Five lessons to learn from GM
Ray Allegrezza, Editor in Chief -- Furniture Today, June 8, 2009
I know most of you probably weren't in the market for a new car, but congratulations! You may not actually be holding the keys to that new ride, but thanks to GM's bankruptcy, all of America will end up owning some 60% of the troubled auto maker.
So, why is General Motors the subject of my column? Cars, like furniture, are high-ticket purchases, so perhaps there are lessons we can learn from our troubled friends in Detroit. Here is my short list of long, hard lessons, compliments of GM:
1. Your mother was right when she told you, “The bigger they are, the harder they fall.” Sorry to be blunt, but for years GM has suffered from a severe case of hubris.
Somewhere in the journey to the top, the company forgot what made it great in the first place. The end result was that it started turning out products that, in one word, were inferior. The styling wasn't cutting-edge, and performance and quality weren't top-notch, yet GM continued to posture as if it were a world-class company making world-class vehicles.
2. The best slogans in the world will not cover up a mediocre product. Standouts include: “Buick — It's all good.” Or from Cadillac — “Creating a higher standard.” And, “This is not your father's Oldsmobile.”
3. Know your market, know your customer. Even when it was crystal clear that Americans wanted fuel-efficient vehicles, GM proved it had lost touch by continuing to mass produce gas-guzzling, tank-sized SUVs. “Hummer — like nothing else.”
4. Sometimes saying you're sorry just isn't enough. Late last year, while it was asking the government for billions in bailout dollars, GM took an ad in Automotive News to apologize for letting its quality and designs fall below industry standards.
5. Clean up the mess in your own backyard before you tackle new horizons. Despite being in the midst of a meltdown here at home, GM China continues to pour money into new plants in China and Thailand.
How the mighty have fallen. Please, let's not go down that same road.
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