As many are aware, DCX has agreed to sell the Chrysler Group to Cerebus, a private equity company which will take the Chrysler Group private (no more quarterly financial fluffing required).

It will be a good solution for Chrysler and while some anguish will be felt, overall the company will be successful – and successfully spun back into the public stock market in five to seven years in a stronger position that now. I think GM missed a good opportunity to reduce competition and get some good brands on the cheap – but those are the “brakes”.

Rumors are flying and the people shuffle is underway. Some talent is leaving and other talent is arriving. It will be a great opportunity for some of the sharper employees.

Suppliers and employees should expect to see more Lean Manufacturing programs internally – LaSorda recently replaced the exiting Peter Rosenfeld with an ex-GM and ex-Toyota manufacturing executive to run Purchasing. And there are rumors that Wolfgang Bernhard is stepping around in the shadows yet. It will be an eventful year or two ahead.

If you need a head start on the Lean Manufacturing process – please contact me soon and our team can quickly help you pull out system costs – don’t be shy, there are always costs that can be reduced or eliminated – and no up-front fees if you’re willing to share what we find.

Cheers!