Publications

January 2004 (Revised June 2005)
Case

General Motors Corporation: Retiree Benefit Risk Management (B)

By: David F. Hawkins and Jacob Cohen

Supplements the (A) case. View Details

2014
Working Paper

Management Practices, Relational Contracts and the Decline of General Motors

By: Susan Helper and Rebecca Henderson

General Motors was once regarded as one of the best managed and most successful firms in the world, but between 1980 and 2009 its share of the US market fell from 62.6 to 19.8 percent, and in 2009 the firm went bankrupt. In this paper we argue that the conventional... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Management Practices and Processes; Organizational Structure; Decision Making; Insolvency and Bankruptcy; Manufacturing Industry; Auto Industry

Read Now

August 2013 (Revised November 2015)
Case

Prudential Financial - General Motors Pension Risk Transfer: Back to the Future?

By: Luis M. Viceira and Emily A. Chien

In November 2012, Prudential Financial and General Motors closed on a $25.1B pension risk transfer (PRT) transaction, the largest of its kind to date by an order of magnitude both in the U.S. market and globally. In exchange for an in-kind transfer of $25.1B in... View Details

Keywords: Risk Management; Asset Management; Insurance; Retirement; Financial Services Industry; Insurance Industry

Educators

June 1990
Teaching Note

Rio Bravo Electricos, General Motors Corp. (Abridged), Teaching Note

By: James E. Austin and Tomas Otto Kohn

12 Feb 2014
Working Paper Summaries

Management Practices, Relational Contracts, and the Decline of General Motors

Keywords: by Susan Helper & Rebecca Henderson; Auto

2008
Blog

Harvard Business Online—Marketing Know:How: How General Motors Violated Your Trust

By: John A. Quelch

Register to Read

December 1984
Teaching Note

General Motors and the United Auto Workers (Condensed), Teaching Note

By: Michael Beer

Keywords: Labor Unions; Auto Industry

March 1974 (Revised July 1981)
Case

General Motors Malaysia Snd.Bhd.: Introduction of the Basic Transportation Vehicle

April 1989 (Revised March 1991)
Case

New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc. (A)

Concerns a 1983 joint venture between General Motors and Toyota to produce small cars in the United States. Describes the globalization of the auto industry and the competitive positions of the two companies. View Details

Keywords: Competition; Joint Ventures; Globalized Markets and Industries; Auto Industry; Japan; United States

Educators

February 2006
Supplement

An interview with Rick Wagoner, Chairman and CEO, General Motors Corporation

By: David A. Garvin

Keywords: Auto Industry

1996
Working Paper

Reversing History: The Economics and Politics of Vertical Disintegration at General Motors

By: Malcolm S. Salter

February 2010
Teaching Note

Saginaw Parts Co. and the General Motors Corp. Credit Default Swap (TN)

By: William E. Fruhan

Teaching Note for [210056]. View Details

Keywords: Credit Derivatives and Swaps; Insolvency and Bankruptcy; Law; Cost of Capital; United States

December 1993
Case

Ford Motor Coompany: Changing the Dealer Culture

Confronted by increasing market emphasis on customer satisfaction coupled with the success of General Motors' Saturn Division with "no haggle" pricing, Ford Motor Co. examines the sales culture within its own dealers and considers how to implement policies that will... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Salesforce Management; Customer Satisfaction; Auto Industry; United States

2011
Book

Detour: My Unexpected, Amazing, Life Changing Journey With OnStar

By: Chet Huber

Detour is the story behind the launch of OnStar’s now well known blue button, as told through the eyes of its founder and CEO of over fourteen years, Chet Huber. It’s a personal narrative that describes the events that led up to General Motors’ unexpected choice... View Details

Keywords: General Motors; OnStar; Technological Innovation; Business Startups; Transportation; Safety; Personal Development and Career; Creativity; Success; Business History; Auto Industry