a plethora of companies.

This could work to Lockheed Martin’s advantage when it comes to forming relationships and teaming arrangements. The companies that hire these former executives also would benefit because they’ll gain an experienced executive who will have contacts at a growing number of companies. Instead of the good old boy network, it’ll be the good old Lockheed network.

The company isn’t saying how the 600 are split up among the Lockheed's divisions, nor is it releasing names of the folks taking the buyout.

It’ll be hard for us to track where these 600 go and what they do. I'll be paying closer attention to the personnel announcements that come our way over the next several months. It will be interesting to see what kind of impact these former Lockheed executives have on the market.

If you are one of the 600, let us know where you land and what the process was like.

And if you think I've missed the point, let me know that, too.