GM CEO Rick Wagoner resigns, Fritz Henderson takes the reigns
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Wagoner confirmed that his decision was made purely to appease the White House, but with losses of more than $82 billion since 2004 and a 95% decline in the company's share price since 2000 – about the same time Wagoner stepped in – it may be time for GM to get a new boss.
Another managerial switch taking place today includes the appointment of Kent Kresa, chairman emeritus, Northrop Grumman Corporation, as interim non-executive chairman of the board of directors.
Wagoner met with the auto industry task force on Friday in a final attempt to lay-out GM's viability plans ahead of the March 31 deadline. The task force has been given the responsibility of deciding whether GM and Chrysler deserve the billions of dollars of federal loans paid out so far, as well as requests for additional funding. GM has already received $13.4 billion from the government and is seeking an additional $16.6 billion. Chrysler has received $4 billion in U.S. loans and is seeking $5 billion more, while Ford says it won't need help unless industry sales weaken further.
Things are looking somewhat bright for the carmakers. Obama has expressed in the past a desire to help them, though earlier today he said GM and Chrysler had not done enough yet to become "lean, mean and competitive" under federal oversight - comments that suggest the chances of the company’s receiving more aid are slim.
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He proved time and time again that he is completely incompetent to lead a gas station, much less such a huge company.
Hopefully whoever steps up to take his place won't have his head buried so far in his own ass.
It is about bloody time someone steps in and makes these morons accountable. I am sick and tired of how everyone defended this pr*ck and how he was supposed to be a car genius, yet he bet the company on large SUV's when Toyota was investing in the Prius. His excuse to Charlie Rose "no one could have predicted $5 a gallon petrol".
He clearly failed to recognise that it is not the price of petrol that should drive your business, rather a vision of the future and where you want to lead your company! Next in line should be that joke Naredilli (sp?) of Chrysler. Amazing, the man drove Homedepot the brink of bankruptcy yet gets the chance to run Chrysler.
I am proud of the Obama Administration for doing this. Wagoner claimed that a large ship like GM could not turn on a time, well it should not have taken you 10 years either you arse!
I am appalled that the government can step in and order someone to step down. However, we're talking about my money here and yours and the next guy's. Let's see if Fritz can do a better job.
It is about bloody time someone steps in and makes these morons accountable. I am sick and tired of how everyone defended this pr*ck and how he was supposed to be a car genius, yet he bet the company on large SUV's when Toyota was investing in the Prius. His excuse to Charlie Rose "no one could have predicted $5 a gallon petrol".
He clearly failed to recognise that it is not the price of petrol that should drive your business, rather a vision of the future and where you want to lead your company! Next in line should be that joke Naredilli (sp?) of Chrysler. Amazing, the man drove Homedepot the brink of bankruptcy yet gets the chance to run Chrysler.
I am proud of the Obama Administration for doing this. Wagoner claimed that a large ship like GM could not turn on a time, well it should not have taken you 10 years either you arse!
Yay, your a good lillt Communist then
he bet the company on large SUV's when Toyota was investing in the Prius.
The SUVs are definitely one of the largest reasons GM is in such trouble but the Prius never made Toyota much money. They were initially selling it at a $2000 loss per car, it's profitable now I think but not very. The way they really make money is with their mainstream cars like the Corolla, Camry, Sienna, and the RAV4.
As far as Obama telling Wagoner to get out being communism. UNDER NORMAL CIRCUMSTANCES the government should never have a say in how businesses go about things. BUT when the taxpayers are the ones paying their bills and are the only thing keeping them afloat then the president sure as hell better take extreme measures to make sure all that money isn't being wasted. Call me a little communist if you want but if I was an American and it were my taxes paying for these assholes to make excuses about why things are so hard for them then I'd demand the president go to these extremes.
Noname, that is purely an idiotic statement. You are stuck in the stone age, with labels. Communism is as much a failure as we have seen capitalism is with absolute disregard for regulation. In a market system that allows this sort of incestuous relations between CEO's and the board, it is merely another form of the Politburo. The reality is that self governance requires discipline, integrity and ethics. Something most American companies and infact most global companies have none of, therefore sometimes the government is the last resort.
Wagoner failed to recognise that the world had changed, I recall in his interview he said that the combustion engine will never be fully replaced. And at that very moment, I knew that this man is a failure. With all the advances we have made, for someone as educated as this man, to arrogantly stated that we will "NEVER" be able to abandon the combustion engine....well I think that said it all.
I am glad he is gone and perhaps GM will need to file for bankruptcy, the important thing here is that every CEO should take notice. YOU CAN BE REMOVED from office. Public corporations can no longer be run like third world dictatorships.
Its not that I want to argue about labels with you or anything, but tell me this...
Would you rather have the government step in and sort this mess out, or would you rather have had Wagoner dicking around for another few years till he f***ed the company completely into a state thats beyond recoverable.
The problem with all of them, that is to say most of the dickheads on GMs board / most of the C level positions is that they literally have no interest in the company being healthy. They're in it purely for the quick buck. MOST of the people in charge of GM are the very same people who were fired from other companies for being incompetent and running the companies into the ground.
So tell me, what would you rather have, a potentially healthy company in 5-6 years, or a bunch of morons pocketing everything thats left and running off while the company completely falls apart.
As much as I don't care for GM as a company, and from their current selection, wouldn't even consider buying a new car... I just look at it a different way - if they're around for longer, then that just pushes everyone else in the market to at least try to innovate, and that in turn is better for everyone despite my feeling about GM.
Well I have said enough.
My question is when will the unions start taking some responsibility? I still haven't heard a peep out of them. They certainly haven't helped keep our car industry from running into the ground - surely they have enough of a vested interest to keep it going? Or perhaps they don't care as long as their current employees have amazing taxpayer-funded pensions and healthcare that 50 million loyal Americans don't get.
If you really want someone to pin labels on, perhaps it should be the UAW leadership, rather than the diverse, smart and passionate crowd here at MA...
The point was not merely profits, yet taking the technological and perception lead in conservation and technology.
Mind you, the hybrid drivetrain was patented by GM in the 80's. They allowed the patent to expire and Toyota used much of GM blueprint in the Prius. That makes GM's management.....well we all know what they are.
Even if they could, they surely would not have predicted a return to $2 gas a few months later.
And if they had magically predicted those two things, there's no way they would have also predicted that Wall Street would have wiped out the stock markets, credit markets, and job markets around the entire world.
Try managing any company through times like these - it's incredibly hard. Now think about how long it takes to plan and design and build new cars: 3-4 years or so. In 2005 and 2006, were any of us shouting that GM should change the cars they build for the reality of 2009? No. Because none of us had any idea this was coming.
GM has made great progress - look at the CTS, the Malibu, the G8, the numerous hybrids they have on the road, and the Volt & Cruze coming up soon. Has the company made enough progress? No. Are they as good as they should be? No. But we shouldn't take away their credit for making the big improvements that were made.
They've got a long way to go, but they've come a long way too. I think they were on a good path (although moving slowly), and nothing scares me more than a government-run business.
Sayonara, Z06, ZR1, Camaro SS, G8 etc. We'll miss you!
They offer 6, that's 6, SUVs. They have three (more if you count Lexus) of the biggest gas guzzlers (in their class) on the market. Those gas guzzlers have plumeted in sales as much or more than most.
Why didn't they see it coming? Why did they introduce 2 of their biggest and worst guzzlers right when gas hit 4-5 bucks a gallon?
Why did their quality go down so much in recent years?
I am sick of hearing how great Toyota is because they came out with a hybrid.
Image is more important than reality. Again.
Even if they could, they surely would not have predicted a return to $2 gas a few months later.
And if they had magically predicted those two things, there's no way they would have also predicted that Wall Street would have wiped out the stock markets, credit markets, and job markets around the entire world.
Try managing any company through times like these - it's incredibly hard. Now think about how long it takes to plan and design and build new cars: 3-4 years or so. In 2005 and 2006, were any of us shouting that GM should change the cars they build for the reality of 2009? No. Because none of us had any idea this was coming.
GM has made great progress - look at the CTS, the Malibu, the G8, the numerous hybrids they have on the road, and the Volt & Cruze coming up soon. Has the company made enough progress? No. Are they as good as they should be? No. But we shouldn't take away their credit for making the big improvements that were made.
They've got a long way to go, but they've come a long way too. I think they were on a good path (although moving slowly), and nothing scares me more than a government-run business.
Sayonara, Z06, ZR1, Camaro SS, G8 etc. We'll miss you!
Could not disagree with you more. No, no one could have predicted all of the events in concert, however that is what a vision is all about. A strategy, regardless of the events around, you aim to establish your name, product and your business plan! That is what separates good from great management! When a company say such as Apple aims to reduce the power consumption of it's processors despite bucking the trend of most other computer makers, they align themselves with the future. The added benefit is not just better battery management, yet the lower heat transfer allows for faster processor speeds! Imagine that. GM was always trying to jump on trends rather than defining them. The Volt is a monumental task, and one that is brilliant, yet may be too late.
The difference is being able to create a sustainable business strategy that can weather most conditions. Surely not all of these things can be weathered, yet GM never even tried!
I am glad to see the cars you mentioned gone, and hopefully gone for good.
They offer 6, that's 6, SUVs. They have three (more if you count Lexus) of the biggest gas guzzlers (in their class) on the market. Those gas guzzlers have plumeted in sales as much or more than most.
Why didn't they see it coming? Why did they introduce 2 of their biggest and worst guzzlers right when gas hit 4-5 bucks a gallon?
Why did their quality go down so much in recent years?
I am sick of hearing how great Toyota is because they came out with a hybrid.
Image is more important than reality. Again.
I am no fan of Toyota, yet their strategy paid off greatly by having this Halo car during the energy crisis in the Prius! Thus bolstering their image as a company that does things right. NO ONE, talked about the monstrosities they had built, in fact little was said about essentially how the Lexus 600H is a farce. Yet they won the public relations battle and the sales.
The point is, whilst many other manufacturer was pointing to a trend of reducing engine displacement, GM was building larger SUV's, and Chrysler was touting the Hemi engines!
As for me, I going to support Fisker and Tesla, and any other manufacturer that produces an electric vehicle. As a former Range Rover driver I have been converted. No I am not going to pay 200K pounds for an electric RR, yet a $50K Tesla S sedan sounds reasonable to me. I love the Volt concept, and if Chrysler can build the 200C EV, I will be the first in line with a deposit!
If I recall, Apple merely made the decision to switch to Intel processors, thus joining the rest of the industry. Intel has been working to reduce power consumption for years, and the rest of the manufacturers - only recently including Apple - have benefited from their efforts. Apple doesn't make processors, do they?
Only history will tell if this was a good decision or not...
Agree the fed should of stay out of this, he's not hurting anyway $20 mil golden parachute.
If by golden parachute you mean accumulated pensions and bonuses, then yes.
If I recall, Apple merely made the decision to switch to Intel processors, thus joining the rest of the industry. Intel has been working to reduce power consumption for years, and the rest of the manufacturers - only recently including Apple - have benefited from their efforts. Apple doesn't make processors, do they?
For the record I drive an Audi. As for your question, for years the computer industry was convinced that merely improving the heat sink systems and various cooling systems was the way to go, (similar to the idiotic HP wars that car companies were involved in and not just exclusive to American makers) whilst Apple at the time worked with IBM and Motorola on a little known concept, low voltage processors. The idea being....well let's just say it was a different approach. And one more thing, much of the hybrid architecture was developed by GM back in early 80's yet deemed unnecessary due to low petrol prices!
The point is, (and GM is not the only company guilty of this) there was no vision. Whether petrol is $.50 or $8 it is not a sustainable source of energy period! GM failure can also be traced back to quality issues of the past yet that is another story. I am done with this, glad to see Wagoner gone and glad to see the government take charge on this issue.
By buy r4 dsi Posted: 1/20/2010 2:36am PST
wreck.
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