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At this point about 19 percent… We’ll finalize that, but I’m not interested in going down from that
GM’s Fritz Henderson in Automotive News [sub] on his “plans” for GM’s market share. As Evan Newmark dryly puts it over at the WSJ’s Mean Street blog, “if the Norwegians are giving out Nobel Prizes for aspirations and efforts, then surely Mr. Henderson is up for one.”
15 Comments on “Quote Of The Day: GM Rolls Out 2009 Model-Year Market Share Plans Edition...”
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Fritz is in so far over his head it isn’t funny. And, he doesn’t know it.
Hasn’t market share been coming in at about 3-5 points below plan for about 10 years now?
How long ago was it that GM was wearing “29” buttons; annotating holding the line at 29% market share? Very weak statement. Its essentially stating GMs position to tread water.
“Plans for market share”? Don’t the customers decide that for you ?
“We’ll finalize that, but I’m not interested in going down from that.”
So now the truth can be told. GM’s multi-decade hemorrhage of market share was strategic, sort of like rightsizing. Maybe Wagoner was more competent than people give him credit for — he sure executed the “19 percent” plan well.
The whole point of market share is, well, beside the point. What GM should be aiming for is profit–actually taking in more money than goes out. If they can’t do that, then the market share is meaningless. As cynical as I am, I don’t believe that the feds can continue to bail out GM indefinitely. And all of Newmark’s column, BTW, is actually pretty sympathetic to Fritz who has the government looking over his shoulder and a board chairman second-guessing him. Newmark points out that Whitacre’s demand that GM stay number one in sales conflicts with his other demand that they quit using incentives to sell vehicles.
It must be tough for the folks that run GM to actually think like business people. Seriously, there is no accountability for their mistakes, no real concern about losing money, no real plan to speak of… just a bunch of blow hards, well, blowing hard.
Do they have anything left to sell? I mean, other than cars?
Maybe GM could sell Toyotas or Hondas. One giant dealership network moving metal.
+1 to tpandw
Fritz is in an incredibly difficult position, and he has to be very careful what he says. He has to sound forceful and sincere to the public, but not to contradict his Chairman or to say anything that would annoy the government and UAW shareholders. Unlike some of the others here, I do get the impression that he understands the magnitude of the task ahead of him. Whether he has the skills and the tools to get the job done…that’s impossible to tell so soon.
I take that (extremely brief, edited) comment about market share to mean that he thinks he has the product, marketing, and business plan to maintain the current market share and be profitable doing it. I’m dubious, but from his choice of words it sounds like Fritz is taking a stand against those who were arguing to let GM’s share fall–perhaps to 15 or 16 percent–in order to reduce marketing/incentive costs and try to find a “natural” level in the US market.
The market may have a different idea about what share is sustainable, however, and if Whitacre is agitating to reduce incentives, I don’t see how GM can remain at 19 percent. If you take away Pontiac, Saturn, Saab, and Hummer, GM’s share is already more like 18 percent.
He has to sound forceful and sincere to the public, but not to contradict his Chairman or to say anything that would annoy the government and UAW shareholders.
Well maybe thats one thing that has changed then. In the old GM senior managers and executives were contradicting each other left and right. In fact they contradicted themselves all the time.
“It’s the product, Stupid!”
Build an affordable, superior vehicle and the market share will take care of itself,
with no hard-boiled egg-heads with mustaches needed.
Are there ANY photos of Fritz where he doesn’t have his arms crossed? Shouldn’t someone in GM pull him aside and tell him how defensive and closed minded that pose makes him appear? Seriously! It must have hurt like hell to give birth to him with his arms crossed like that.
Autosavant :
“It’s the product, Stupid!”
Build an affordable, superior vehicle and the market share will take care of itself, with no hard-boiled egg-heads with mustaches needed.
Indeed. And I think the mustache is getting bigger, in a 70’s sort of way. Could sideburns be far behind?
jthorner :
Fritz is in so far over his head it isn’t funny. And, he doesn’t know it.
He may be in over his head, but I’m almost certain that the mustache can be used as a floatation device.
“Plans for market share”?
Exactly. Ask me how my “plans for dating supermodels” is going…
“And I think the mustache is getting bigger”
To match his nose?
“He is the Walrus! Chu-chuchu-choo!” or whatever