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US Auto Manufacturer Company And CEO Report Card

Glassdoor Team — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 17:49:03 +0000

It’s been a tumultuous couple of years for the big 3 US auto manufacturers. Between the government bailouts, CEO changes and rough economy, it’s enough to make anyone’s head spin. But as we watch from the outside, it’s those on the inside – the employees – who have been faced with the challenge of helping their respective employer ride out the recession. So how do employees at Ford, General Motors and Chrysler feel their automaker employer and top boss (or bosses in some cases) are performing? Glassdoor.com reports¹.

Are employees satisfied with how their CEOs are leading the company?

When employees of these three automakers responded to: “do you approve of how your CEO is leading the company?”, Ford’s CEO Alan Mulally topped approval ratings. In the automaker company analysis, which looks at how these CEOs and companies compare this past year compared to the year prior, Mulally receives a 96% approval rating between mid- August 2009 and mid-August 2010, up from 86% the same time frame a year before.

GM’s now former CEO, Ed Whitacre, who stepped down today, was also an employee favorite with a 90% approval rating. The company has seen three CEOs in the last two years alone and previous CEO, Fritz Henderson, did not fare as well with employees as Whitacre – he teetered between a 67% approval rating in early 2009 and a 52% approval rating later the same year. Henderson’s predecessor, Rick Waggoner Jr., was ousted from office by President Obama and held a 55% approval rating during his tenure between Summer 2008 and Spring 2009.

Chrysler has also seen shifting in leadership over the past two years. Bob Nardelli, who stepped down in April 2009 following public scrutiny, received a 31% approval rating. Sergio Marchionne, the current Chrysler CEO has started to improve the relationship with employees, and has a 56% approval rating since August 2009.

Note: Chrysler CEO Bob Nardelli stepped down April 2009; He was replaced by Sergio Marchionne in June 2009. General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner Jr. stepped down March 2009; He was replaced by Fritz Henderson. Fritz Henderson stepped down December 2009; He was replaced by Ed Whitacre who stepped down September 2010. Whitacre has been replaced by Daniel Akerson)

How satisfied are employees with jobs and companies?

Based on employee reviews, Ford has made the greatest strides in the past year, earning a 3.6 company rating compared to a 3.0 rating at the same time last year. Chrysler has also taken a step forward according to employees, earning a 3.1 rating up from 2.7 the year before. However, General Motors has fallen slightly – this year the company received a 2.9 rating, down from 3.0 the year before.

When we take a deeper look into the company satisfaction ratings, there’s a lot more going on beneath the surface. For example, Chrysler improved or held steady across all of the eight workplace factors evaluated in the Glassdoor online survey, like career opportunities or compensation & benefits. Employees at Ford reported greater satisfaction in all but one of the eight workplace factors; in this past year, employee morale and senior leadership showed the most improvement. General Motors saw workplace ratings fall in three categories, including recognition & feedback, work/life balance and fairness & respect.

What is in store this next year for automakers is anyone’s guess. While news has been heating up with stories of demand for energy efficient vehicles and increased hiring, it’s countered with recalls and quarterly earnings losses. But, if employee sentiment is any indication of future success, Ford is looking the most optimistic.

¹ Report evaluates company and CEO approval ratings submitted between 8/16/2008 to 8/15/2009 and 8/16/2009 and 8/15/2010. Company and CEO approval ratings in this report are based on at least 20 employee ratings per year; Note, both Sergio Marchionne and Ed Whitacre received less than 20 approval ratings between 8/16/2009 and 8/15/2010.

US Auto Manufacturer Company And CEO Report Card is a post from: Glassdoor Blog

Ford Motor: Test Drive from an Employee’s Perspective

Glassdoor Team — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 17:02:46 +0000

Ford Motor has been pushing a lot of glitz and glamour out to the consumer market recently. Just yesterday the company said that they would be providing “The Jay Leno Show” with its all-new battery electric Ford Focus for a season-long contest called the Green Car Challenge, which will involve a series of well-known celebrities. And throughout the past few months we’ve seen Mike Rowe, commonly known for his Dirty Jobs show on the Discovery Channel, helping Ford (through advertising) rise from the ashes as the company powers through one of the toughest times in its existence.

CEO Alan Mulally, who has a 69% approval rating, has been credited with steering the automaker’s turnaround and has won an endorsement for an indefinite tenure from Ford’s chairman and the founding family’s senior representative at the company. But, as Mulally gets hailed for his achievements and Ford marketing is going full bore to reinvent itself in the eyes of consumers, are employees feeling the spark to live up to the ‘Ford challenge’?

A Ford Motor financial analyst from Dearborn, Michigan, winner of the August review of the month, shows that the Ford challenge is actually what may keep employees coming back to work day after day. The employee writes of his division: “Ford Finance is a highly regarded organization with a lot of strong processes and opportunities to learn. They like to rotate employees through different jobs every couple of years which is great for not getting stale and allowing for career development. Keeps things interesting.”

But job seekers beware, if you are a recent grad, the Ford challenge may not be right for you. In advice to senior management, the winning review points out that the company is losing a lot of top young talent who are choosing to go back to school full-time to pursue an MBA. To keep talent within the employee roster, the reviewer suggests bringing back a program that provides tuition assistance.

How do you feel Ford is doing? Have you driven a Ford lately?

Ford Motor: Test Drive from an Employee’s Perspective is a post from: Glassdoor Blog

GM CEO Ousted; CEO Approval Ratings Were Up

Glassdoor Team — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 16:29:46 +0000

Last night General Motor’s CEO Rick Wagoner was ousted from office in a move that was prompted by the government. As the Wall Street Journal reports “The Obama administration used the threat of withholding more bailout money to force out General Motors Corp. Chief Executive Rick Wagoner and administer harsh medicine to Chrysler LLC, marking one of the most dramatic government interventions in private industry since the economic crisis began last year.”

When we last reported in December on the CEOs for the three major US auto manufacturers, we analyzed employee sentiment around the pending government bailout and found that many employees had pride for their jobs and work but were frustrated – and even embarrassed – with the current situation, the number of management layers and poor decision-making processes.

It’s interesting that throughout the past three months, all CEO approval ratings have increased at least 2 percentage points and most of the companies’ ratings remained stable except for a very slight drop at Ford and GM.

Glassdoor Report: Top 3 US Automakers Comparison (data based on employee sentiment)
	Company Rating (Max: 5 Pts.) 3/30/2009	Company Rating (Max: 5 Pts.) 12/10/2008	CEO	CEO Approval Rating 3/30/2009	CEO Approval Rating 12/10/2008	CEO Disapproval Rating 3/30/2009	CEO Disapproval Rating 12/10/2008
Chrysler	2.6	2.6	Bob Nardelli	25%	17%	62%	66%
Ford	3.0	3.1	Alan R. Mulally	65%	63%	14%	14%
GM	3.1	3.2	Rick Wagoner	45%	42%	33%	32%

Focusing back on GM’s Rick Wagoner, our question becomes whether or not employees sensed this impending change. According to some employees a change within management was the right thing to do.

Just a couple weeks ago, a General Motor’s Product Manager (Detroit, MI) writes in “Do some serious house cleaning within the Exec ranks before the company implodes.”

We also observed a General Motors Marketing Manager (Detroit, MI) comment that “market conditions are making it very stressful – also still a lot of old school management style – more and more is going away though…”

So what can General Motors do moving forward to improve? Employees provide the following suggestions:

“Look at the long term view of the company. In all my years with the company, everything was always looked at in the short term.” – General Motors Senior Manufacturing Engineer (Flint, MI)

“Listen to your employees who are doing the job, quit [smothering] them with meetings and paperwork.” – General Motors Maintenance General Supervisor (Location n/a)

“Quit pulling from the same schools unless you want the same results. Decentralize if you want plants to compete against one another to see who is really the best!!!” – General Motors Manufacturing Engineer (Detroit, MI)

“Give people a chance to perform. Don’t assume they need to have ‘Manager’ or ‘Director’ in their title to be capable of good-decision making.” – Anonymous (Detroit, MI)

“The geographic location of GM limits the talent it can attract. Move to an attractive location and reap the financial benefits (and cull the workforce). The very best employees can work wherever they want. Very few will want to live in the Detroit area.” – General Motors Senior Systems Analyst (Location n/a)

President Obama is expected to make a formal announcement later today about his plans for Chrysler and GM, which have already been given $17.4 billion. In a CNN report, it states that GM will get 60 days and Chrysler 30 days in which to make a final push toward proving they can run viable businesses. If Chrysler succeeds, it will receive a $6 billion loan. In GM’s case, the officials would not specify how much money the carmaker might receive.

GM CEO Ousted; CEO Approval Ratings Were Up is a post from: Glassdoor Blog