Application: “MusicWeb” MusicWeb “Implementing Change” Ar 8a on Wednedy Sih Ap 1989, Sean McCutcheon, EO oi Amerianwesinsed mn ees sc dive his oes in dowtuown Dhl where hes schald to est wth he mens ks newly ound arpesn eae discus how to iets te companys le seuion texting operant Tam sharp tam members ie ne the meng oom and ook thei lcs around the confer abe Welame enone’ Sean began, ou wy we are ere No Ua oe han ered te Gates company Bobs ir eail ate aberd the inure uly and clan apse I Rye ck en on ‘They discus tbe calenges fing the cam and wht sgl and action plane they should ade Thee was considerate dots woth thik behind te mquon Sean wd to cay the station “Ar a meting of te Board kt Scr. Sean expindy “Senor Mangement prone the aver ‘les ain acon Ife ae ener rane ‘peut we need fy to sri and een 1p new See of busine Sov we ned ui tbl in ‘he Earapean mater and Bernbrg wl ge what ‘tporiiy cn awe ned abi iWeb 2s son hb bond. Thi acuiton i sep in tha dic Sean mad is expecetons lea The Earopean eam wold be rile othe allowing ey objectives oreTEnring a smooth canst toa unified and inerated + Taying the groundwork for cana of Bebe busines ton loeraet bed bsine-sonconsumer vice + Maing salf moc in Sot rganindons. + Minimising cos ncloding shedingunnceeary all Xe we dear that schiving thee bjs would prover fn cy, gen aeons brnen che ew compan. Aer ome ‘Eton ty ped vcore sem management oss {o conic compas ans Berwen the two compas 32 pinay ap te devin sey vo des the cleges The Take Over “The take-over was competed end of January 199 and che press announced it a dear evidence of the increasing trend rowands| taline move retaling, The news sen shock waves throughout the fader and che value of MusicWeb shares soared at a rule However, the ove crucial face that was overlooked in che cacitement was thatthe evo companies, MusicWeb and Bernberg, ‘ould not have been more diferent.MusicWeb Ine Musi wat unched in Philadelphia, USA in 1996. The idea behind the vente, for which comidonble at up cpt fed been tiscd was to ofr coroners online scene 1 4 ‘ralog of minis, which they could downlad in dg format fee Ee, and sore on compact dik Wi some Baie sfwore and recoding equpment, curomers would thus be able © ‘emp hes own penonalied muti clleon, ors faction of the cot of mor atonal means “The company opened with a of 10, bt flowing yea of seady gro, the nok foe t lst 200 Mie Web wat ‘yp of he young, new bred of Internet bused “ebusnese? rh young and ema ef, an informal amosphere and very lose managemene structs where fine prs were aed From top wo bottom, Snir maragement wer keen vo encourage 2 raong entered mor of the employee belt ‘hare inde company Farther, MnicWeb had song ca i cane mend deg ics poeta apes revi and king cle fre bebovous much "The company woe mous ir Tring replays hroughouc the year rman oering 2 god enn sp and srengening ns sco he Berbers Grubb Bernberg onthe other hand, was quite different. The company had Bon a layer in the German msc industy since dhe cay days ‘of recorded music. The frm began life as 2 bras insumen ‘manufecre in the fis eas of de cenary and was a pioneering ‘music lbel ung shellac in the 1930s, before moving ovr 2 inl inthe 1950s. In the 1970s Bernberg found easy expansion io retail and its core busines developed into an extensive mail-order service to customess. Busines at Bemberg had not changed much since then. As the firm moved dough the ely 1990s, market share gradually began to ebb away ender intense cosnpetition from small independent prodacers Reseach conducted in 199? showed thar over the previous 2 yeas, eatomers were turning fo new Inverse mac reer in increasing numbers Dr, Feidtich Baumann, ecutive Chairman of Beraberg had inally bees opposed tothe takeover by Misi Web. He found it tard to accept the fact thr technology was changing the rules of the competitive game, However, felling an early meeting with Sean MeCurcheon in October 1998, Fregrich andthe test ofthe Bernberg Board were finaly convinced that MusicWeb intended to build on Berberg’s strengths, and beter postion the company Far the challenges of che furute. In any event, they had fie alternative, and so wich some reservations hey recommended the take-over o the Bernberg shareholders, who acceped the elites pur before chem, ember hada workforce of 500 and with an average age of 43, ‘was much older shan that of MusicWeb, Many ofthe sai were casi masie enthusias. The management team was el respected and there wa tradicion of rewarding long service with promotion. Communications within the frm were paper-based, the office ‘tegty’rectived a copy of any internal and external remo, report or lees Compurers were wed only in the ping pool and the accnanes department, MusicWeb Earopean Tam Music Web's CEO, Sean McCutcheon, was wellknown inthe corporate music world at a moderniser, He was determined, Facued and loved challenge. He started hit cater ss an executive witha number ofndependent record companies and in ime ew to know the dynamics ofthe busine extemely well When a1p of aver were ooking fora ntably experienced penon {ead the new wut they approached Sans hl prefered ‘hot, He jumped a che oppo, ling only ha he fgadual emerpence of neqwok cchologics would revise ee mui supply ain, Sinz he vated a MisieWeb, he Finn pes had prased McCutcheon for fc om te hey aspects ofan ehusines aiming for longerm succes, Le. web ‘Sirens an etenive logue catering 2 wide range of mse tate and lfc angle acme ta aly stage Inthe dye following the announcement of Mice tae Berner Sean ep sent a sal deol ean the Buropan operatic, (ee annex He wanted the tight bance oF knee sd pert, wo clare amin anon, festa foc Bebe af and estore With his in od, Ee chore Jack Wilaone a+ Ditscor of European. strategic Cevclopment ack wer» member of the senior management commteeat MuicWb and was omcon fr whom Sean had a ot of ropes He fad. been an inpoane Bien erasing Mace makin he US following the nunc and the CEO ep that Jack wuld do the se fe he company in Eup. Jc would port dct Sean hel at had ofc inthe US. nna Samcl war beadhuned for s Esopean ompetior and anighed raponsiblyfor European Haman Resources Sean td met Foot ata couple of industry coferenars and wat impreoed at her Knowledge of the challenges Inherent in Imanaging the HR fonction” in companies experiencing declating gro. Trane Heflnan, 2 stir executive with Beaber, wat gen the pou of Director, Sls snd Making, The CEO beloved it import co sain a senoe of conta among Berbers cating customer bse. Far ifered fom hs calles a that fe wa older and had very wadional views with wpe 0 che Srvinss Newey, he ew the maker we George Higham war given the position of Director of ‘Operations. George had been with MusicWeb since the beginning, and was an experienced software engineer, He had litle knowledge ofthe European busines scene bur he wat one ofthe beat around when ic came toch ss, ‘The European Team Sraeyes & Plans On Friday 200 May 1999, Sean McCutcheon antved at Becnberg offices in Angsburg, Germany fora meting with hit uropean team. MusicWebs consultants, Rolfon Consulting, had submived the resus of their comparative analsi on “Mace and Bernberg (sr annex Il for summary) and the eam wanted discuss the consultants report and decide on appropriate srategies and plans to meet the objectives sc at their ‘meeting on April 6th, Sens dhtcetenioe European managers had been in Augsburg since Apel 110, During the mecting,chey dncusted the CEO deste to cut Bernberg existing aby slmose 50%, The reasons Vor why sac cep would have oe taken were ese. Fin they would have to reenginer most ofthe company’ business process asa result ofthe changeover fiom mail onder wo 2 Web based busines Secondly singe Beeberg would become moce ofa netwotk rather than a hierarchy mos of the middle management Functions could be sfiminated, thus increasing management eliiency. Thirdly, many members of staf, particulary those closer ro retirement age didnot have che necessary skills to workin an e-basines favizonment, and finally, che company’ operational costs, pacule its payroll and associated corte were fa 00 high, "The CEO war heen o hear the ies and suggestions for frre action fom cach of his team members Jack Wilton, (Director of European seategic developmen). began by string the dlferenc in e-business peneteation between Farope and the US,He admitted that alhough the growoh in the use of neswork technologies was significant, Europe hada lag way co go before busines-to-customer vansactions were che norm rather than the ‘exception. This, ia his opinion would inevitably mean that ‘MasicWb would have tobe very creative in is effort to increase ‘parker share rapidly, as they had done in che US. Franz Hoffman, (Gales and marketing), underlined the face that Beenberg was 2 tational mail-order busines specialising incase mac and this was ceflcted in the kind of customer with which the ‘company deal. Many of es more loyal castomter, in hs opinion were very technology averse. The CEO acknowledged his viewpoint but argued tat eves in lsical music were becoming more mainsecam and the technology wat nell on the way t0 ‘ubiquity Franz also reacted with howiley to che scale of che proposed cu in Bernberg workforce, Since he had been with the ‘company for 12 years, he flea certain degree of rxponsibiiy fn those who worked for Bernberg and be admited thatthe idea of ‘making o many people redundant ls bitte este in his mouth, _gFant Samu FR), pond wo Fan concer by ying many of Bernbergsaff were nearing retiring ge anyway and might welcome the opporcuniy :o recite extly. Nevertelest, she fel thar the sale of change facing Bemberg war bound (0 generate considerable resistance. In any event, MusicWeb would have to invest heavily in resining wo bring Berberg sill base ‘up 0 required standaeds. George Higham, (Operations) responded by saying he was appalled ac how composer iterate ‘Bernberg’s staff was and agreed with his colleague from HR with regard eo the nced fr eraining, Sean agreed tha che challenges were monumental but sid hat hhe had every confidence that his team would succeed. Before turning tothe question of project plans, he announced chat the board at MusicWeb had decided that Bererg would have ro shift its ofces from Augsburg to Frankfurt, since by 30 doing, ‘communication cots would he reduced. Franz Hoffman who was native of Augaburg reacted angrily to che suggetion but the ‘CEO responded by saying the the board decision was final and sot aubjct wo dscuson, The team then turned to the question of project plans, Gee anace II). Jack Wilstone presented an overview of the plan, feiplaining that George Higham ad completed che user ‘euiements definiion ahead of sched and wat moving voward ‘technology implementation, Fiona Samuel had completed thelist ‘of people who would be invied tw take early elundaney and leer bad been sent out t9 those on the lit, She war now preparing the tuning programmes, which would be delivered through the monthe My co faye Frans Hoffman was preparing the marketing campaign, which woud ran from June through Ocsober Beruberg Ress Change ‘On Tharsdy 26th May ona Samuel was sing in her offi, planning the schedule of software taining forthe month of une, ‘when she had a visit ftom Hans Niemeien the workers representative on Beenbergs Works Council He wld her thatthe redundancy notices received by 300 ofthe staff had come asa shock «0 all concemed and. requested 2 mecting with the management team to discuss the mater. "Fiona contacted Jack Wirtone and they scheduled a meeting of the Woe Council forthe following afternoon, Friday 27h May [Ac the meeting, the worker representatives expres thei anger ft nor having had any prioe warning ofthe redandancies. They tundeined the sdvene impact on the workforce as whole. The redundancies had created an atmosphere of intense unceraioty and thove remaining wanted assurances tha their jobs would be taf, Jack Wiltone and his cllesgue announced tht they wouldseddress staff concerns through a newsletes, which was being ddrafed by the HR department Daring the weekend of May 28:h-29th, Fiona prepared dhe internal newsleer, which the management team hoped wouk! aaldrs staff discontent at Benberg nthe newseter, the CEO fddreed staff directly and outlined hie vision forthe company, (ee Annex IV), "Ar ther weekly team mesting on Friday 3el of June, the management ream asst the ststion on the ground. Fiona ‘sid chat while che newseter was wel received and appreciated, ithad done lide to eliminate uncerainry among Bernberg salt "The fact wat that Bernberg people had lite trust in hat rmanagemens had to say Despite che fact chat mose ofthe people ‘who wete offered eal rtrement had indeed accepted the offer, thore remaining were deeply unhappy about the move to Frankfure and a number of those who were due to say bad resigned as 2 reule George Highham, Director in charge of ‘Operations, ssid that che new information and communication technology had been implemented bur the crt phase was proving ‘ery dificult snd slow, mainly Because Beenberg staf refused to conoperte, “The Marketing dveco, Franz Hoffnan updated his collegues ‘on the launch ofthe new marketing campaign, which was due for toll out the following week. He sid that wale many of Bernberg existing “big order” eins, such as Musi stores and ‘other real outlets had welcomed the changes, some customers ‘nese worted that MasicWeb was planning to cut them out of the Potoreakogeter. Jack Wiltone noved that resent media hype ‘ver the latest MP3 technology, = sofate product developed by 42 German research inricwe, which allowed 2 customer 1 ‘download music dzetly fiom the Web, had unsettled che market "When dicuning the hve of staf sining, Flona reported tha there wat lind inet and motation among Berberg aor he ‘one on offer, She fl that she would be ore co compel eveyone to otend,soroeting she had hoped dhe would ne have to do. Jack Wilsone sid that he’ had informed the CEO. of che Alisa they were encountering end Sean McCutcheon had asked that an “Away Day" be organised for Berbergs etaff and their fale at which he would adds them in person. The scheduled the erent for Saruray, 25th Jane, Fiona arced to ngs he event. ‘During the month of June 1999, the atmosphere at Bernberg became increasingly tense, Most ofthe key ssf had ad computer slille taining bat the operations divetor, George Higham was Convinced hat ie would be at lease October before they wete vp {ofl speed. Fiona Sarnucl had begun orientation esining for Beonberg staff ut there was considerable resistance roi. Many people were uncomnoreable with che informality of the MusicWeb fulture and complained chat MusicWeb management was ‘esoying thi ives. Furthermore, many of those who had been made redundant insaed in working out their tatwory notice, din had added to bod feng: by spreading rumours about what right happen to those who were lf. MusicWeb Away Day (On Satuday 25th June 1999, MusicWeb rook over a popular theme pat for che day: Around 300 employees and thei fails tended, and everyone enjoyed she sunshine and the acvites that had been organised for thet amusement A stage Wat set up in he middle ofthe pakand st 3pm, Jack Wiltone mounted the stage to address thove who bad come hear what MusicWebis (CEO had to sy. ck introduced Sean Me Cutcheon who rook the msicrophone snd begs “Tam pleted we everyone hoving such god ime think hee wader the crcscances we all deserve some reli, I vanted te take thi opporaniy to tlk with yon = ?batt change the hve ben fig al ot ‘tech 1 ete epi hes fo tone fen ese fad mi te ton fom ry Nah, te hn oe pes ny want 40 give you the opportunity to prt forward your tig ind ating sa te cg me pera Ite whe yu thik and yes ate ome asf resin oho ee tht ser tab he ark hatin ne bein eee Buchan on pute fee ames meig fred pe Jac Woe a becnsandlg by invite anynein de cov wo nna nw CA umber of lands ene pan he icophone wes pase ont cet caaing oa oe eee “Fare andy whe we eff so Bunton, De the CEO rae whe ch © more mw sand ur fai” Twat ch mes dup’ ga the C80, “ar if wear w ngrove oar ein end tins ¢ plod make, Of mid monty or ‘anmatiedion ey cry Pir beer (Nec for as ba top” “Tal ies of wlocnon eo Fes wat broly &senire one. Thee prone didnt seem convinced by the CEOs arguments. The questioner replied, ST date whet wil gun by tis move. 1 sanded tha oo Mab may be ede bt Ther wilngtoofi “hth company tos fom sng seth, emilee itn ecm ir be poe -Maay of those lixening to the CEO believed shat his words swere nothing but hor aie They head such words so ofen from Tmanagement and had come to consider them as meaningless. ‘nother employee put 2 question o the CEO. "if a you sy Mase Web is command ris people an you guaran th ur job wl be secure and that ‘hve willbe no need for fart rendanci?™ “The CEO scemed intted by the question. He paused before answering "he edna wre a wnforeanate mecesty but think oe did the best could toe the blows Ato job searty. 1 dan think thas-any company in today ‘busines world cen guarantee ob for life 10 anyone. Thue day are oven the frre fr t00 wncerenn fr that Hone, 1 con sy thar at present, I done avvipate lrher redundancies “The CEO explained that ie ould have been unwise to hold on to people who were not needed. Ie would not have been fir 10 them or the company. Another issue was ase, "Edo sv the pone bchind the virion taining ohh te are compelled to do, Wy should we hae ro do cerybng the same way as you d it inthe US? We hace our oun ony of doing shiny, which bas proved eesve Jt pace. No ost remember hat his att Amevicd There was a round of applause fllowing the question. Bernberg’ employees were angry at being told thar che way they worked war inappropriate. Many who had been in che music Irsines long cme resented some outsider coming in and telling them how to do thei jobs. They resisted the new staining programmes because they fee hae management was eling them tha they were incompetent. ‘The CEO tied 10 explain that nerwork technologies were hanging the way in which the industry operated. Doing businessin the new economy reqused that old skills be updated. He seemed that cis did nor mean cat old sills and expertise were sbrolete; nothing was more valuable to MusicWeb than che Iowledpe afte people. Allie meant was that ifthe company were to remain compecve in the new “digi” economy, then ‘everyone would have to be flexible and ready to adapt and lean new hing. Geting Commitment ‘On Monday 27th Jane Sean McCutcheon and his European team met to discse what they had learned from the Away Day and decide if eny specific actione would be needed to address ‘rmployee concerns, The CEO admited surprise a the sreogth of fealing among the ecBernberg employee: He questioned che cffectienes ofthe orientation taining and asked wy ic was that employees did not sce the take over ata golden opportunity for them. Fiona Samuel defended ber esining initiatives but ssid she thoughe chat raf revisance was de 10 the fact that they fl 0 ‘ownership over the MusicWeb way of doing things. Rather they ‘were being tod: chi isthe way you ave eo think and behave from ‘ov on, 20 just ger on with With no sense of ownership, there ‘ould be no commitment. Jack Wisone agreed wth his calegues, tnd aked for ideas 25 how they should get commitment, Franz Hofman, dteror of sles and matksting, who, having been with Bernberg for a long time, ssid that he felt chat employees caw MusicWeb’ appeoach as rather arogant and ‘oplally American. Fe soggerted that chy find a sofer and ‘bier approach to bringing everbody on board. George Higham, director of operations, suggested bringing people together infocus groupe 10 discus the MisicWeb way of ‘doing thing. People should be encouraged to make suggescions for innprovement. He felt erongly thar such an ineaive would ive people a reser serve of involvement. Jack Wilsone ested the approach because e though that such an iniarive would Frasrate and delay progies. The CEO secsed that they could toe afford to lose ime since the competition vas exploring the benefits of electronic business and it was imperative that ‘MasicWeb stay one step ahead. ona Samuel suggested tht they devise a eward mechaniss to ‘encourage suggestion for improvement. Anyone who submited Sn ies, which war then implemented, would receive a cash bomus fd have the matter profled in the company newsleuer Her colleagues liked the idea and gave che go-ahead "The CEO rated the ise of relundancis. Fiona reported that ‘ofthe 300 redundancy notices sent ou, approximately 250 people had accepted che company’ terms the rest had refused. However «freer 10 people had decided to goat cele ofthe move 10 Tranklure. The CEO said chat they would have to lose a further 40 i they were to keop to targese. Frans Hoffman, (Matketing). sratned that employser would react adversely to furcher fedundsncies, ‘Nevertheles, the CEO was adamant shat ‘redundancy targets had co be met and if people wouldat go ‘voluntary then they wotld have to be compelled t go. ‘On Friday, July Im, Fiona sent out 2 memo to all aff informing them ofthe new "th for idea” scheme. fe capeuzed the imagination of aff zd caused much excitement. During the following week, she was inundated with suggestions for improvement. In er repor to Jack Wilstone, she said thatthe hamiser and quality of suggettions coming in were clear evidence ‘of commitment tthe company success (Oa Monday, July 11th, Jack Wilstone sent out a lever of ‘compulory eedandancy to 40 member of staf. The move eased Conedersbledismest and ill fling among the workforce. The worker’ representatives called for am urgent meeting. withmanagement Jack and his colleagues scheduled the meeting for ‘Thacay July Uh, [At the mesting the worker! representatives expressed thie anger atthe redondancy notices. Thy sid that dhey the CEOS Speech atthe Away Day had given everybody dhe impresion that there would be no mote redundancies. Jack Wilstone explained why another 40 people had to go and ceassued chem tat there ‘were no plans co reduce the workforce any furthet. The worker? representatives declared that as fr ae they were concerned they didnt believe a word management said. They coulda give die fellow workers any guarantees breawe they didnt crurt management co keep ro its word, Jacke and he colleagues ered to ‘ala chings down bur the anger san too deep. The mecing broke ‘up when the workers representatives stormed out ofthe mecting threatening to take deat action, Fromm Confit Crisis Oa Monday July 180, Fons reported chat workers were boycoeting oventation tsining and her colleague, core Higham, complained of people being exremely uncooperative. Jackcaled he CEO in Phidephist inform hi of the prob. “The CEO declare hat be was oo Ged up with other matters sd to Jace n do whatever war necro sot things on On Wednesday July 20th, Jack met with the workes’ representatives and demanded to now what was ging on. He ‘wae old the the workers simpy refined ro cand back and do Nothing while thi jobs were redully taken sway one by one They demanded tht the 40 people who had been to ogo be sconatd. Jack explained chat ensaxement was impossible but teued them tht a0 farther edudaoces were planed. They demanded smuranecs fom she CEO in peaon Jack cold chem that he would inform the CEO of thei ands ler nee day ‘When he spoke with Sean MeCutcheoa acer that da, the CEO. ‘ras in an angry mood. The company was having some technical Aifficlies in the Saes and he said that he did have she ime jump a plane to Frankfurt just because some worker sights Fanaties had decided to be dial. Nevertheless he agree to send them a memo. The workers rejected the CEO's memo demanding that he appear before chem in peton, Jack explained the the CEO was ‘ed up bur chat a soon ate was free he would no doubt come and se them, The workers were appalled at what they sa a the O% indiflerence to their conecens and they word for strike sesion to begin on Monday Joly 25¢h ‘On Thursday July 2st Jack and his colleagues me: to discuss the station. They had 2 videoconference with the CEO, who reminded them oftheir original objectives, ‘Ensuring smooth transition to 3 unified and inregated organisation. + Laying the groundwork fr transfer of Bernbergs business vo an lnterer based businesto-consamer servis “+ Maintsning sal morale in both organisations + Minimising cost including shedding unnecessary sal He accused them of making a complete diaste ofthe whole afc, Relucandy he agreed to fly wo Eesokfurt the following Monday bur demanded chat the team have 2 coherent plan of aetion awaiting his aria ‘When the video link terminated and the CEO disppeated from screen, Jack turned to his colleagues and asked, "So we have the weckend abead of to cme up eth something New Bow do ne tar this css into an oppertoniy?™ KRAnnex 1 ‘MusicWeb’s European Team Annex IT ‘Consultants’ Comparative Analysis Executive Summary a |_-wascs— lpr — fara Pies |: eres Bas | a | em = rs es | Tae (eee | eer | |S Pectemttaemaion | Mangement : teats |* eee er} Hie" =‘Annex IL Project Plan Annex IV Newsletter Issue 1 ~ June 1999 (CE0% Ader Saf “Colleagues, Welcome to thie Fit iar of ManicWeb's internal ‘newslecte: [Know that some of you are Fling rater insecure following, she many changes that have taken place since the beginning of the year T wanted to ery and addres some of our fear, wane co say fom the stare chat eit my ele that MosicWeb's gates ast is people and now that we have expanded ito Europe through acquiring German company Berbetg, che value of tha ser har rien signican ‘With Beenberg. we ate foeunate ro havea wel of talent and experience 0 add to what we have already, In todays marketplace Alversity of sls among teams af people who can work together isnot just an advancage bur also an imperative for any company incent on success. We havea great opportunity to make the most ‘of our difeences and show that by working together we can succeed and bea leader ina new competitive wot ‘AS you kaow the development of network technologies is changing the way everyone works al MosicWeb wil be a market | leer in eerging he bens to be une fm the now dg Pees hosmarkerplace. But les keep our feet on the ground: we have ‘considerable challenges ahead “There is uncerainy ~ we dont know exactly where the Inert is ging to lead us Who would have predicted that the way we sll real produc ike CDs could have changed to radically in just « fe yeus? Buc we ar in a8 good a potion ae any other frm (fF ‘ot beer) to make the most of these challenges and with your help thas what I insend todo. ‘There willbe some tough decisions to make along the way To remain competitive we have wo be ficient while offering a quality of service of which we can feel proud, There will be some ‘esuuetuting and we ae working on how todo the. We want boil a strong organisation witha bright farure. We want to do thar with all our staff wotking together and not against eachother. ‘That means cooperation fem everyone a¢ all levee, Te means thinking about communication, who need to know what [an doing, how ean U help others to do their jb beter, when do they need to know i means making our communication ec 10 tha we all know what we ae doing and fel confident that we ae all moving forward atone MM