Mentor says Rick Wagoner is still the right guy for GM

[tgagneguam]

Daniel Howes: Mentor says Rick Wagoner is still the right guy for GM

Jack Smith's been in tough spots before -- like the time General Motors Corp.'s directors tapped him to guide the beleaguered automaker out of a deep hole in 1992.

But the retired chairman and CEO, mentor to the holder of the most brutal job in American business, says that Rick Wagoner has him beat on the scale of tough turnaround assignments. He also says the guy he groomed to take GM into the 21st century, the guy he talked to as recently as Sunday, is still the right man for the job.

"I know all the players in the industry," Smith, two days shy of his 68th birthday, told me in an interview Tuesday from his home in Naples, Fla. "He's a first-class guy. He's a leader. Am I biased toward him? Of course I am. I certainly don't see him as out of the woods.

"It would be helpful for him if he could put some points on the board, if quarterly earnings could come around. It would be very helpful if there were signs of a turn -- the sooner the better."

Yes, it would. The brutal facts, evidenced by Smith's willingness to publicly declare his support for his protege even as GM's directors did the same thing, suggest the top of GM's house recognizes that support for Wagoner may be eroding amid an ugly dismemberment of the world's largest automaker, SEC investigations and accounting problems.

When directors talk publicly, but say little of substance; when the board issues a forceful statement of support for the CEO; when the investigations and earnings restatements pile up; when the Wall Street chorus seems convinced that GM will be getting a new CEO soon, even the leader's most loyal subjects begin contemplating LAW -- Life after Wagoner -- because every detail has meaning.

"None of this stuff just bubbles up from nowhere," says a GM exec who backs Wagoner but recognizes that firm support can be fleeting when faced with new facts. "I know Rick is very much feeling it on a personal level. You still get the sense that the board is behind Rick."

For now. Under pressure from subordinates, directors, dealers, even prominent Michigan politicians, to fight back, Wagoner is taking his case to the public. To say "it's about time" doesn't convey how important -- or long overdue -- Wagoner's public offensive really is to easing the relentless rhetorical broadsides laced with ****************ing numbers.

Full article.

[Globalist]

That's not surprising in a Mentor-Protege relationship.

[asim]

Thats a really good article, brings a whole new perspective in the game.

[Mikkoo]

Originally Posted by Globalist

That's not surprising in a Mentor-Protege relationship.

Agreed, after all he did groom him for the position.

[uujjj]

Originally Posted by tgagneguam

For now. Under pressure from subordinates, directors, dealers, even prominent Michigan politicians, to fight back, Wagoner is taking his case to the public. To say "it's about time" doesn't convey how important -- or long overdue -- Wagoner's public offensive really is to easing the relentless rhetorical broadsides laced with ****************ing numbers.

The filter strikes again!

[Buickman]

Steve Harris, newly hired back to run GM's PR department, has had Wagoner in every possible medium promoting his capabilities. The Board of Bystanders issued a statement of support. Even Jack Smith was quoted as remaining confident in Wagoner. In spite of their spin, the decline will continue until it's too late for pensions, health care and the dealer distribution system.


Buickman

[stevews602]

Rick's had his shot of fixing things, time to give him and most of GM senior management the boot.

The iceberg is in sight, Rick has the wheel but does not know how to turn it and will be holding her steady right to the bottom.

[cfch3399]

This is good news. All this defensiveness on Wagoner's part and everyone coming out in favor of him is a sign that someone is really asking for his head. Someone (Yorkorian I imagine) is pushing hard for change.
(Naples, FL- nice! I'd like to live there.)

[GM-10]

Originally Posted by cfch3399

This is good news. All this defensiveness on Wagoner's part and everyone coming out in favor of him is a sign that someone is really asking for his head. Someone (Yorkorian I imagine) is pushing hard for change.
(Naples, FL- nice! I'd like to live there.)

I agree it certainly seems like he realized that he needed to circle the wagons.

[Buickman]

GM request to dismiss retirement-plan lawsuit denied

Associated Press /

April 7, 2006

DETROIT -- A federal judge denied a motion by General Motors Corp. to dismiss a lawsuit that claims company officials who oversee employees' retirement funds failed to act responsibly, attorneys for the plaintiffs said Friday.

The suit, filed in U.S. District Court for Michigan, claims that GM and the managers of its two retirement funds ignored the company's financial woes, causing employee investors to suffer huge losses.

The case involves two GM plans -- a personal savings plan for hourly employees, and a stock-purchase program for salaried employees -- both of which, plaintiffs said, hold large amounts of GM stock.

Plaintiffs' attorneys said Judge Nancy Edmunds stated in her ruling that GM had a duty to convey to its retirement plan members complete and accurate information about its true financial health -- something the suit claims the automaker failed to do.

The suit also claims that GM put its own interests above those of its employees by continuing to offer its stock as an investment option when, the plaintiffs say, it clearly was not a sound investment.

"It is our belief that GM and the investment fund committee sold out GM employees, plain and simple," said Steve Berman, co-lead counsel for the plaintiffs. "They stood motionless and mute while the stock's slide devastated the retirement savings of thousands."

A message seeking comment was left Friday with a GM spokeswoman.


Buickman
Founder
www.GeneralWatch.com

[LAMRONH]

Well, this is a real shocker. Kind've like Bill Clinton saying Hillary is the greatest junior senator from New York in the world.

[LAMRONH]

Originally Posted by Buickman

GM request to dismiss retirement-plan lawsuit denied

Associated Press /

April 7, 2006

DETROIT -- A federal judge denied a motion by General Motors Corp. to dismiss a lawsuit that claims company officials who oversee employees' retirement funds failed to act responsibly, attorneys for the plaintiffs said Friday.
The suit, filed in U.S. District Court for Michigan, claims that GM and the managers of its two retirement funds ignored the company's financial woes, causing employee investors to suffer huge losses.

complete and accurate information about its true financial health --

The suit also claims that GM put its own interests above those of its employees

"It is our belief that GM and the investment fund committee sold out GM employees, plain and simple," said Steve Berman, co-lead counsel for the plaintiffs. "They stood motionless and mute while the stock's slide devastated the retirement savings of thousands."

Buickman
Founder
www.GeneralWatch.com

Not to repeat myself, but I will: GM's ethical shorcomings are as serious as any of its problems.

Not only do they screw people with the glee and utter lack of conscience that only true psychopaths can know, then they deny all with their $5,000-suit lawyers.
I hope you enjoy your time in hell and the new friends you make there, boys.

[LAMRONH]

Originally Posted by stevews602

Rick's had his shot of fixing things, time to give him and most of GM senior management the boot.

The iceberg is in sight, Rick has the wheel but does not know how to turn it and will be holding her steady right to the bottom.

No, Rick has the keys to the helicoptor. When it lands, he will settle in as comfortably as possible given the limitations of a mere $4.4 million-per-year pension. He and his neighbor Gettlefinger will, over martinis at 10 am, shed a crocodile tear for the thousands who went down on the GMitanic.

[Buickman]

Originally Posted by LAMRONH

No, Rick has the keys to the helicoptor. When it lands, he will settle in as comfortably as possible given the limitations of a mere $4.4 million-per-year pension. He and his neighbor Gettlefinger will, over martinis at 10 am, shed a crocodile tear for the thousands who went down on the GMitanic.

You have met the qualifications to be a writer for GeneralWatch.

Buickman