CEO: GM needs to get further, faster

On March 30, President Obama made it very clear where he stood with regard to federal aid for the U.S. auto industry. In the case of General Motors, we’ve made meaningful progress since accepting federal loans on Dec. 31, but we understand that our overall restructuring plan did not move fast enough or deep enough to warrant substantial new government support. Tough medicine, especially given the painful cuts we’ve already made, but in the end we simply need to go further, and faster! We get it, we’re on it and we’ll get the job done — out of court, if possible; in court, if necessary — but we absolutely will get it done.

 So where do we stand today?

{mosads}Since the first of the year, we’ve taken a hard look at everything we do at GM, from the products we make to the way we sell them. Nothing has escaped scrutiny, and everyone with a stake in the company — from management to unions, retirees to debt holders, dealers to suppliers — has been asked to make sacrifices to reinvent the company.

Among other things, we’re already well on our way to selling or eliminating three brands (Hummer, Saab and Saturn); reducing a fourth of our dealerships; shuttering more than a dozen U.S. manufacturing plants; working with the United Auto Workers to achieve U.S. labor cost competitiveness in 2009; and cutting more than 21,000 U.S. salaried and hourly jobs this year alone.

Now, following the president’s comments, we’re redoubling these efforts — going deeper where we can, faster where we must — to meet the requirements and expectations of the president and his Automotive Task Force.

Of course, more important than what we restructure is what it allows us to focus on down the road. Going forward, our clear focus at GM will be on building fewer, better cars and trucks — the kind Americans aspire to own. We’re talking about cars like the Cadillac CTS, the 2008 Motor Trend Car of the Year; Chevy Malibu, the 2008 North American Car of the Year; and the Buick LaCrosse, which J.D. Power and Associates recently named the most dependable midsize car in America. In the future, all GM products will measure up to the standards of these examples — or they’ll be gone.

At GM, we’re also focused on restoring consumer confidence in both our company and our cars. As a start, we’re now offering to protect the trade-in value of GM products, as well as make up to nine car payments for GM customers who lose their income. Beyond that, the federal government has agreed to stand behind GM’s vehicle warranties, which are already the best in the industry.

Also very important, we at GM are keenly focused on improving the overall fuel efficiency of our cars and trucks. In fact, over the next five years, every new product we offer in the U.S. will be a fuel-efficient car or crossover — and this is in addition to the 20 models we now offer that get 30 miles per gallon or more on the highway. Our new products will include more hybrids, more FlexFuel vehicles and more cars like the Chevy Cruze and Beat concept — two high-mileage passenger cars on display at the New York Auto Show, and on their way to dealer showrooms in the U.S.

Our new products will also include the upcoming Chevy Volt extended-range electric car, due out by the end of 2010. The Volt represents a major shift away from our industry’s traditionally heavy reliance on petroleum, and a giant step toward energy independence. In many ways, it is emblematic of how we’re reinventing GM and shifting our focus back to the consumer.

In the end, we at GM recognize the great opportunity and challenge before us, and appreciate the support we’ve received from President Obama and the U.S. government. When we accepted federal loans last December, we became — literally and figuratively — indebted to the American public, and we at GM are fully committed to transforming the company into what America wants and needs us to be.

Our goal is to turn around our company, and turn around the country’s opinion of what we stand for and what we are capable of doing. We have a lot to do to get to that point, but we have every intention of doing what it takes — and whatever it takes — to become what we once were: a recognized leader in automotive technology, a powerful engine for economic growth and a source of pride for every American.

Frederick A. Henderson is the president and CEO of General Motors Corp. He took the reins from Rick Wagoner on March 31.