That's right, you heard me. Not everybody thinks that the man who ran Home Depot onto the rocks is a poor choice to steer Chrysler between the Scylla of the UAW's bloodsucking demands and the Charybdis of horrific infrastructure costs.
Today's feature in Bloomberg is full of quotes from people who think that he will do a bang-up job:
Bloomberg: Nardelli, Cost-Cutter, Is `Perfect Fit' at Chrysler, Welch Says
Today's feature in Bloomberg is full of quotes from people who think that he will do a bang-up job:
Bloomberg: Nardelli, Cost-Cutter, Is `Perfect Fit' at Chrysler, Welch Says
Aug. 7 (Bloomberg) -- Robert Nardelli, who stumbled in the public eye at Home Depot Inc., may do better at Chrysler LLC as the now-private U.S. automaker focuses on trimming expenses and generating cash, not stock returns.
``This is an absolutely perfect fit,'' said Jack Welch, retired chief executive officer of General Electric Co., where Nardelli worked from 1971 to 2000. ``They've got to get cost, efficiency, service, all those things in line,'' Welch said. ``He's the best in the world at that.''
``This is an absolutely perfect fit,'' said Jack Welch, retired chief executive officer of General Electric Co., where Nardelli worked from 1971 to 2000. ``They've got to get cost, efficiency, service, all those things in line,'' Welch said. ``He's the best in the world at that.''
...
``Nardelli is an agent of prompt change,'' said Dan Poole, who helps manage $31 billion at National City Bank in Cleveland including shares in Home Depot and DaimlerChrysler. ``Frankly, a private company might be a better place for him because they want revenue and earnings, and that's what he delivers.''
...
Keith Davis, a Washington-based analyst with Farr Miller & Washington LLC who helps manage about $600 million, said Nardelli may fare better at Chrysler because the automaker is a manufacturing company like Fairfield, Connecticut-based GE.
`Taking Costs Out'
``He's shown he's great at taking costs out of the business,'' Davis said.
`Taking Costs Out'
``He's shown he's great at taking costs out of the business,'' Davis said.
Okay, he's great at cutting costs. Woo Hah. But can he drive more consumers into driving Chryslers? Cutting spending is good, but no one ever made more money by spending less. You make more money by making more money.
Now that Chrysler is private, I don't expect Cerberus to be especially forthcoming about in the media about the progress of the turnaround. Without public shareholders, they don't have to. The UAW, on the other hand, would not appear to have the same self-interest in keeping their lips zipped, especially if they feel they aren't getting their way. I suspect that outside observers will end up with a more candid view of a private turnaround with Chrysler than with previous ventures.
