GM Announces Preliminary Managerial Earnings
By Fritz Henderson
GM President and CEO
On July 10, my management team and I made a commitment to you: GM will rebuild itself by focusing on cars, customers and culture. Today, for the first time since emerging as a new company, we released preliminary managerial financial results. They demonstrate we are on the right track, but still have a long way to go.
We’ve worked hard to set a solid foundation for rebuilding our company. Our progress is evident: market share is stabilizing, our balance sheet is healthier and our cost structure is competitive. In the US, our newest launch products like the Buick LaCrosse, GMC Terrain, Cadillac SRX and Chevy Equinox are generating higher transaction prices and residual values than previous model year vehicles. And we’re seeing the same positive momentum felt globally as GM’s newest products such as the Holden and Chevrolet Cruze, Daewoo Matiz Creative, Opel/Vauxhall Astra and Chevrolet Agile gain market share.
Our entire team is encouraged by these results but we are not and cannot be satisfied. GM is still in a loss position. We know the upcoming fourth quarter will bring additional challenges and cash outlays. Our cash level, however, will allow GM to focus on improving the top line and keep investing in important products and technologies.
Perhaps the most telling announcement we made today was that GM will begin repaying US and Canadian taxpayers by the end of next month and we will continue paying down both loans on a quarterly basis. We take these loans personally. They represent an enormous obligation to our fellow taxpayers, and we want to pay them back as quickly as you do.
GM is showing solid progress, but we must do better. New challenges are on the horizon and GM will be ready for them. In my eyes, success comes down to keeping our heads down and following our plan to build great vehicles as well as creating stronger relationships with our customers, dealers, employees and so many others. Again, it’s all about cars, customers and culture. I look forward to what the future brings.
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Glad to see the solid progression. Can definetely see a difference in the “old” GM and the “new” GM. The newer models are extremely impressing; and its very nice to see that unlike a lot of vehicle companies, GM is very innovative. Just look at the Volt.
Which is not out yet…
G.M. said the numbers were preliminary and cannot be compared to other periods because they do not comply with generally accepted accounting principles and do not represent a full quarter.
If these numbers do not comply with “generally accepted accounting principles,” what exactly are they supposed to mean?
Wouldn’t your creditability have been better had you just waited until you can give us* the real numbers?
___________________________
* The 300 million or so Americans who are now part owners of GM.
thank you for pointing that one out. Not many people on here realize the money that these three CEO dictators are taking from America. They are all making enough money right now that they could retire with at least 60 million. They won’t ever learn. And until Fritz, Lutz, and Docharty have been announced as being fired by Obama, or resign themselves, GM will never get back on its feet again. And as for your ‘team’, they need to be permanently fired for making some of the worst decisions in this century so far.
Again, it’s all about cars, customers and culture. I look forward to what the future brings.-Really?! Because i haven’t seen you care about one customer that bought a car from you. You killed all your good cars and gave your customers some of the worst products you could think of. (Ex: LaCrosse, Terrain, Equniox.) And then on top of all that, you ignore the culture that so many people before you worked for. GM was a company built on very basic ideals: GIve people cheap and affordable cars that were built with the highest quiality. Up until 2003, you did that. But after 2003 ended, it showed that you were going to begin to destroy the very company that took almost 100 years to build. Today, you have killed everything. Your values and morals have been long gone. Your cars consist of only expensive luxury cars with tacky plastic interiors, underpowered engines, and terrible body style designs. (maybe thats why the chinese like buick so much) Until their is a change in leadership, GM will only last a few more years.
You’re kidding right? The whole reason GM was doing badly in more recent history was because they made terrible products. Almost their entire car lineup throughout the 90’s and early 2000’s were awful. Who can honestly say that such abysmal cars like the Chevy Lumina, Cavalier, previous generation Camero, the older generation Cadillacs, or even their Saturn cars were anything other than poor excuses for automotive products? The cars they make today are light years ahead of what they used to produce. Had they continued as they had, GM would no longer exist. I’m a life-long Toyota owner and GM is finally making some products I’d actually consider. Something tells me they’re on the right track.
That’s great news. However, I’m afraid GM will never progress beyond the point of struggling to survive. None of the products in the $30k to $50k price range GM presently has to offer are appealing or exciting. Also, it will take at least a few years to establish a reputation of quality products and customer satisfaction. I do wish yiou luck and I do hope to be a loyal customer again someday.
It’s Good to see the progress.
Love to see GM comes back with a better and smaller cars. Love GM, and will love no matter what.
I would love it if GM decided to compete in the small car market.
It seems like they gave that market to the Japanese years ago and focused only on trucks and SUV’s.
By not competing market share and quality declined. Competition makes you better….. get in there and fight for market share.
Glad to hear that the government loans are going to be repaid, but you’re a brand new company now with a new balance sheet. Shouldn’t you be profitable every quarter from here on out? If not, something’s wrong. Rooting for your fast progress, not your slow but steady progress.
PontiacPower and rdh,
One question: What planet are you two living on?
From your posts, it appears you haven’t stepped foot on a GM dealership lately.
A number of new GM models — including the LaCrosse, Terriain and Equinox — are receiving tremendous praise from the automotive press — and deservedly so. They’re quality vehicles. And don’t forget that the redesigned Malibu recently won the prestigous Car of the Year award.
Rdh, you say “none of the products in the $30,000-50-000 range are appealing or exciting.” Have you ever heard of the Cadillac CTS/CTS or the Chevy Corvette? They’re both terrific automobiles. What’s more, both are within your pricing parameters, and both were named among the “10 Best Cars for 2009″ by Car and Driver magazine.
Those are just a couple of examples of GM’s accomplishments in just the past couple of years. And in my opinion, the best is yet to come, so stay tuned!
ray, i can only say that I am deeply disappointed in you. All these new cars that ‘new GM’ offers are just awful. They cost way too much and are poorly built. The CTS is too expensive for anyone that earns less than $70,000 a year. And the Corvette can only be afforded by rich people. Unless you have 60K just layin around, DON”T buy a ‘new GM’ vehicle. Because not only will you get ripped off, you will also be wasting your money on something you didn’t want.
And, I have stepped foot on many GM dealerships in the past few months in my area. I have seen the same exact thing I just explained. The poorly designed cars are not even worthy of going to a junkyard. They should just be burned in a furnace. It really is sad to see that all the hard work that people put into GM over the years has gone to waste. The new Camaro, all the new Buick’s, Cadillacs, and all the rest of the GMC/ Chevrolet vehicles are too expensive, unexciting and very ugly, and are almost completely made out of plastic. You just have no idea whats going on behind the scenes. You probably just read the car and driver articles and decided they are good cars. Wake up man! The rest of America hates the ‘new GM’ cars and trucks. they offer nothing new, they keep laying off workers, losing money, and they keep destroying the very company so many have built. thats the way ‘new GM’ will be until we have a change in leadership, and direction.
Good to read of this regarding GM. GM is definitely making some serious strides to move beyond their less impressive day. I will say though, that although I’m really impressed with their new models coming out, they tend to be more expensive than their counterparts. Do GM foresee an issue with that?
GM products are moving ahead leaps and bounds from where they were just 5 years ago. However,I have an odd way of gagueing interior quality, If you drum your fingernails on the dash and it goes click click click then i think “cheap”. May not be the case at all, but I associate soft touch materials with high end materials in a cars interior. I currently drive a 2009 corvette just for the all out performance, but the 2003 bmw 530i that I had prior had a far superior interior AND cost 9k less. I know its not just a money issue. Example the 2010 Mazda 3 i was most recently in had a soft touch dash and a very classy interior for the price.
The quality of GM interiors have been a customer complaint for years.
Will GM listen to their customers?
Quality and Value sell
This report doesn’t inspire me one bit. For the most of the country, the GM spin–which I used to promote–comes down to nothing. Let’s face it: GM North America is just going to end up being Chevrolet and Cadillac. Become a proper two-brand continental business and embark on real efficiency. Yeah, the LaCrosse looks a lil’ better than what’s come before, and the Regal appears half-way decent, but no one’s excited about them. Duplicating Lexus advertising doesn’t mean you’re going to garner Lexus sales in the US.
I was one of the last West Coast GM holdouts until I couldn’t defend my support of the General. The foolish business decisions, annoying unionized labor, and the begging for federal dollars just killed it for me. I had stocked up for a Camaro after the LA debut, but I won’t commit to buying a GM vehicle with the company’s shaky state.
I tried to believe GM was really opening up, but the stupidity over the bailout period disgusted me. Trying to buy Chrysler with taxpayer dollars? If y’all wanna buy American, buy Ford.
This post on GMInsideNews confirmed my suspicion all along that GM didnt have a “quality culture”.
http://www.gminsidenews.com/forums/f12/wsj-gm-engineer-says-quality-remains-achilles-heel-86297/
“Mr. Reuss said quality issues at GM are deep-seated and require cultural change. GM has had more success improving safety and performance of its vehicles, but he said reliability remains a sticking point. He said some company engineers have at times been afraid to report problem for fear their jobs would be threatened, resulting in glitches showing up when cars hit the market.
Mr. Reuss said he plans to meet with GM engineers Friday to help change that thinking. “We’ve told people to stop worrying about their jobs and start worrying about the products,” he said.”
Ford has successfully boasted its product quality and learned about safety technologies from Volvo.
It’s time for GM to step up. Just imagine how repugnant a Chevy Volt you just spent $40,000 on breaks down in 2 weeks!!!!! Btw, The Volt is such a gorgeous car!
Good post and comment.
This post on GMInsideNews confirmed my suspicion all along that GM didnt have a “quality culture”.
http://www.gminsidenews.com/forums/f12/wsj-gm-engineer-says-quality-remains-achilles-heel-86297/
The link above is worth reading…….
The culture of GM needs to change… there needs to be a QUALITY WAR ROOM…… document every quality issue…. look for patterns…. identify the root cause…… empower teams to fix the problems…….
The fact that this known problem has been recognized and allowed to continue for all these years is a shame.
That is a culture of failure. That is the culture that took GM into bankruptcy.
GM needs some new leadership that demands Quality.
he said reliability remains a sticking point. He said some company engineers have at times been afraid to report problem for fear their jobs would be threatened, resulting in glitches showing up when cars hit the market.
Mr Henderson,
If that is true, that has to be your number one priority. You need to visit each GM assembly plant and engineering center, stop work, and have an “All Hands” meeting where you explain, face-to-face, to each GM employee what the new standard will be.
With the disparity between the dollar and the euro, and the high cost of labor in Germany, How do you expect to make a profit importing the Regal when you can’t make a business case for bringing us the Commodore from Australia with a much more favorable exchange rate?
GM —- Quality and Value sell…
No one leaves a Walmart feeling cheated……
Build a quality vehicle at a Value driven price…….
Consumer Reports said GM builds too many below average quality vehicles…….
They did not say this about Toyota or Lexus…….
Have you seen the latest Lexus commercial….. Quality, Quality , Quality…… Value, Value, Value….
Time for GM to get some new blood……. The old blood led you into bankruptcy…
Why are Hyundai, Toyota and Nissan gaining market share?
Where are GM’s small and mid size flex and hybrid vehicles?
Where are GM’s electric vehicles? Looks like other manufacturers are moving fast on electric vehicles.
Mr. Henderson,
How will you respond to Ed Niedermeyer’s guest column in today’s New York Times? Taking Taxpayers for a Ride
GENERAL MOTORS raised more than a few eyebrows last week by announcing plans to repay what it describes as $6.7 billion in outstanding loans to taxpayers. So provocative was this announcement that it all but overshadowed the real news of the day: G.M. had lost $1.2 billion since exiting bankruptcy in July, and its fourth-quarter results were expected to be worse.
Lost $1.2 billion since exiting bankruptcy ????? What ….. A going concern is supposed to come out of bankruptcy.
Last year. I sat back as a lay person, watching Politics manage GM’s decisions. For example, many of the Dealerships were known, and visited, as local ’stores’ to buy vehicles and also have them serviced – both are forms of GM’s revenues. Rumors (”Where there is smoke there is fire”) were rampant that if the Dealership was on the wrong side of politics, their on-going Dealership’s life was in jeopardy.
Sadly, when GM decided to eliminate thousands of Dealers, it exposed our ‘mindshare’ to other local Dealers. Many of those Dealerships that remained in our neighborhoods were ‘foreign owned’ – Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Kia, Hyundai, etc. And now, these ‘foreign-owned’ vehicle solutions are to be considered when evaluating our next vehicle purchase and service-needs.
There were Dealerships who A) had sales that were over 50% of the industry’s numbers, B) showed better than a 40%+ profitability, C) remained committed to the needs of their local communities and D) provided many many jobs for families. Strangely, many of these Dealerships were said to be closed. INSTEAD, they should have been replicated !
I read about one Dealership in Stow (Ohio) that employed several MRDD people for various tasks, which assisted these wonderful people to feel productive and mainstreamed into society. This 90 year-old Dealership was told it would close and jobs / taxes / community commitment / customer commitment / mindshare to foreign-owned Dealerships, and more were all LOST.
Being a GM stockholder, I can only hope that GM’s governance will A) make better decisions, B) become more assertive in managing / selling assets C) earning future buyers’ business, D) retaining their existing GM-owners service business, and E) Re-committing to those ‘closed’ neighborhood Dealership so they can get back to the important business in assisting rebuilding GM’s solutions, service and lost commitment to customers, employees, and communities.
To net it out – Unless GM is a candidate for political office, be more focused on customers than on what any Political party in Washington DC dictates.
PMD011110mon
Customer satisfaction of their dealer experience has been bad for many years.
Many people equate going to a dealer with going to the dentist.
Until we get back that positive feeling when we go to a dealer GM will continue to suffer market share losses.
Dealers have put themselves in this position….. Bait and switch tactics, up sale tricks, charging a higher rate of interest than the customer qualifies for, playing games with trade in values and discounts, add on charges….. all lead to an unsatisfying experience. A poor dealer experience has contributed to GM’s decline over the years.
What ever happened to ethics in business?
Treat people fairly. Give people a Quality product at a Value driven price.