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Henderson quits GM after 8 months
by Ishita Sood - December 2, 2009 - comments
GM CEO, Fritz Henderson, resigned Tuesday since the automaker wasn't moving as fast as expected in his tenure
Detroit, December 2 -- General Motors CEO, Fritz Henderson, resigned unexpectedly Tuesday after serving the nation’s largest automaker for eight months, the shortest service at GM since 1912.
The news was delivered at 2 p.m. Detroit time by Edward Whitacre Jr., who was appointed as GM board chairman earlier this year. Whitacre will be serving as the interim chief executive till a permanent replacement is found.
The search for a new CEO “begins immediately,” said Whitacre in a statement released by GM.
Henderson’s tenure
Henderson, 51, who built his career as a financial manager, joined GM in March when the Obama administration showed the door to predecessor Rick Wagoner.
On Tuesday, the board gave Henderson a 100-day review of his performance. According to a source who requested not be identified, his departure stunned executives.
Henderson was under a lot of pressure to get GM back on track as the company has reported losses worth $88 billion since 2004.
Under his tumultuous tenure, GM generated $3.3 billion cash in the third quarter and had plans to start repayments of the $6.7 billion federal loan.
Shortly after becoming CEO, Henderson said that he was looking forward to the day when GM would repay taxpayers for their $50 billion investment.
"One of the saddest days in my career was when we needed to borrow money from the U.S. taxpayer. And I'm quite convinced that one of the happiest days of my career is when we repay it," he had then told CNN.
What Whitacre has to say
Whitacre, while announcing Henderson’s departure said, “GM's daily business operations will continue as normal. ... I remain more convinced than ever that our company is on the right path and that we will continue to be a leader in offering the worldwide buying public the highest quality, highest value cars and trucks.
“But we now need to accelerate our progress toward that goal, which means the return to profitability and repaying the American and Canadian taxpayers as soon as possible.”
He also said that Henderson “has done a remarkable job leading the company through a time of challenge, and momentum has been building over the past several months, but we all agreed changes needed to be made.”
Whitacre will now be working at GM’s Renaissance Center headquarters in Detroit on a “daily basis”.