GM CANADA CHIEF DISCUSSES PRODUCT, RECALL STRATEGY AND THE FUTURE OF AUTO RETAILING
Kevin Williams
PG: Kevin, what’s it like to report to Mary Barra — the first female CEO of a major car
company?
KW: For General Motors this is a tremendous opportunity to demonstrate not only that Mary is a good leader, but that she is one of the best of-the-best in the industry at what she does. And having worked with Mary for many years — she’s a perfect choice for GM. She has the technical skills. She has the leadership skills. She’s a phenomenal leader in every regard. And we’re excited at General Motors that we’re the first in the industry to have a female leader — one who just happens to be the absolute best executive in the world!
PG: She hasn’t been at the helm for very long — how is she changing GM’s corporate
culture?
KW: She’s bringing a lot of energy to the company. She’s bringing the culture of General Motors to the absolute best that it can be in terms of our focus on the customer, in terms of how we look at how we do our jobs every day, both inside and outside of our company.
PG: GM’s product portfolio has witnessed a major overhaul — can you talk about the changes?
KW: At the core of the new General Motors is a simple objective: to make sure everything we do is about the customer. That means we have to design, build, and sell the best products in the world. It’s about not creating good or competitive products — it’s about competing to be the best in every segment. The C7 Corvette is a great example — it’s the best-of-the-best that we can do. Putting the customer at the centre and making an affordable product for every customer with the best technology, is where we need to be to compete with the world’s best vehicles and win. That’s what the new GM is all about. And it’s not just Corvette. We’re bringing fresh new product to all four of our brands: Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, and Cadillac. The Cadillac lineup speaks for itself. In Canada, Cadillac sales were up 50 per cent last year and we’re already tracking ahead for 2014 — a demonstration that, when you do it the right way, you can win. You can’t talk about a new GM without the world’s best product being at the centre of everything you’re doing.
PG: When it comes to selling cars, what’s more important — a physical car lot or a virtual
one?
KW: My perspective is that you need them both. We’re in a transition phase as an industry. Is there a vision that someday the virtual showroom will replace the physical one? Perhaps. But today, as we sit in this transitional period, it’s critical that we connect with customers in the way they want to interact with us. But once they want to make that transaction, we must ensure that we handle it with great care, making sure we’re able to deliver the best customer experience in the world. And if we do that every day for every single customer, every single time, it makes us the best in the world.
PG: What’s in store for GM’s manufacturing plants in Oshawa, Ont?
KW: We believe we have the best manufacturing operations in the world. Our manufacturing facilities in Canada have won virtually every kind of award you can win whether it was quality, reliability, safety, efficiency, and productivity. While I’m not able to make an announcement about the future of these facilities (obviously for competitive
reasons) I would say we’ve developed a manufacturing prowess here in Canada and an excellence in quality, safety, productivity, and cost effectiveness. We’re going to use that to our advantage to create the world’s best vehicles and we’re excited to be doing it right here in Canada for Canadians.
PG: GM has been in the spotlight for recent recalls, but you’re not alone — manufacturers across the board have had major recalls including Chrysler, Ford, and Toyota. Do you think we have safer vehicles now because of all these recent recalls?
KW: It’s our obligation to make sure that customers are cared for, the vehicles are safe and reliable, and if there is ever an issue that it’s best to be extremely proactive at informing the customer to prevent accidents from happening in the future.
Certainly the entire industry is more sensitive than it has been relative to safety. Manufacturers have been recalling lots of vehicles but you can’t say that you’re putting the customer ahead of every other priority without making sure that vehicle safety and reliability are also at the forefront. That’s what it’s about in this industry. There’s certainly others that have recalled more vehicles than General Motors has, but I think it is about putting the customer first in priority sequence, something that’s important for every manufacturer, not just General Motors.
