Chris Liddell steps down as GM CFO.
This is an updated report on the original story posted by TheDetroitBureau.com earlier this morning.
There’s another management shake-up at General Motors, this morning, with Chris Liddell stepping down as the Detroit maker’s chief financial officer. He will be replaced by Dan Ammann, currently GM’s treasurer.
Liddell’s planned April 1 departure comes as something of a surprise – and for several reasons. After a series of management shake-ups following its emergence from Chapter 11 bankruptcy, in July 2009, GM’s senior ranks have been relatively stable in recent months, something insiders said was critical if the maker wanted to renew its focus on the business of designing, building and selling cars.
But Liddell also was considered the key to General Motors’ wildly successful initial public offering. The company initially expected to sell its new shares for as little as $26, but ultimately boosted the price to $33 – and sold a significantly larger large of the U.S. Treasury’s holdings than originally planned, ultimately raising about $23 billion in the process.
“Chris was instrumental in establishing a strong financial future for the company,” declared GM Chairman and CEO Dan Akerson during a Thursday morning news conference called to discuss the management shift. Akerson described Liddell as “a catalyst for change” who “created a lower-risk profile” for the automaker after its emergence from bankruptcy.
Liddell, a 52-year-old New Zealand native, joined GM in January 2010 after having served as chief financial officer at Microsoft.
Noting he came to GM to help in the rebuilding process, Liddell told reporters that nothing negative should be seen in his decision to move on. “It has absolutely nothing to do with the internal workings or the financial performance of the company. Exactly the opposite is true.”
Liddell said that he joined GM with the goal of building “five important foundations”:
- Sustainable profitability;
- Reducing the company’s material weaknesses;
- Rebuilding the financial team;
- Stage a successful IPO; and
- Build a strong balance sheet, which he described as “now in the best shape it has been in years.
As for his successor, fellow New Zealander Ammann, Liddell suggested, “I’m being replaced by someone I have enormous confidence in. I personally believe he’s the best person on the planet to replace me.”
The 38-year-old Ammann, a former managing director and head of Industrials Investment Banking for Morgan Stanley, joined GM exactly one year ago, during a period of fast turnover at GM. In fact, by the time Ammann came onboard, only one top manager at the automaker – product chief Tom Stephens – remained from GM’s previous senior executive core.
GM officials say Ammann has been instrumental in key financial actions, including the IPO, helping lock down the company’s financial strategy and emphasizing a move to eliminate its corporate debt. That has been one of the top priorities for CEO Akerson.
“Dan’s depth of knowledge of the financial community and our business will be instrumental as we continue to earn the trust of global investors and customers,” said Akerson. “He is held in high regard on Wall Street and within the company and, as we move our financial strategy forward, his credibility and leadership will be invaluable.”
For his part, Ammann said he has made a “long-term commitment” to GM in his new position.
General Motors Corp. earned $4.7 billion during 2010, including $500 million in net income during the fourth quarter of a year that Akerson described as “foundation building.”
The company’s stock has, however, slumped in recent weeks, though that downturn is not limited to GM and reflects a broader concern about the impact of the Libyan crisis on automotive sales as well as the broader economy.
Asked about future plans, Liddell said he will take some time to chart his future course and has nothing immediately lined up.
But, “my CFO days might be behind me as of the end of April,” he suggested, adding that I have a number of interesting ideas in the back of my mind. None have CFO attached to them.”