General Motors CEO Wagoner Had To Go

GM's executive suite and corporate culture are its biggest challenges, says Steven Rattner, the former head of the Obama auto task force

Despite the more than 60 billion of U.S. taxpayer dollars pumped into the rescue of General Motors and Chrysler, their futures remain hazy, Steven Rattner, the former head of the Obama Administration's auto task force, said on Wednesday.

Rattner resigned his post in July and his Oct. 21 speech at the National Press Club in Washington was one of the first times he's spoken publicly about the restructuring process. Rattner said the primary challenge facing Chrysler now is how to use its partnership with Fiat (FIA.MI) to introduce fresh new products that catch the eye of auto buyers who had soured on the company's lineup as it cut back on vehicle development and in other areas. For GM, the biggest changes need to come in corporate culture and decision-making in the executive suite, Rattner said. The government asked GM's CEO, Rick Wagoner, to step aside in March after Rattner and his team observed what he called a "lack of financial discipline" within the company.

The decision to replace Wagoner with Chief Operating Officer Frederick "Fritz" Henderson and gut the company's board, while controversial at the time, was common sense, Rattner said Wednesday: "It seemed obvious that any CEO who had burned through $44 billion of cash in 15 months should not continue."

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