There are a number of challenges GM faces to deliver a successful Employee Enthusiasm Strategy.  Most important among these is the diversity of the global workforce. 

GM employees have their own interests and personal circumstances that make them unique.  However, this makes managing GM's culture and engaging all the employees particularly challenging.  GM addresses these challenges by setting a framework globally that can be interpreted locally.

Initiatives

GM recognizes that overcoming these challenges is very rewarding for its employees and the company – there is a clear link between investment in human performance and market performance and financial results.

Creating a Performance Culture

GM has embraced four priorities to create its unique performance culture:

• Focus on the customer – create products that exceed customers' expectations
• Act as one company – leverage the strengths of the global team, drive common best practices and accelerate knowledge transfer
• Embrace stretch targets – reach for goals beyond what is  thought possible
• Move with a sense of urgency – drive significant speed into the business.

Staff Survey

For more than 60 years, GM has routinely asked its employees how they feel about their jobs and the company.  In 2005, a web-based "Pulse" survey was initiated to gauge salaried employees' sentiments about the North American Turnaround Plan.  Every other month, 1,500 randomly sampled salaried employees in Canada, Mexico, and the United States are asked about the four key initiatives of the Turnaround Plan.  The initiatives are:

• Continuing to raise the bar on execution of new products.
• Revitalizing the sales and marketing strategy in the U.S.
• Really picking up the pace on reducing cost and improving quality.
• Addressing the health care burden in the U.S.

Staff Survey Results

Over 9,000 salaried employees in North America were given the opportunity to participate in a North American Turnaround Plan survey during the past year.

Initial findings from September 2005 revealed that at least half of the employees surveyed had a clear understanding of the four key initiatives.  Improvements have been seen in the percentage over time.

Salaried employees feel they have enough information about their role in the North American Turnaround Plan.  In addition, a majority of employees reported that they are frequently engaged in activities that support each of the four initiatives.  For example, a majority of employees promote sales of GM products among family, friends, and their community.

Over time, more salaried employees believe that GM as a whole is well managed (+20 percent), and that GM is making the changes necessary to compete effectively (+34 percent).

Action Resulting from the Survey

Leadership continues to refine the amount and type of information on the North American Turnaround Plan based on findings from the Pulse surveys.  Frequent inputs from employees allow for real-time course corrections.