GM makes quick exit from bankruptcy

DETROIT — General Motors completed an unusually quick exit from bankruptcy protection on Friday with ambitions of making money and building cars people are eager to buy.

Once the world's largest and most powerful automaker, new GM is now leaner, cleansed of massive debt and burdensome contracts that would have sunk it without federal loans.

But GM, whose 40 days under court supervision was far shorter than anyone predicted, faces the worst auto sales slump in a quarter-century.

At a news conference, CEO Fritz Henderson said the revamped automaker will be faster and more responsive to customers than the old one. It will generate cash and repay billions in government loans ahead of a 2015 deadline.

The new company will build more cars and trucks that consumers want and launch them faster than in the past, the CEO said. GM also announced plans to experiment with auctioning new cars on eBay, expanding on an existing partnership covering certified used vehicles.

"We recognize that we've been given a rare second chance at GM, and we are very grateful for that. And we appreciate the fact that we now have the tools to get the job done," he said.

Known for its sluggish decisionmaking process and bloated management ranks, GM will create a single, eight-member executive committee to speed up day-to-day decisionmaking, replacing two senior leadership forums.

Henderson, 50, said General Motors Corp. will streamline its bureaucratic management structure, cutting U.S. salaried employment by 20 percent, or 6,150 positions, by the end of 2009. The cuts include 450 executive jobs.

Henderson, who was promoted to chief executive in March, will run the global company and oversee its North American operations. GM's former chief operating officer, Henderson was chosen when President Barack Obama said former CEO Rick Wagoner's restructuring plans didn't go far enough.

Top executives at the new company will focus on business results, new vehicles, brands and consumers.

Bob Lutz, a legendary industry executive, was "unretiring" to become a vice chairman responsible for creative elements of products, marketing and customer relationships, Henderson said. Lutz, 77, had previously planned to retire at the end of the year after more than four decades in the auto business.

Nick Reilly, who has served as GM's Asia-Pacific president, will become executive vice president of GM's international operations based in Shanghai, China.

The new company will focus on customers, cars and culture.

"If we don't get this right, nothing else is going to work," Henderson said at GM's downtown Detroit headquarters. "Business as usual is over at General Motors."