General Motors Company, commonly called as GM is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world. It is an American multinational corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan. It has business operations in more than 157 countries around the Globe. It was founded in 1908 as General Motors Corporation; and renamed as General Motors in 2009. The top brands of the company include Chevrolet, Isuzu, GMC, Jie Fang, Cadillac, Vauxhall, Baojun, Buick, Holden, Opel, and Wuling. General Motors operates through fully-owned subsidiaries and joint ventures outside the United States. It has currently employed more than 212,000 individuals from different nationalities and regions that work in 396 different facilities and sections (General Motors, 2013).
General Motors is the largest automaker in the world on the basis of sales volume. It has around 21,000 dealers and business associated in all the six operating regions of the world. General Motors enjoys strong brand equity and….

The second decision was implemented and the same treatment would be applied to both Opel and Vauxhall. The first alternative would not have been extremely viable for the simple reason that both German and British manufacturers are subjected to the same environmental features and this means that there is no logic reason as to why they should be treated separately; they both fall under regulations of the European Community, they both pose risks of financial losses and they both could revive and support the company's overcoming of the crisis.
Having made the decision of how to treat the two companies in relationship to each other, a question is now being posed relative to what the Detroit headquarters should decide in terms of the future of Opel and Vauxhall as integrant parties of General Motors. On the one hand, the parent organization considered selling the two subsidiaries and as such renouncing….

"
Conclusion

Overall GM is currently confronting some of the most difficult obstacles that it has ever had to overcome. Government intervention is no guarantee that the company will be able to overcome these obstacles. Billions of dollars have been given to the company in an effort to save it from further demise. However, capital alone will not save the company, there must be a strategic effort of the management to properly restructure the company to ensure that GM can recover. Such a recover is going to require a very specific Strategic Plan. Such a plan will be detailed thoroughly in the remainder of this report.

Chapter III Strategic Plan

Strategic Plan

Although there is a great deal of negativity surrounding GM and the ability of the company to recover from its current situation, with the proper strategic plan the company can improve its situation. However, to develop an effective strategic plan the company must….

The crisis affects all aspects of life, but among the most prominent victims of the difficulties was the automobile industry. Once the largest employer of the country, the automobile makers are now closing their plants and sending the workers into unemployment. The aim of this paper was to look at General Motors' microenvironment in light of the crisis and establish if the media coverage of the crisis within the automobile industry is accurate. Sadly, the findings indicate that General Motors is indeed facing some of its most drastic challenges since its foundation.
The American automobile and engine manufacturer is facing reduced sales and a declining stock price, which generates a need to reduce costs. This has been attempted through the commencement of downsizing processes, but it is less likely that the current approach will suffice. What has to be noted however about General Motors is that their difficulties emerged before….

Although some external players, such as potential new executives, may prefer this plan, there is little evidence that the major stakeholders have interest in major culture change.
The third alternative is to place emphasis on operational issues first and foremost. Under terms of its new deal with the UA, GM will be closing plants and shedding workers, and it is trying to sell off some of its underperforming units (Hummer, Opel, Saab, Saturn and Vauxhall). This alternative thus places less emphasis on market and corporate transformation and more on making the company truly leaner but reducing supply chain inefficiencies. This will also allow them to focus marketing efforts on their core brands, which will help them recapture some of the market share they have lost in recent years. This option assumes that dealing with legacy issues was just the first step to improving the company's finances, that culture change is….

hen the sales of all American SUVs began to plummet as the price of fuel escalated, GM was the hardest-hit of all the Detroit-based auto manufactures. In 2006, GM recorded the second-largest loss of any corporation in U.S. history ("General Motors, 2008, Histomobile). On December 21, 1955 it was the first American company to make over one billion dollars in a year ("General Motors," 2008, Histomobile).
Today, GM "is feeling good about the automaker's progress, especially in the troubled heart of its business: making and selling cars in North America," as it reached a historic agreement with the United Auto orkers "to push responsibility for retiree health care off GM's books, a burden" that had been adding an estimated "$1,400 to the cost of every car and truck" GM manufactured in North America (Taylor 2008:1). But only time will tell if the latest GM cars designed to create new consumers….

General Motors and Honda Financial Analysis
This text seeks to compare the finances of General Motors (GM) to those of Honda Motors (HMC) in an attempt to determine why the latter has been more successful than the former. In so doing, the paper will amongst other things utilize a number of financial management concepts and measures of performance including but not limited to financial ratios and managerial capabilities.

Although the biggest headache for GM right now could be its stock price which is essentially on a retreat, the company's second quarter earnings were also not impressive. According to Mespell (2012), GM's "second quarter earnings plunged by nearly half." The company's market share has also been on a downward trend so far.

GM's lagging performance can be attributed to a number of things. To begin with, the number of new models the company has churned out in recent times are quite a few (in….

General Motors Company and Alternatives to ealize Growth
Value discipline

According to management theorists Treacy and Wiersema, companies must always ask how they can provide value to their customers (Value Disciplines Model, 2011, Value-Based Management). Such value may be provided by operational excellence -- for example, a company that provides a high-quality product at a relatively low price, because of its ability to capitalize upon efficiency and brand marketing due to economies of scale. A company can also provide value to the customer through offering customer intimacy, or through product leadership by offering a unique type of item. However, due to the size of companies such as General Motors, its value discipline model must be based in its operational excellence. In the highly competitive market of car sales, offering low prices and/or high quality (and preferably both) by operating on an economy of scale is the only way to succeed.

Generic strategy

In the….

"Workers like the flexibility, but not if they have to trade off guaranteed hours, health insurance or a secure retirement.
" the reality of the independent contractor relationship for the new hiree excludes paid vacations or sick days, health insurance or tuition assistance. Additionally, because of increased competition for jobs, most new contractors are working for about twenty percent lower wages than just a few years ago.

A large concern for new hires is that companies often misclassify contract workers as independent contractors in an effort to avoid paying benefits. The more control a company has over the hiree, the more likely the hiree is an employee of the company and not an independent contractor. Therefore employees who were fired and are being brought back to perform the same job in the same conditions for less pay on a contract basis is still an employee regardless of classification. However, according to….

After years of unquestioned industry dominance, GM was not prepared to shift its approach to making cars to cope with the competitive edge possessed by Japanese automotive manufactures such as Toyota since the 1980s. "To be sure, GM has seen sales jump from time to time, but always because of costly incentives, like zero-interest financing after the Sept. 11 attacks, or the 'employee pricing' last summer. Ford and Chrysler have been forced to follow GM's lead on incentives, though the Asian automakers have largely avoided them by offering more attractive vehicles." (Isidore, "Many problems dog the No. 1 automaker," 2005) More attractive vehicles do not necessarily mean more luxurious vehicles -- far from it. Rather by offering inexpensive, reliable and mid-sized cars tailored to the average consumer desiring fuel efficiency, Toyota has gained an industry edge. It anticipated the desires of the public, and also deploys a largely non-union workforce,….

GM's market share is a source of strength because it provides the company with considerable muscle and brand recognition. That is leads the Chinese market and is a major player in the U.S. market provides it with opportunities for economies of scale, and to introduce new products. The company's size gives is considerable bargaining power with suppliers. This in turn allows it some degree of cost control, especially now that legacy costs have been reduced. In addition, GM has a high degree of brand recognition. hile its reputation is not always good, the names are well-known to consumers around the world.

GM's reputation does need to be considered a weakness. The company's reputation for quality is lower than that of competitors, which makes it difficult to shift towards any strategy other than cost leadership. GM is at present unsure of its vision. hile the case was made above why this is….

Direction of the Business During the economic downturn of the global economic crisis (2008-2010), General Motors (GM) was adversely impacted by a failure to downsize its operations and focus on core products. As Yip and Hult (2012) note, GM marketed too many models around the world at time when a consolidation strategy was needed. Toyota, for example, succeeded in focusing on core models and even though it sold fewer units it was not hit as hard by the economic downturn. GM on the other hand “fragmented its development funds” and as a result the company “in its effort to increase global efficiencies in cost and design, continues to struggle in its proliferation efforts” (Yip, Hult, 2012, p. 18).
Core strategy. The core strategy of GM at this point is to reduce costs and maximize profitability—the aim being to achieve “9- to 10-percent margins on an EBIT-adjusted basis by early next decade” (GM, 2014).….

What is Strategy? Strategy represents the development of an advantageous, unique position, entailing diverse activities. An ideally-positioned organization requires no strategy. At strategic positioning’s core is doing activities competitors aren’t. If identical activities proved effective in manufacturing every variety, accessing every client, and satisfying every need, one could conveniently shift between them; further, efficacy of operations would prove to be a performance determinant. Strategy success relies on doing a large number of tasks well and ensuring integration among them. The lack of a fit between activities implies weak sustainability and the absence of a unique strategy. Consequently, management goes back to the easier activity of supervising independent functions, (Porter, 1996).
What does strategy mean to you?
Strategy implies trade-offs within competition. Its crux is deciding what to refrain from doing. In the absence of trade-offs, one requires no alternatives or strategy. All sound notions can be swiftly reproduced. As mentioned earlier, efficacy of….

The company's $291 billion in debt has recently been downgraded to below investment grade and it has about $16.5 billion of debt coming due this year (Snide). GM and General Motors Acceptance Corp (GMAC)., the carmaker's finance unit, each have about $23 billion of cash available. In addition, the company had about $50 billion in unused credit facilities at the end of last year. The company must carefully watch its cash and liquidity position and, if need be, raise additional cash. A painful, but obvious opportunity is the sell of GMAC.
ibliography

Porretto, J. (2005, May 7). GM's Wagoner needs quick turnaround. Associated Press. Retrieved May 9, 2005 from Web site: http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/050507/gm_s_future.html?.v=2

Robison, P. (2005, May 6). GM, Ford stumbled to junk on designs, unions, Japan's challenge. loomberg. Retrieved May 9, 2005 from Web site: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000087&sid=ar0Cm.CPxVWM&refer=top_world_news

Snide, M. (2005, March 22). Godzilla V.Mothra: General Motors's debt vosts durge as GE pulls support. The….

Still, the future stated goal of GM is to develop an electric or hybrid version in all of its existing brands lines -- Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC.
Outcome of changes

GM's most notable success has been overseas, where it is currently ahead of all of its competitors in the rapidly expanding Chinese market. "While GM is outpacing Ford in overseas competition, GM cannot solely depend on China for growth. While the emerging market contributed to GM's global recovery last year with 2.3 million in sales, it may not experience the same momentum this year [2011] because the Chinese government has ended incentives on small cars and rural purchases" (Benedicto 2011). Still, evidence of GM's health is seen in the fact that it recently announced that it will issue profit-sharing checks this month for hourly workers, the largest in a decade (Vlasic & Bunkley 2011:1). Talks with the UAW will soon….