ISSUE 254 : Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Think of this guy: Mr. Bob Lutz. He’s a living legend. The Great White Hope of General Motors. Yet there he probably was, sitting on his toilet in his zillion dollar home, miles out of Detroit, sometime before dawn last Friday. That’s when it always hits you. The morning of the most important day in your life. “What the hell do I do now?”

General Motors is now supposed to be new. Make that NEW! $60 billion of our hard earned tax dollars worth of new. According to AdAge, the first words from Mr. Lutz (the guy we are banking on to protect our $60 billion and make it grow) is that he intends to “have Cadillac rival German luxury and performance brands such as BMW, while Buick's task is to take on Lexus.”

Not exceed, but “rival.” Not surpass, but “take on.” Now I was all set to load up on shares of the “New GM” until I heard that. Mind you, having worked on both Chevrolet at CE, Chrysler at Y&R, Ford at WRG and Accura at Genex, Bob Lutz is no stranger to me. He was always the “wild card.” Always the guy with the great ideas that nobody listened to.

Now Mr. Lutz is facing a whole new audience. A tech-driven, hive mentality that only knows him as “That guy from GM who had that fake blog.” And everybody from Washington to Wall Street questions whether Bob Lutz has what it takes to catch up to an advertising business that is too busy fighting for its own survival to sell GM.

Canned interviews and advertising-as-usual are not going to create shareholder/taxpayer value. Peel-the-paint-off-the-walls intensity for ideas that inspire and empower -- that’s what will put the “Gee whizz!” In GM. I’m not talking about a change in strategy or a change in agencies. I’m talking about an entire new change in the culture of General Motors. An emergence from closed to open. A culture of ideas not nameplates. A company that stands for something meaningful, not just corporate jets at the wave of a hand.

On the other side of the world Akio Toyoda, grandson of the founder, just slipped behind the wheel of Toyota as President last month. His vision is clear. “We no longer want to focus on selling the most cars. We want to build cars that make people feel happy.” Bob Lutz: cars that “rival.” Akio Toyoda: cars that make people feel “happy.” Whose vision would you want your $60 billion riding on?

So it seems that Mr. Lutz has more than the opportunity of a lifetime in his hands. Mr. Lutz has our $60 bill in his hands. Mr. Lutz has “President Obama’s Vietnam” in his hands. Mr. Lutz has his place in history in his hands. What would you do if those hands were your hands?

Were this “Trading Places” and were I Eddie Murphy and were Dan Akroyd, Bob Lutz, I would play something like this with the guy from Advertising Age. First, I would never conduct an interview in AdAge via e-mail, not if the cornerstone of my proof of vision was GM marketing. I would want the best marketing minds in the business thinking about my brand issues night and day. I would fly Jamie LaReau of AdAge out to Detroit (coach) with the intention of blowing his little mind. I would have Mr. LaReau picked up at the airport in a brand new Corvette, given the keys and guided to his destination by OnStar. That destination would be set for 2648 W. Grand Boulevard. Not the General Motors building, but 8 blocks West. Hitsville, USA. The birthplace of Motown Records.

I would greet him at the curb, take back our keys and invite him to join us in the historic Studio A, birthplace of The Motown Sound. I would sit Mr. LaReau down on the same stool that Marvin Gaye sat in to record “Distant Lover” and I would say the following as a prelude to our interview.

“I wanted the creative people to be the first folks I reached out to. All of us, art directors and writers, designers and composers, filmmakers and genius of all ages, all of us are about to embark on a glorious adventure.”

Then I’d walk him up the stairs to what was the office of Berry Gordy, Jr. “ Just like Mr. Gordy and his Motown family were fifty years ago, we are on the doorstep of history. Our ability to recognize and inspire genius in it’s earliest stages will return us to the leadership of our industry.” At this point the floor of Mr Gordy’s office would flicker and the giant flat screen we had installed the day before would begin showing the audition tape of Michael and the Jackson 5.

At this point I would spring my vision on the man from AdAge. “Detroit has become famous for two products: automobiles and The Motown Sound. The hardware and software of our culture as a nation. Where did Motown go right? Where did GM go wrong? Mr. Gordy was right to stand for “It’s what’s in the grooves that counts.” That spirit kept the first thing first for Motown for 50 years.

General Motors stood for bigger being better. We did not stand for better being better. And that was the beginning of the end for us. Well Mr. LaReau, I’m here to tell you that the New GM stands for “Genius Matters.” Appling genius to everything we do is the only thing that matters.

So much for pipe dreams. We did something real. We provided a place to give your best ideas for the New GM at http://WeOwnGM.com We will get them to Bob Lutz by hook or by crook. I don’t know if your genius will matter to Mr. Lutz. But it will matter to those of us who pay Mr. Lutz. Get the idea, Bob? If not, take a look at the latest AdAge poll of marketers as to whether you are the right man for the job. As of 7/15/09 a cool 67% think not. Personally, I voted with the 33% that thought you were up to it. If anybody deserves a shot, you do. But don't wait to long to prove me right. But just to hedge my bets, I think I'll run with my campaign anyway. As the very first of the CitizenStakeholders of GM I want the world to know that as far as we are concerned, GM better start to stand for "Genius Matters" or we are all headed for the dump.