GM CEO to announce further restructuring steps

Reuters ^ | July 14, 2008 | Kevin Krolicki

[NRG1973]

General Motors Corp (GM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) Chief Executive Rick Wagoner is set to announce further steps on Tuesday morning to cut costs in the face of slumping sales.

GM executives, including Wagoner, scheduled a series of briefings for employees, analysts and reporters on Tuesday, starting at 8:30 a.m. EDT (1230 GMT), the company said in a statement.

The company said the briefings would detail what GM is doing to "align" its operations to current market conditions.

The No. 1 U.S. automaker has been under intensifying pressure to cut costs because of a rapid shift away from trucks and SUVs and a decline in overall sales.

[NRG1973]

This sounds ominous. I suspect that some GM emeployees are going to have a bad day tomorrow.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Quit making Buick ?

[Petronski]

8:30 am EDT?

Will he finish before the market opens?

[JamesP81]

GM should file for bankruptcy, nullify all their union contracts, close all unionized plants, fire their management, fire all the MBAs making design decisions, and start over.

[Secret Agent Man]

Can’t cut Buick. What the heck would the hip-hoppers and really old people drive?

[webheart]

Quit making Buick ?

Hey! I drive a Buick. It's the best car I've ever owned, not saying much for sure, but still... 6 cyls, AWD, lots of headroom. Has a French name, and is a discontinued model, but I sure like it.

[Whitebread]

I hear GM will quit making Buicks & Saturns

[chrisser]

GM should file for bankruptcy, nullify all their union contracts, close all unionized plants, fire their management, fire all the MBAs making design decisions, and start over.

Having been through a few reorgs, it's my opinion that business reorganization is pretty much impossible.

As you said, the best thing to do is to start fresh.

My recommendation would be to start a new company, and siphon off only the best talent from the old. Get it off the ground and profitable and let the old wither away naturally through attrition and eventual collapse.

Unfortunately, the way the union contracts are written, there's no way GM could start a new company without bankruptcy, and even then I'm not sure it would be enough.

Its too bad someone with some cash and vision couldn't start a solid domestic vehicle manufacturing company. There's plenty of talent out there, and likely plenty of investment $$ for the right group.

[Sprite518]

Restructuring is a nice business word for lay offs.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

We had a new ‘61 LeSaber wagon when I was a kid. It had the 401 Nailhead motor...

[DonaldC]

For sure the ones at GM most at fault will be the last to leave. That is the way corporate America is these days.

[sam_paine]

My recommendation would be to start a new company, and siphon off only the best talent from the old. Get it off the ground and profitable and let the old wither away naturally through attrition and eventual collapse.

If that could happen, wouldn't it have happened at Saturn?

[Publius6961]

What is GM doing about the "up front" cost of $1200 on each and every car before the first bolt is installed?

No matter how much they "restructure", if they are raping the car-buyer, they are bound to fail.
Choosing between an overpriced car or a good down payment on a family home should have never become a real-life choice.

[RockinRight]

Saturn? The one decent line they have?

[RockinRight]

Why do US Automakers have so much trouble making fuel-efficient, modern cars? The Jap companies have no problems doing it.

[lormand]

Dump the unions or die.

Plane and simple

[polymuser]

.

More bad news for Michigan.

.

[NRG1973]

Why do US Automakers have so much trouble making fuel-efficient, modern cars? The Jap companies have no problems doing it.

The Japanese automakers don't have to deal with the United Auto Workers (UAW).

And, by the way, the Japanese automakers make some nice SUV's.

[GreenHornet]

They're going to reinvigorate sales by bringing back the Chevy Vega, Cadillac Cimmaron, and Pontiac Aztek.

[muleskinner]

With the Vega, Chevy thought it was easy to make an aluminum block engine - they just didn't finish the job, like Porsche.

Whomever signed off and/or had anything to do with the Aztek, should be sacked.

[Petronski]

And they acquired the rights to reintroduce the AMC Matador.

[GreenHornet]

Whomever signed off and/or had anything to do with the Aztek, should be sacked.

There is one advantage to owning an Aztek: If somebody hits it, no one will notice.

[chalkfarmer]

Just bought a sweet chevy malibu a couple days ago. Got rid of my GMC Denali XL. I wanted a MINI clubman...but the a-hole wouldn’t even get out of his chair to try to sell me one!

[jalisco555]

The restructuring GM needs is for the entire upper management to resign. What a bunch of incompetents.

[Red6]

This is the biggest crock.

GM is the new target I guess. We had Wal-Mart, McDonald's, Exxon, Halliburton......now it's GM?

What the hell? They're #1 (1/3 *MORE* sales than Toyota), their sales went down LESS than others. They are a leader in ethanol, they have a foot in the hybrid/electric, they invest more than R&D than most, they are global (protecting them from geographic market down turns), and diversified within their industry (intro-sports-off road-luxury)...... Why is it that GM; liquid, and with a smaller slump in sales than MOST others is singled out?

If it we not for NBC, Der Spiegel, and other highly experienced professionals in business and economic matters, GM shares would not be where they are today. On the upside, those with some sense can make some money on this event.

In June:
GM sales of cars and light trucks: 262,329.
Toyota: 193,234
Ford: 173,462
Chrysler: 117,457.

Hey, NBC, is GM the new liberal target for the next few years?

[Freeper]

Quit making Buick.

Close, merge Buick (cars & SUV's) and GMC (Trucks & SUV's) and Pontiac together.
Then you can have dealerships in small cities that can serve the needs for trucks and cars at one 'ship.
Like Chevrolet can now do. Have you ever noticed that Buick dealerships are almost always near a GMC dealership?
GM would then be a three trick pony Chevrolet (cars and trucks and SUV's); BuickGMCPontiac (cars and trucks and SUV's (Acadia and Enclave are "about the same") and Cadallic (cars and trucks and SUV)

And don't *&%#)@ with the Corvette.

You would then have Three dealerships, three price ranges and three different marketplaces.

[xDGx]

Especially their chief designer who is trying to make the entire line look like Escalades.

[muleskinner]

Buick is the No.1 brand in China (who would have guessed) and they are buying 23,600 new cars PER DAY.

Based on GM selling 1 million cars last year in China, G.M. won't can Buick just yet.

G.M. ought to convert all their big Gm and Chevy trucks to natural gas. It's a somewhat common conversion in Great Britain. They could actually be driven around and not wipe out your wallet.

[vanishing liberty]

“The Japanese automakers don’t have to deal with the United Auto Workers (UAW).”

Funny how the UAW has had no luck with the Japanese auto factories in the US, but I think it has more to do with poor management, always looking for short-term success.

[OKSooner]

Discontinue Pontiac. Who wants a Chevrolet loaded up with plastic-clad body panels?

Bring back Oldsmobile. Real Oldsmobiles with some coolness and style, not Chevrolets with Oldsmobile nameplates on them.

Change the name of the Buick Lucerne to Roadmaster.

File bankruptcy and renegotiate all union contracts.

Fire all the bean-counters who have been running the company into its current state of affairs.

Dump those useless Hummer pimpmobiles.

[JamesP81]

And don't *&%#)@ with the Corvette.

Amen. The Vette is perhaps the best quality product coming out of GM.

[JamesP81]

Having been through a few reorgs, it's my opinion that business reorganization is pretty much impossible. As you said, the best thing to do is to start fresh.

You know, GM's overseas subsidiary's are actually fairly profitable, IIRC. Maybe GM should just go bankrupt in the US, close everything up, and re-incorporate.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

For the loss of Oldsmobile, we got Saturn. Saturn has been in production for 20 years and hasn’t made GM a nickle.

[OKSooner]

Good point, but GM coulda kept them both. Saturn was meant as an economy brand. How many years were wasted by GM management making BAD CARS and slapping an Oldsmobile nameplate on them? Seems like for a while they were trying to just call anything a Cutlass (even some 4-doors) and thinking they'd sell by the name alone.

Dorks.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Most of the damage has been self inflicted.

[Red6]

OK, let's look at it this way:

http://www.autoobserver.com/2008/07/june-car-sales-us-buyers-almost-veer-off-the-road.html

GM is one of the ones with the net ***LOWEST*** declines in sales!!!!! What's the media frenzy about? Yet Toyota which is praised by NBC took a decline 1.5 TIMES that of GM and NBC proudly announces that GM “might” file bankruptcy? Where do they come up with this stuff? If GM goes anywhere then it's BECAUSE of the doom and gloom reporting they have been getting.