THE SWIRLING MAELSTROM ENVELOPING GM.

By Peter M. De Lorenzo

Detroit. In last week’s column, I observed that this business “has become overrun with cover-your-ass practitioners, detached ‘it doesn’t affect me so why should I care?’ drones, seedy financial robots, woefully underqualified marketing ‘experts,’ mindless order takers and malicious, carpetbagging interlopers who are only out for themselves.”

And the real question is why? As in why can’t this business pull its head out of its ass long enough to become a shining beacon of innovation and manufacturing might again, and on a consistent basis? Why can’t it do better, or be better? What are the operational, built-in obstacles preventing the U.S. industry from rising above its ingrained reputation for serial mediocrity?

The genuine leaders and True Believers immersed in this business can see the risk-taking and the innovation happening all around them, but why isn’t the story being told? Or if it is being told, why is it being told in such fits and starts that it is resonating with hardly anyone? 

Perhaps it's because beyond the gaudy sales numbers that this business is trumpeting right now, which, when it comes right down to it is “inside baseball” stuff that the outside world couldn’t care less about, the real news about this industry continues to be bad, as in dismal.

How bad? As much as GM execs would love to put it behind them, the ignition recall and its aftermath is still front and center to the outside world, and its effects are going to run deep for a long time to come. And now that we have the coldly calculated – and apparently rampant – diesel engine emissions rules violations engineered by VW to consider, let’s face it, the auto industry as a whole has a massive image problem. So massive is this image problem in fact, that the unenlightened are ready to cede the entire business to Silicon Valley, having no idea what that would mean to the industrial fabric of this country.

And as much as everyone involved in this business wishes this strife would blow over and are eager to put it behind them once and for all, the likelihood of that actually happening is slim and none, which makes it a giant, stinkin’ bowl of Not Good.

The hard questions and top topics of the moment that define this industry are constantly changing and redirecting, and that is no more evident than at GM. Why? Because the company is rapidly approaching the “never have so many done so little with so much” stage. After all, this is a company that directly benefited from the largesse of the U.S. government and the American taxpayer – aka you and me – and what, exactly, has it done to deserve it since then?

On the positive side, Mark Reuss has the GM Product Development troops firing on all cylinders and they’re doing superb work, as is GM Design under Ed Welburn’s tutelage. Oh, if that were only enough, however. Despite intermittent flashes of hope and brilliance, the rest of GM’s problems are simply monumental.

Let’s begin with the dichotomy going on at Cadillac. On the one hand the True Believers are delivering sensational “V”-Series cars, fantastic machines that are not only in the discussion when it comes to the subject of the world’s best high-performance cars, they in fact legitimately play second fiddle to no other manufacturer in their segments.

And that’s all well and good, but what does that have to do with the future success of Cadillac? Not much. Why? Because Cadillac will not be able to dine on low-volume, enthusiast hero cars for sustenance, and given the time, engineering work and development money to bring those brilliantly conceived cars to market, the numbers just don’t add up.

So then what? Well, in this era of cheap gas and advantageous financing, the Escalade is Cadillac’s raison d’etre. As a matter of fact without the Escalade, Cadillac wouldn’t be making any money to speak of – at all. The ATS and the CTS are barely limping along and the soon-to-depart SRX is flying off the lots only because of cut-rate deals. As for the upcoming CT6, it is a crap-shoot because its “restrained” styling is nothing to write home about. As in not memorable. To make matters worse for Cadillac, the brace of new crossovers in the pipeline are a long way away from having an impact on the division’s bottom line.

Not exactly a thrilling endorsement for the brand, is it? Excellent new products may not be enough to save Cadillac, let alone launch it on an upward trajectory for the future. And that is a very sad reality to contemplate. 

After Cadillac, the Chevrolet brand actually has several first-rate entries in the market and more coming. But here again, excellent new products from the True Believers at GM may not be enough for Chevrolet. Why? Because Chevrolet – like all of General Motors – suffers from piss-poor marketing. “Find New Roads” is simply not powerful enough for one of America’s iconic automotive brands. It’s a campaign that leads to nowhere and says nothing. And the wildly erratic advertising executions only serve to underscore that fact.

And Buick is doing glorified national dealer advertising that might be effective at the Tier 2 level but it is simply grating and flat-out annoying as national advertising. And this from a brand that actually says (with a straight face no less) that it is, “an international modern luxury brand offering vehicles with sculpted designs, luxurious interiors and thoughtful personal technologies, along with responsive-yet-efficient performance.”

Really? There are at least a dozen car brands that could claim those exact positioning words. So basically what GM marketers are really saying is that they don’t have the slightest idea as to what they’re doing with the brand. A more accurate product statement for Buick? “Look, we exist because of the Chinese market so if we want to do glorified dealer advertising at the national level what difference does it make? We’ll just keep throwing stuff up on the wall to see what sticks. In the meantime, can you believe it’s a Buick?!”

And GMC seems to be taking the path of emulating Cadillac, using visually similar spots to convey that the brand is luxurious and a cut above, etc. And it deigns to do that while creating singularly forgettable advertising at every turn. GMC products are actually desirable, but they’re selling despite the advertising, not because of it.

As I said last July: “Unfortunately in the transition from Akerson’s departure to Mary Barra’s ascendency something got lost, and that cloud of derisiveness hanging over the marketing function at GM remains intact. No more ‘rock star’ CMOs became ‘no more CMOs’ period, and it's incomprehensible that this situation still grips the company. The current climate in the GM executive suite suggests that it’s either a ‘we’re too busy to bother with it’ dismissiveness, or, ‘our siloed divisions are getting along just fine without adding another body to the executive hierarchy,’ but whatever the reasons it isn’t working. As a matter of fact, GM looks ridiculous for it and it has become simply unfathomable that it has dragged on this long.”

GM is the largest corporate entity in the world without a functioning CMO and I am reminded of that fact every day as I look at the fool's parade of ineffectual advertising and marketing missteps.

Dan “I’m the next Chairman just watch me” Ammann insists that the company has its act together and that its days of being all things to all people and chasing segments that the company doesn’t belong in are over. But I’m not buying that for a second. Why? Because when it comes to advertising and marketing a giant void still exists at the top of the company, so how can the collective brain trust at GM possibly make reasoned decisions on segments and marketing when no one appears to have a clue as to what they’re doing? Quite simply the people making defacto marketing and advertising decisions at the top of GM are making it look like amateur hour, and there’s really no excuse for it. 

But as bad as all of that is – and believe me it’s reprehensible - the swirling maelstrom of chaos that defines GM’s Public Relations function almost defies comprehension and the woeful lack of strategic direction is glaringly apparent and costing the company dearly. The evidence?

The orchestrated campaign to make Mary Barra look “statesperson like” is weak and embarrassingly ineffectual. The planted puff pieces, the orchestrated town halls, the syrupy tweets, it’s all so transparent that it has become almost painful to watch. Barra is simply ill equipped for a lot of it, which isn’t a knock on her or an assessment of the job she’s doing, but it is a convincing reminder that some CEOs are better than others when it comes to communicating and "the image thing."

And although Barra's naivete about all of this is borderline shocking it shouldn’t be because much of it, after all, is not her fault and it actually is her first rodeo. It’s human nature to naturally gravitate to whoever makes you feel good or look good. Which in Barra’s case is Not Good, unfortunately.

GM PR has employed three – count ‘em – three separate PR support agencies with the clear marching orders revolving around the “Selling of Mary.” This encompasses everything from social media forays to creating unexpected “stunts” that are designed to make Barra – and GM – look hip, approachable and cool. And much of it is excruciatingly amateurish, if not flat-out dreadful. And I’m being exceedingly kind.

GM was once considered too big to fail. But it did. And unfortunately too many of the "old" GM's bad tendencies are alive and well.

The swirling maelstrom enveloping GM is scary.

And that’s the High-Octane Truth for this week.

Editor's Note: Watch "Episode 2" of AutoextremistTV on YouTube here. -WG