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Since becoming the CEO of Ford, Jim Hackett, and his management staff has had a difficult time of convincing folks about the ambitious restructuring plan that will see the lineup become more dependent on crossover and trucks, and job cuts. One group that has been quite worried about the plan are dealers. "There's been a lot less exposure to senior management. There's just not enough information flowing down to dealers about where the company's headed," said Jack Madden, owner of Jack Madden Ford to Automotive News. Ford is hoping to ease dealers later this week at the company's national dealer meeting in Las Vegas. Aside from seeing a number of new products, including the next-generation Escape and Explorer, Hackett and his team will be taking questions from dealers about the future direction of the company. "It's the right medicine at the right time," Rhett Ricart, CEO of Ricart Automotive Group in Groveport, Ohio. "I think it will be a huge jolt for dealers' attitudes." Dealers aren't the only group who are wanting more information. Ford's 70,000 salaried workers around the world have been told that the $11 billion restructuring plan will include job cuts, but not providing any specifics on numbers or how or when the cuts will take place. The cuts were announced in a video message sent to employees. "In Ford's history, we have streamlined organizations but we rarely removed work, causing each team member to have to do more with less," Hackett said in the video, according to a transcript Ford provided to AN. Employees were told the upcoming changes would be made using "a cascading process that will involve many of you" and that they will work to eliminate "low-value" tasks. "While redesigning the organization is important and it's necessary work, it's not going to be easy. But it is fundamental to us becoming the business we need to be," said Hackett. Ford say the message wasn't about job cuts and "said employees have appreciated the way it is handling the news." But AN reports that some employees became confused with the message being provided. Some experts say giving employees information about impending job cuts early on allows for more preparation and gives more time to look for another job. But some point out the way Ford announced the move could actually damage morale. "In an absence of any information, it's stressful. People are going to be looking for more direction from the company," explained Carol Olsby, a human-resources consultant and author. Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required) -
Since becoming the CEO of Ford, Jim Hackett, and his management staff has had a difficult time of convincing folks about the ambitious restructuring plan that will see the lineup become more dependent on crossover and trucks, and job cuts. One group that has been quite worried about the plan are dealers. "There's been a lot less exposure to senior management. There's just not enough information flowing down to dealers about where the company's headed," said Jack Madden, owner of Jack Madden Ford to Automotive News. Ford is hoping to ease dealers later this week at the company's national dealer meeting in Las Vegas. Aside from seeing a number of new products, including the next-generation Escape and Explorer, Hackett and his team will be taking questions from dealers about the future direction of the company. "It's the right medicine at the right time," Rhett Ricart, CEO of Ricart Automotive Group in Groveport, Ohio. "I think it will be a huge jolt for dealers' attitudes." Dealers aren't the only group who are wanting more information. Ford's 70,000 salaried workers around the world have been told that the $11 billion restructuring plan will include job cuts, but not providing any specifics on numbers or how or when the cuts will take place. The cuts were announced in a video message sent to employees. "In Ford's history, we have streamlined organizations but we rarely removed work, causing each team member to have to do more with less," Hackett said in the video, according to a transcript Ford provided to AN. Employees were told the upcoming changes would be made using "a cascading process that will involve many of you" and that they will work to eliminate "low-value" tasks. "While redesigning the organization is important and it's necessary work, it's not going to be easy. But it is fundamental to us becoming the business we need to be," said Hackett. Ford say the message wasn't about job cuts and "said employees have appreciated the way it is handling the news." But AN reports that some employees became confused with the message being provided. Some experts say giving employees information about impending job cuts early on allows for more preparation and gives more time to look for another job. But some point out the way Ford announced the move could actually damage morale. "In an absence of any information, it's stressful. People are going to be looking for more direction from the company," explained Carol Olsby, a human-resources consultant and author. Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required) View full article
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Audi finds itself in more legal trouble, but not fully related to the diesel emission scandal. The Wall Street Journal reports that German prosecutors have opened an investigation into three employees of Audi for possible falsifying of documents to get roadworthiness certifications for vehicles heading to South Korea. Karin Jung, a Munich prosecutor told the paper that the three people are suspected of falsifying serial numbers, and manipulating test and mileage readings. This investigation stems from raid done by Munich authorities of Audi's offices last year. One of the documents they found was an internal report about an investigation into a situation in South Korea. That situation saw an executive in Audi's Korean office be sentenced for 18 months in prison "falsifying documents to achieve certification of the vehicles for export to South Korea." After looking through the report and the investigation in South Korea, Munich prosecutors began a new investigation. Jung said there could be more suspects as the investigation continues on. The is the latest in Audi's misfortunes. Earlier this month, Rupert Stadler was terminated as CEO of Audi. He has been in Jail since June over possible evidence tampering. Sales of Audi vehicles in Europe has been falling as well, with a 56 percent drop in September. Overall sales for the year are down 7 percent. Source: Wall Street Journal (Subscription Required) View full article -
Audi finds itself in more legal trouble, but not fully related to the diesel emission scandal. The Wall Street Journal reports that German prosecutors have opened an investigation into three employees of Audi for possible falsifying of documents to get roadworthiness certifications for vehicles heading to South Korea. Karin Jung, a Munich prosecutor told the paper that the three people are suspected of falsifying serial numbers, and manipulating test and mileage readings. This investigation stems from raid done by Munich authorities of Audi's offices last year. One of the documents they found was an internal report about an investigation into a situation in South Korea. That situation saw an executive in Audi's Korean office be sentenced for 18 months in prison "falsifying documents to achieve certification of the vehicles for export to South Korea." After looking through the report and the investigation in South Korea, Munich prosecutors began a new investigation. Jung said there could be more suspects as the investigation continues on. The is the latest in Audi's misfortunes. Earlier this month, Rupert Stadler was terminated as CEO of Audi. He has been in Jail since June over possible evidence tampering. Sales of Audi vehicles in Europe has been falling as well, with a 56 percent drop in September. Overall sales for the year are down 7 percent. Source: Wall Street Journal (Subscription Required) -
General Motors Releases Ignition Switch Recall Report
William Maley posted an article in General Motors
The internal investigation has been completed and General Motors has released the report that looks into the handling of the ignition switch recall. During a town hall meeting this morning at GM's headquarters, CEO Mary Barra said the report was "extremely thorough, brutally tough, and deeply troubling," and announced changes to the company's policies and processes. “Overall the report found that, from start to finish, the Cobalt saga was riddled with failures which led to tragic results for many,” said Barra. The 315 page report, done by former U.S. Attorney Anton Valukas finds that General Motors suffered from “organizational dysfunction” and that there were deceit and missed opportunities for GM to come clean on the ignition switch problem. The report also determined that Barra, General Counsel Michael Millikin, and head of global product development Mark Reuss did not learn of the ignition switch problem and the delay in addressing them until after the decision to issue a recall was made on January 31, 2014. "The structure within GM was one in which no one was held responsible and no one took responsibility," said the report. Barra announced at the meeting that fifteen individuals have been fired after it was determined to have acted inappropriately. More than half of those individuals were in executive roles or higher. Another five individuals have received disciplinary action. Barra also announced a compensation program that will be headed up by attorney Kenneth Feinberg. The program will offer compensation to those who either suffered a serious injury or lost a loved one due to the ignition switch problem. GM has also taken action by instituting a number of changes on how it deals with safety issues. Appointing Jeff Boyer to the new position of Vice President of Global Vehicle Safety Adding 35 product safety investigators Creating the Speak up for Safety program that allows employees to report on potential safety issues Introducing a new Global Product Integrity organization to enhance overall safety and quality performance Restructuring the recall decision making process to raise it to the highest levels of the company "Together, we have to understand that the attitudes and practices that allowed this failure to occur will not be tolerated. Also, if we think that cleaning up this problem and making a few process changes will be enough, we are badly mistaken. Our job is not just to fix the problem. Our job must be to set a new industry standard for safety, quality, and excellence,” said Barra. Source: The Detroit News (2), Motoramic, General Motors, Valukas Report Press Release is on Page 2 GM Receives Extremely ‘Thorough,’ ‘Brutally Tough’ and ‘Deeply Troubling’ Valukas Report 2014-06-05 Company will act on all recommendations 15 GM employees no longer with company Five other GM employees disciplined Report reveals no conspiracy or cover-up Feinberg to administer compensation fund DETROIT – General Motors CEO Mary Barra said today that GM has received the findings of an investigation by former U.S. Attorney Anton Valukas into the Cobalt ignition switch recall and plans to act on all of its recommendations. She again expressed deep sympathy for the victims of accidents related to the ignition switch defect and their families. In addition, Barra announced that Kenneth Feinberg will administer a compensation program for those who have lost loved ones or who have suffered serious physical injuries as the result of an ignition switch failure in recently recalled vehicles. Barra described the Valukas findings as "extremely thorough, brutally tough, and deeply troubling." “Overall the report found that, from start to finish, the Cobalt saga was riddled with failures which led to tragic results for many,” Barra said, noting that the report revealed no conspiracy by the company to cover up the facts and no evidence that any employee made a trade-off between safety and cost. Barra said 15 individuals who were determined to have acted inappropriately are no longer with the company. Disciplinary actions have been taken against five other employees. GM Chairman Tim Solso said the Board of Directors has been working closely with the management team to get the facts on the ignition switch issue and to see that changes are made to prevent such a tragedy from ever happening again. “The Board engaged Anton Valukas to investigate and determine what went wrong while already working with GM’s leadership to make necessary changes,” Solso said. “We have received and reviewed Valukas’ very thorough report and are continuing to work with management to oversee the implementation of the recommendations contained in the report. “In addition, the Board also retained independent counsel to advise us with respect to this situation and governance and risk management issues. We will establish a stand-alone risk committee to assist in overseeing these efforts.” Solso said. “The Board, like management, is committed to changing the company’s culture and processes to ensure that the problems described in the Valukas report never happen again. “The Valukas report confirmed that Mary Barra, Mike Millikin and Mark Reuss did not learn about the ignition switch safety issues and the delay in addressing them until after the decision to issue a recall was made on Jan. 31, 2014,” Solso said. Barra emphasized to employees that the company has adopted and will continue to adopt sweeping changes in the way it handles safety issues. The actions to date include: Appointing Jeff Boyer as Vice President of Global Vehicle Safety, elevating and integrating GM’s safety processes under a single leader Adding 35 product safety investigators that will allow GM to identify and address issues much more quickly Instituting the Speak up for Safety program encouraging employees to report potential safety issues quickly and forcefully Creating a new Global Product Integrity organization to enhance overall safety and quality performance, and Restructuring the recall decision making process to raise it to the highest levels of the company. In her remarks to employees, Barra said she is committed to leading "in a way that brings honor and respect to this company. "Together, we have to understand that the attitudes and practices that allowed this failure to occur will not be tolerated,” she said. “Also, if we think that cleaning up this problem and making a few process changes will be enough, we are badly mistaken. Our job is not just to fix the problem. Our job must be to set a new industry standard for safety, quality, and excellence.” -
The internal investigation has been completed and General Motors has released the report that looks into the handling of the ignition switch recall. During a town hall meeting this morning at GM's headquarters, CEO Mary Barra said the report was "extremely thorough, brutally tough, and deeply troubling," and announced changes to the company's policies and processes. “Overall the report found that, from start to finish, the Cobalt saga was riddled with failures which led to tragic results for many,” said Barra. The 315 page report, done by former U.S. Attorney Anton Valukas finds that General Motors suffered from “organizational dysfunction” and that there were deceit and missed opportunities for GM to come clean on the ignition switch problem. The report also determined that Barra, General Counsel Michael Millikin, and head of global product development Mark Reuss did not learn of the ignition switch problem and the delay in addressing them until after the decision to issue a recall was made on January 31, 2014. "The structure within GM was one in which no one was held responsible and no one took responsibility," said the report. Barra announced at the meeting that fifteen individuals have been fired after it was determined to have acted inappropriately. More than half of those individuals were in executive roles or higher. Another five individuals have received disciplinary action. Barra also announced a compensation program that will be headed up by attorney Kenneth Feinberg. The program will offer compensation to those who either suffered a serious injury or lost a loved one due to the ignition switch problem. GM has also taken action by instituting a number of changes on how it deals with safety issues. Appointing Jeff Boyer to the new position of Vice President of Global Vehicle Safety Adding 35 product safety investigators Creating the Speak up for Safety program that allows employees to report on potential safety issues Introducing a new Global Product Integrity organization to enhance overall safety and quality performance Restructuring the recall decision making process to raise it to the highest levels of the company "Together, we have to understand that the attitudes and practices that allowed this failure to occur will not be tolerated. Also, if we think that cleaning up this problem and making a few process changes will be enough, we are badly mistaken. Our job is not just to fix the problem. Our job must be to set a new industry standard for safety, quality, and excellence,” said Barra. Source: The Detroit News (2), Motoramic, General Motors, Valukas Report Press Release is on Page 2 GM Receives Extremely ‘Thorough,’ ‘Brutally Tough’ and ‘Deeply Troubling’ Valukas Report 2014-06-05 Company will act on all recommendations 15 GM employees no longer with company Five other GM employees disciplined Report reveals no conspiracy or cover-up Feinberg to administer compensation fund DETROIT – General Motors CEO Mary Barra said today that GM has received the findings of an investigation by former U.S. Attorney Anton Valukas into the Cobalt ignition switch recall and plans to act on all of its recommendations. She again expressed deep sympathy for the victims of accidents related to the ignition switch defect and their families. In addition, Barra announced that Kenneth Feinberg will administer a compensation program for those who have lost loved ones or who have suffered serious physical injuries as the result of an ignition switch failure in recently recalled vehicles. Barra described the Valukas findings as "extremely thorough, brutally tough, and deeply troubling." “Overall the report found that, from start to finish, the Cobalt saga was riddled with failures which led to tragic results for many,” Barra said, noting that the report revealed no conspiracy by the company to cover up the facts and no evidence that any employee made a trade-off between safety and cost. Barra said 15 individuals who were determined to have acted inappropriately are no longer with the company. Disciplinary actions have been taken against five other employees. GM Chairman Tim Solso said the Board of Directors has been working closely with the management team to get the facts on the ignition switch issue and to see that changes are made to prevent such a tragedy from ever happening again. “The Board engaged Anton Valukas to investigate and determine what went wrong while already working with GM’s leadership to make necessary changes,” Solso said. “We have received and reviewed Valukas’ very thorough report and are continuing to work with management to oversee the implementation of the recommendations contained in the report. “In addition, the Board also retained independent counsel to advise us with respect to this situation and governance and risk management issues. We will establish a stand-alone risk committee to assist in overseeing these efforts.” Solso said. “The Board, like management, is committed to changing the company’s culture and processes to ensure that the problems described in the Valukas report never happen again. “The Valukas report confirmed that Mary Barra, Mike Millikin and Mark Reuss did not learn about the ignition switch safety issues and the delay in addressing them until after the decision to issue a recall was made on Jan. 31, 2014,” Solso said. Barra emphasized to employees that the company has adopted and will continue to adopt sweeping changes in the way it handles safety issues. The actions to date include: Appointing Jeff Boyer as Vice President of Global Vehicle Safety, elevating and integrating GM’s safety processes under a single leader Adding 35 product safety investigators that will allow GM to identify and address issues much more quickly Instituting the Speak up for Safety program encouraging employees to report potential safety issues quickly and forcefully Creating a new Global Product Integrity organization to enhance overall safety and quality performance, and Restructuring the recall decision making process to raise it to the highest levels of the company. In her remarks to employees, Barra said she is committed to leading "in a way that brings honor and respect to this company. "Together, we have to understand that the attitudes and practices that allowed this failure to occur will not be tolerated,” she said. “Also, if we think that cleaning up this problem and making a few process changes will be enough, we are badly mistaken. Our job is not just to fix the problem. Our job must be to set a new industry standard for safety, quality, and excellence.” View full article
