Please. Don’t get to worrying about Rick Wagoner’s finances. First of all, Rick still made $5.4 million in ’08, the year that GM threw itself at the mercy of the US taxpayer (in their own arrogant, extortionist kinda way). And, as we reported some three years ago, GM’s CEO has a bankruptcy-proof pension. So when the artist formerly known as the world’s largest automaker finally sinks into the abyss of its own making, Rick’s OK. That’s assuming Wagoner hasn’t pissed away the $100 million+ he’s banked since ascending to the top rungs of the only company for which he’s ever worked. Meanwhile, in any case, what’s wrong with this juxtaposition [via Bloomberg]: “Wagoner’s [2007] compensation included a salary of $2.1 million and he wasn’t paid a bonus, the Detroit-based automaker said in a regulatory filing today. The largest U.S. automaker lost $30.9 billion last year, the second biggest shortfall in the company’s 100-year history.” Verecundia afflictus.
If you paid Wagoner nothing, it wouldn’t be the issue at GM. Hell, some VP’s at Merrill Lynch got 10 million for bankrupting their firm. The issue is competence, and it seemed to die years ago in Detroit leadership: Not one of the domestic companies was able to promote from within a true visionary leader. Chrysler went outside to Home depot after the 10 bad years of Daimler management. Ford of course to Boeing, and GM stayed in house as it has for 80 years. What does it say for an industry that can’t produce a stellar bench or a farm team to replace itself? Waqoner rolled the dice on an economic comeback of say 17 million sales where he could get his 20 some percent even if he had to give the cars away. He was going to limp into retirement carrying all of the brands, policies, people,& creativity that got GM to where it is today. Well the dice have come to rest, and Wagoner drew snake eyes.
Saeuissimum supplicium GMus Rickum Wagoneris imponit, sed non satis est.
You started, Robert…
Imagine being stiffed for your bonus and having to scrape by on a lousy $2.1-million just because the company is taking a dirt nap. Life is hard, and then you die!
I used to wonder how the French regular people felt before their revolution. Now I’m starting to get the picture.
Given that GM loses $84.7 million per day, this salary cut will keep the lights on for about two and a half more hours…
Off with their heads!
“Meanwhile, the leader just talks away
Stuttering and mumbling for nightly news to replay
And the rest of the world watching at the end of the day
both scared and angry like ‘what did he say?\'”
~Linkin Park “Hands Held High”
I used to wonder how the French regular people felt before their revolution. Now I’m starting to get the picture.
But the funny thing is that, just like in the present case, they didn’t feel better after the revolution, since it was followed by the Terror and the Bonaparte “republican empire”.
Robert,
A correction. The Bloomberg article says that the $5.4 million is for ’08, not for ’07.
In any case the figure is misleading because of how companies have to account for executive salaries. For example, in ’07, Wagoner’s total compensation booked by GM was $14.1 million (some figures say $16.7 mil), but he actually got paid ~$3.5 million in salary and bonuses. The remaining $10.6 million was in stock options and other “at risk” payments that are currently worthless.
Most likely, the only part of the $5.4 million in his ’08 compensation package that Wagoner will get is the $2.1 million in salary.
Just how much would you want to be paid to have to deal with GM’s headaches these days?
Just how much would you want to be paid to have to deal with GM’s headaches these days?
Most of which were completely ignored until it was too late.
Not much leadership there.
The problem isn’t what Wagoner is being paid to run GM, it is that he still runs it. That he hasn’t been fired and still gets paid just adds insult to injury.
Unfortunately the Legislative and Executive branches of the US Government are not as good at replacing incompetent managers as the Judicial branch, in particular the US Bankruptcy Courts.
And, just as an FYI, I am willing to sit as CEO of GM for $350,000 yearly, begging for money from the President and Congress and making up whiny excuses until the inevitable Chapter 11 replaces me. If I am required to work for the nominal $1 per year then I’m sure the rest of the $349,999 can be transferred to me in some form of alternative compensation. Just like additional compensation is being transferred to any of the Detroit automaker executives who claim to be working for $1 per year.
I swear i am sick of reading about this shit, kill GM now.
If salary caps on Wall St execs are ok, then the same should be applied to the not so big three.
Let’s not forget the kid he has to put through college, a couple Mil is really slumming it these days!
Seriously? I hope he manages his own finances like he does GM’s, falls behind on his mortgage payments and takes Chap 11 on the same day GM does, not likely, but that would make my day.
I’m trying to reconcile these Bloomberg numbers with what’s being reported in MSNBC (though I trust Bloomberg far more):
“Separately, GM said it gave GM’s Chief Executive Rick Wagoner compensation valued at $14.9 million last year for leading a company that lost $30.9 billion and is running on government loans. But a large part of his pay package is in stock and options that have dropped in value from $11.9 million when they were granted in March of last year to just over $682,000 currently.”
$14.9M – $11.9M = $3.0M base salary. Bloomberg has $2.1M base, $5.4M total. Regardless, the most striking bit of information from the MSNBC article, if it’s correct, is the drop in value of Rick’s stock and options from $11.9M to $682K in about 9 months. At least he gets to feel a bit of the sting from his gross mismanagement of GM.
If Rick runs his personal, household finances like he has run GM’s, he will be out of money by next week.
Figuring out Rick’s salary is just like trying to determine what a fair price for a GM car is.
That’s pretty funny
The only way Wagoner can probably function now is to delude himself into believing he is the only one with experience to right GM’s ship. His salary is just justification of this belief.
The leadership of GM still believes that are the only ones qualified to turn the company around.
You can live in a delusion forever. It is the reason OJ can get up in the morning.