Where eagles dare. (the Grey Eagles of Data General) (Cover Story)

WHERE EAGLES DARE

Never mind that one attendee of the Grey Eagles' reunion party remarked that he was "pleasantly surprised that there wasn't a food fight." Never mind that this October gathering of high-tech cowboys came in pinstripes, wing tips and, for the most part, smooth corporate chins. Even though the look has gone conservative and the antics are now merely verbal, don't think for a minute that these guys have gone soft.

They've just grown up a bit, that's all. They've figured out there's more to living than esprit de corps and 48-hour days. Oh, there's still life in this group, all right. You only have to listen a minute to realize the kick-ass, macho culture that Data General thrived on and exploited is no myth. Just look at their electric eyes--piercing, laser-like predatory eyes. And money? You want to talk about money? Good God! The brains of all the ex-employees of the Data General Corporation--the Grey Eagles--are worth $4 billion or more. At least, that's what the Eagles say: if Edson de Castro, the ex-chairman of Data General, could have kept them, it would be a $5 billion company and de Castro would still have a job. Instead, de Castro is out and DG is struggling to stay above $1 billion. Its talent dispersed, DG has been ebbing for a decade, and layoffs, management changes, and even a new product, the AViiON, have not been able to stem the tide.

Conversely, the Eagles claim to be soaring. Maybe it's a yearning for a higher comfort level, or just the inevitable progression of the entrepreneurial spirit DG once looked for in its employees. Whatever it was, the collective genius that was once the soul of some new machines is now at the helm at 50 or so high-tech companies spread across America--including the hottest, most successful businesses right next door on Route 128, companies like Bill Foster's Stratus, Ron Gruner's Alliant, and James Dow's Microcom. It seems that many Grey Eagles have decided it's better to be a genius entrepreneur than to work for one.

Oh, but what a time it was, when DG was on top. Men were men (women had yet to make their high-tech impact), goes the Grey Eagle myth, and a mirror was the only place to look for answers. When you were hired, you knew you were the best. If not, you wouldn't have been hired.

Genius was the first requirement. If you weren't in the top three percent of your class or a fast-track employee with a competing firm, you could forget about an interview. "We only talked to the best," says Jim Masciarelli, who was director of North American Human Resources when he left DG in 1978. But more than intelligence, it took guts--the kind that made you fearless, like John Wayne with a six-shooter. Nothing was impossible. There was no room for anything less than …