The Future of General Motors, How to Be a Good Manager, and Advice to a High School Senior

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Prof G Pod with Scott Galloway

Episode Title: The Future of General Motors, How to Be a Good Manager, and Advice to a High School Senior
Release Date: January 15, 2025
Host: Scott Galloway
Network: Vox Media Podcast Network

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In this episode of "Office Hours with Prof. G," Scott Galloway addresses three pressing questions from listeners, offering deep insights into the automotive industry's evolution, effective management strategies, and guidance for aspiring media professionals. Skipping over the numerous advertisements, the core content revolves around thoughtful analysis and practical advice, making it valuable for both industry insiders and everyday listeners.

1. The Future of General Motors

Listener Question:
Stu O'Neill from Detroit expresses concern over recent layoffs at General Motors (GM), questioning the company's heavy investment in electric vehicles (EVs) and entry into Formula 1 racing.

Scott Galloway's Response:

Scott delves into GM's recent strategic decisions, providing a balanced view of the company's current standing and future prospects.

• Layoffs Context: In November, GM announced over a thousand global layoffs, predominantly affecting Michigan workers. Scott notes that relative to GM's total workforce, these cuts are not excessively large. He contrasts GM's situation with that of media companies, suggesting that even companies facing significant challenges can maintain stability.

  “General Motors is actually doing pretty well. I just think it's easy to kind of shit on Detroit right now.”
  — Scott Galloway [01:52]

• EV Market Position: Despite the layoffs, GM has outpaced Ford in EV sales, securing the position of the second-largest EV seller in the U.S., trailing only Tesla. GM's strategic approach of developing standardized battery pack technology has allowed for economies of scale and reduced manufacturing costs.

  “GM's cheapest model starts at $35,000 with a $7,500 tax credit, while Ford's is $40,000 and does not qualify for any tax credit. I mean it just makes sense, right? If you can put out a similar product at a lower price, you're going to capture share.”
  — Scott Galloway [03:30]

• Financial Performance: Highlighting GM's financial resilience, Scott notes that GM's stock has surged by 45% in the past year, outperforming competitors like Ford, Honda, and Nissan, all of which have seen declines.

  “General Motor stock price is actually up 45% in the last year, while close competitors including Ford, Honda and Nissan are all in the red.”
  — Scott Galloway [03:15]

• Strategic Missteps: While acknowledging GM's successes, Scott criticizes the heavy reliance on EVs without access to the cheap capital that Tesla possesses. He also touches upon GM's foray into F1 racing, suggesting it may not align with core business strengths at this critical juncture.

2. How to Be a Good Manager

Listener Question:
A 28-year-old from Southern California seeks advice on transitioning into leadership roles within a corporate environment, specifically balancing humility and decisiveness while leading a team.

Scott Galloway's Response:

Scott provides a comprehensive framework for emerging leaders, emphasizing self-awareness, accountability, and empathy.

• Acknowledge Success and Privilege: Scott begins by urging the listener to recognize their achievements and the fortunate position they are in, which is a pivotal first step in effective leadership.

  “At the age of 28, you're in the 98th, somewhere between the 98th and the 99th percentile of income earning households. My brother, you are killing it.”
  — Scott Galloway [05:26]

• Develop Management Skills Separately from Technical Skills: He cautions against assuming that personal attributes like intelligence and kindness automatically translate into good management. Instead, management requires its own set of skills and conscious effort.

  “Management is its own skill that requires its own focus, attention and practice.”
  — Scott Galloway [06:00]

• Key Traits of Effective Managers:

  1. Demonstrate Excellence: Consistently excel in relevant tasks to inspire and lead by example.

     “They demonstrate excellence on a regular basis.”
     — Scott Galloway [06:30]

  2. Hold the Team Accountable: Implement clear objectives and metrics, and ensure team members meet their goals without fostering a culture of mediocrity.

     “What gets measured gets done. Work with each of your employees to set up a series of reasonable but somewhat aggressive goals and then hold them accountable.”
     — Scott Galloway [07:15]

  3. Demonstrate Empathy: Understand and respect the individual goals and motivations of team members, fostering loyalty through appreciation.

     “Loyalty is a function of appreciation. The key to a great company, in my view, is retention, specifically retaining the few employees that really drive a lot of value.”
     — Scott Galloway [08:45]

• Creating a Culture of Accountability and Appreciation: Scott emphasizes that appreciating employees both economically and psychologically is crucial for retention and company success.

  “Psychological appreciation. And that is I get you and I know it's important to you. And I'm going to try and provide that because I understand I'm invested in your success.”
  — Scott Galloway [09:30]

3. Advice to a High School Senior Pursuing Media Management

Listener Question:
Chloe Shapiro, a high school senior from Boca Raton, Florida, seeks advice on pursuing a career in media management. She inquires about the importance of college choice, staying in Florida, and securing internships without prior experience.

Scott Galloway's Response:

Scott offers both pragmatic and motivational guidance tailored to Chloe's aspirations and concerns.

• Encouragement and Self-Recognition: He commends Chloe's clear articulation, organization, and intelligence, reinforcing her potential for success.

  “You're clearly very articulate, you're clearly very organized, you're clearly very intelligent.”
  — Scott Galloway [12:00]

• Flexibility in Career Planning: Scott shares his own varied career path to illustrate that it's acceptable not to have a fixed plan early on, encouraging Chloe to remain open to different opportunities.

  “You just don’t know. But you're doing exactly the right thing. You're thinking about it and you're trying to find the right platforms.”
  — Scott Galloway [13:00]

• College as a Platform: He underscores the value of college beyond mere prestige, highlighting it as a crucial platform for personal and professional growth.

  “College is a platform… You want to go to college. It's an amazing experience.”
  — Scott Galloway [13:20]

• Persistence in Securing Internships: Scott advises Chloe to be proactive and relentless in her pursuit of internships, utilizing innovative approaches such as personalized media strategies and leveraging AI to stand out.

  “It's a numbers game. It's reaching out to people. It's trying to be innovative. Sending them voice recordings, sending them videos, whatever it might be.”
  — Scott Galloway [14:10]

• Handling Rejection and Maintaining Resilience: He empathizes with the anxiety associated with college admissions and internship applications, encouraging resilience and a positive mindset.

  “Trust me on this, when you're a little bit older, you're not going to be upset about not getting in. You're going to be upset about how upset you were.”
  — Scott Galloway [13:45]

• Final Words of Support: Scott reiterates his support for Chloe's journey, emphasizing that her proactive efforts and determination will pave the way for her success.

  “Best to you and yours, Chloe.”
  — Scott Galloway [15:00]

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Conclusion:

Scott Galloway's responses in this episode encapsulate his trademark blend of candid analysis and empathetic advice. Whether dissecting corporate strategies of automotive giants, delineating the nuances of effective management, or mentoring young aspirants in the media landscape, Scott provides listeners with actionable insights and motivational support. This episode is a testament to the value of informed discourse and the importance of adaptable leadership in today's dynamic world.

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Notable Quotes:

• “General Motors is actually doing pretty well. I just think it's easy to kind of shit on Detroit right now.”
  — Scott Galloway [01:52]

• “If you can put out a similar product at a lower price, you're going to capture share.”
  — Scott Galloway [03:30]

• “At the age of 28, you're in the 98th, somewhere between the 98th and the 99th percentile of income earning households. My brother, you are killing it.”
  — Scott Galloway [05:26]

• “Management is its own skill that requires its own focus, attention and practice.”
  — Scott Galloway [06:00]

• “Loyalty is a function of appreciation. The key to a great company, in my view, is retention, specifically retaining the few employees that really drive a lot of value.”
  — Scott Galloway [08:45]

• “College is a platform… You want to go to college. It's an amazing experience.”
  — Scott Galloway [13:20]

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This comprehensive summary captures the essence of Scott Galloway's discussions in the episode, providing valuable takeaways for listeners interested in business strategy, leadership, and career development.

Transcript

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[Scott Galloway]

This episode is brought to you by Indeed. We're driven by the search for better. But when it comes to hiring, the best way to search for a candidate isn't to search at all. Don't search match with Indeed. Use Indeed for scheduling, screening and messaging so you can connect with candidates faster. Listeners of this show will get a $75 sponsored job credit to get your jobs more visibility@ Indeed.com SBO terms and conditions apply. Welcome back to Office Hours with Prof. G. This is the part of the show where we answer your questions about business, big tech, entrepreneurship, and whatever else is on your mind. If you'd like to submit a question, please email a voice recording to officehouropgmedia.com Again, that's [e-mail], so with that first question. Hi, this is Stu O'Neill and I am curious as to your thoughts on General Motors. I live in the Detroit area and have witnessed thousands of GM workers being laid off recently. Coupled with GM's deeper commitment to entering F1 racing. Shameful timing in my opinion. They bet too much on EVs, it seems, and find themselves behind the eight ball. I'm curious as to your thoughts on the company.

[Stu O'Neill]

It seems to have lost its bearings.

[Scott Galloway]

And maybe even a bit of its soul, at least here in Detroit. Thanks. Love everything about the podcast. Stu from Detroit. Thanks for the question. Okay, so in November, GM announced plans to lay off over a thousand employees globally, with most of those job cuts affecting workers in Michigan. I would think as a percentage of their total workforce. That's actually not. That's not that many. I think you'd rather be at General Motors right now than, I don't know, a media company. According to a GM spokesperson, these layoffs were made to optimize for speed and excellence. Jesus Christ, can you get over the corporate speed? We're making less money. So we need to fire people. Like at some point somebody in one of these companies is going to start actually speaking or actually telling people the truth. This comes after a rough year for US Automakers as they deal with slow growth in EV sales and consumer demand that still lags behind pre pandemic levels. Ford and Stellantis are among the other major car manufacturers that did major layoffs last year, letting go of 750 and 2200 Michigan based employees respectively. The good news, GM recently overtook ford as the second largest seller of EVs in the US behind Tesla. Last quarter, Ford reported an 8% annual decline in their EV sales while GM reported a 60% increase. GM chose to ease into the EV business, slowly opting to develop standardized battery pack technology before coming out with the new EV models. Because of this, GM can now tap into an economy of scale and use the batteries across many different models, all while being able to bring their manufacturing costs down. GM's cheapest model starts at $35,000 with a $7,500 tax credit, while Ford's is $40,000 and does not qualify for any tax credit. I mean it just makes sense, right? If you can put out a similar product at a lower price, you're going to capture share. General Motor stock price is actually up 45% in the last year, while close competitors including Ford, Honda and Nissan are all in the red. So look, GM is doing pretty well in the past year. Ford's down 17%, Honda down 7%, Nissan down 24%. So I would argue General Motors is actually doing pretty well. I just think it's easy to kind of shit on Detroit right now. And I think these companies, while they leaned in too heavily to EVs trying to follow the leader, not acknowledging they didn't have access to the cheap capital that Tesla has so they couldn't play in traffic. And the fact that hybrids have surprised to the upside while EV is kind of surprised. I think a little bit to the downside, but I would argue that General Motors is actually holding its own. Thanks for the question. Question number two.

[Stu O'Neill]

Hey Scott, I'm a 28 year old living in Southern California. I've been listening to your podcast for about two years now and your advice has been extremely influential on me. So thank you. Like I said, I'm 20 years old. My friends and I have found some early success in our careers, all making about $250,000 a year or more and also enjoying our jobs at the same time, which I think makes us pretty lucky. I listen to Your podcast. So I'm pretty bought into the notion that this is a lot of luck, timing and privilege. I would say coming out of college, my approach was to listen, learn, assume that others had the answers over me and kind of take those things that they're doing well and try to apply it to my own work style. I'd say now it's a bit of a transitional period where I'm seeing myself move into leadership roles. People are looking to me for answers and I'm also reading the direction of the team in a lot of instances, actually. So my question to you is this. What advice would you give to a 28 year old in this transitional period? In a corporate role, how do you strike the balance between humility and open mindedness while also being decisive and steady while leading a team? It's a really exciting time in my career. I'm looking forward to the transition next steps and I appreciate you listening.

[Scott Galloway]

Thanks. Okay, Lyle from California, first I want you to do the following. I want you to take pause and realize that at the age of 28, at the age of 28, you're in the 98th, somewhere between the 98th and the 99th percentile of income earning households. My brother, you are killing it. So I hope you take the time, as I did not do and have not done until I was in my 40s and 50s, to register your blessings and your achievements and not only feel good about yourself, but realize just how incredibly fortunate you must be to be in that position. About how many moons have lined up Anyways, you're talking about transitioning from being an employee to being a manager or a leader and the mistake I made as a young man when I was your age, I thought, okay, I'm smart and I'm a nice person, which means I'll be a good manager. That is not true at all. That's like saying I'm smart and I'm a good person, which would make me a good nuclear submariner. I mean, this is. Management is its own skill that requires its own focus, attention and practice. Generally speaking, I find the best managers of the following. They demonstrate excellence on a regular basis. They're willing to roll up their sleeves and do something within that group and they're the best at it. I just think people want to follow excellence and also you hold people accountable. Let's work on your objectives for the year or what do you think? I asked my employees to basically do a business plan with metrics and then you hold them accountable. Are you hitting the number of site visits? If that's their metric. Are you hitting the number of calls or whatever it might be that you need to or meetings you need to set up for the corporate development team? Are you increasing quality control? Whatever it might be? What gets measured gets done. Work with each of your employees to set up a series of reasonable but somewhat aggressive goals and then hold them accountable. Don't be mean. Don't you know you're not going to berate people you want to publicly praise, privately, provide feedback, but you don't need to like everyone at your company, but you need to be able to look left and look right and say, I get it. And when people aren't held accountable and you create a culture, mediocrity people that your high performers stop working as hard because they don't see an incentive to do it when the guy left or right of them isn't working as hard or isn't as good and is getting similar types of compensation. So number two, hold your team accountable. And then three, and I didn't learn this until later in life, demonstrate empathy. What do I mean by that? I'm not saying be nice or a pushover. I'm saying try and understand their specific objectives and what is important to them in a professional setting. What do I mean by that? I assumed everybody like me wanted to be awesome and rich. That's it. Everybody wants to do what I want to do, right? No. Some people want more flexibility. Some people want to coach little League, Some people want to see their name in lights. I found out that some people loved some sort of public praise. So I would on a regular basis, when we got an inbound inquiry from the media company, I'd say I'm going to hand you over to our analyst Colin, who understands this better than me. And that was so rewarding to them. Some people want to manage, others figure out a way to put them in charge of something where they manage other people try and figure out what is important to that person and then demonstrate that you heard them and you are making an effort, you are making an effort to provide them with what is important to them. Loyalty is a function of appreciation. The key to a great company, in my view, is retention, specifically retaining the few employees that really drive a lot of value. And loyalty is a function of appreciation. So how do you appreciate them? There's economic appreciation, which is obviously very important, but there's also psychological appreciation. And that is I get you and I know it's important to you. And I'm going to try and provide that because I understand I'm invested in your success 1. You demonstrate excellence 2. You hold people accountable. You're a player, coach, manager, pull up the chair next to them. Show them how to be better at their jobs and three Demonstrate empathy. Specifically, show a willingness to learn what is important to them and then foot your actions against what is important to them. We have one quick break before our final question. Stay with us. This episode is brought to you by Crescent Family Office Entrepreneurs understand the challenges of building a successful business. You've probably spent years pouring your heart into different ventures and maybe even had some serious wins. Still, I bet a lot of these successes came with headaches. 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A new year is finally here, and if you're anything like me, you've got a lot on your plate. New habits to build, travel plans to make, podcast to host. Good thing our sponsor NerdWallet is here to take one of those things off your plate. Finding the best financial products, introducing NerdWallet's best of awards. List your shortcut to the best credit card, savings accounts, and more. The nerds at NerdWallet have done the work for you, researching and reviewing over 1100 financial products to bring you only the best of the best. Looking for a balance transfer credit card with a 0% APR? They've got a winner for that. How about a bank account with a top rate to hit your savings goals? They've got a winner for that too. That way you can know you're getting the best products for you without doing all the research yourself. So let NerdWallet do the heavy lifting for your financial future this year and head over to their 2025 Best of Awards at NerdWallet.com awards to find the best financial products. Today, support for the show comes from Skims. And speaking of support, I've come to appreciate the fact that not all undergarments are created equal these days. I don't just want super comfy fabrics or cute patterns. I'm looking for the supreme comfort of all day support that only comes from an expertly crafted garment like Skims. Skims is creating the next generation of underwear, loungewear and shapewear not just for women, but for every gender, shape and size. That's because Skims is a solutions oriented company that carefully constructs each garment to fit and even enhance every curve of every body. So if you're looking for boxes, briefs or something in between, why not check out Skims? Here's an idea. I know someone who wears skims. Ed, what are your thoughts on skims?

[Stu O'Neill]

I got sent a couple pairs of skims and I love them. They're comfortable, stretchy, they look good. I especially love them for sports and working out in very comfortable for that.

[Scott Galloway]

And let me just say, your butt looks sublime. There we go. There we go. Shop Skims, men's and [e-mail] and in skim stores. Let them know we sent you. After you place your order, select Podcast in the survey and select our show in the drop down menu that follows. Welcome back. Question number 3 Dear Professor G. I.

[Chloe Shapiro]

Love your podcasts and have definitely learned a lot from them. My mom always sends them to me when she thinks I would be interested in the topic, so I usually listen to them during my workouts. I'm currently a senior in high school in Boca Raton, Florida. My choice of major is Media management and my dream school just deferred me. Although I understand that's not rejection, it was still very upsetting and I'm doing everything I currently can to get accepted in April. What is your advice for a senior in high school like me pursuing a career in media management? And does the choice of college matter? I would like to remain in Florida as I love the beach and staying close to my family. If you can also provide feedback on the best ways to land a good internship in this field since unfortunately I am not a Nepo baby and don't have any prior experience other than my usage with my own devices and the content I help create in my current job.

[Scott Galloway]

Respectfully, Chloe Shapiro okay Chloe, so first off, you're going to do really well. I mean, you're clearly very articulate, you're clearly very organized, you're clearly very intelligent. So for the time being I'm Going to sideline the internship. And professional. It's great that you think you know what you want to do. And I'm not suggesting everybody needs to at some point have a plan. You have a plan. And you should foot your internships and your efforts against that plan. Most likely you're gonna end up in something totally different. At the age of 15, I thought I was gonna be an athlete to make a living. At the age of 19, I thought I was gonna be a pediatrician. At the age of 22, I had no fucking idea what I was gonna do. At the age of 23, I thought I was gonna be investment banker. At the age of 25, again, I had no idea what I wanted to do. Cause none of those things had worked out. And at the age of 27, I thought I might be a healthcare consultant. I'd accepted a job with a company called apm, a healthcare consulting firm. Then I thought, Jesus Christ, I don't wanna go back. I started a brand strategy firm, ended up in academia, ended up advising hedge fund. You just don't know. But you're doing exactly the right thing. You're thinking about it and you're trying to find the right platforms. College is a platform 2. Forgive yourself. I got rejected from the University of Indiana. I really wanted to, my dream was to go to UCLA and I got rejected when they had a 76% admissions rate. I ultimately ended up getting in. But here's where you want to go, you want to go to college. It's an amazing experience. And what I would suggest is, and I don't know the exact situation you're in, but be open to other schools. You're going to have a great time, you're going to learn a lot. The brand matters. I'm not going to lie. The prestige of the school does attract a certain level of employer or a different level of employer. But what I would suggest is not getting into a school while at the time seems devastating. Trust me on this, when you're a little bit older, you're not going to be upset about not getting in. You're going to be upset about how upset you were. So if there's time, apply to other schools. Obviously keep trying showing demonstrating your, your, your ambition and your want for that school. Right? Following up. But recognize if you don't get into that one school, as long as you get into a school and you go, you're going to have a great time and you're going to do really well in terms of getting internships. It's a numbers game. It's reaching out to people. It's trying to be innovative. Sending them voice recordings, sending them videos, whatever it might be. Using AI to develop a media strategy for a company and sending it to them with your own spin on it. And saying, hi, I'm Chloe Shapiro. I'll work for you. I want an internship. And just being very aggressive, very persistent, and willing to endure rejection. But let me just finish where I started. You are doing exactly what you should be doing. I apologize on behalf of the corrupt cartel called higher education that creates anxiety. I have been through it, and I'm about to go through it with my kids, but it cost me a tremendous amount of anxiety. And everyone listening to this podcast, Chloe isn't thinking, oh, poor Chloe. She didn't get into the school. She wanted early decision. They're thinking, I would really like to be an impressive young woman about to start college, living in Boca Raton. Best to you and yours, Chloe. That's all for this episode. If you'd like to submit a question, email a voice recording to officehoursofgmedia.com Again, that's officehoursofgammedia.com this episode was produced by Jennifer Sanchez. Our intern is Dan Shalon. Drew Burrows is our technical director. It's so nice to see Drew again. So nice to see Drew. He comes over to my house. He sets everything up. He's this nice presence. Thank you for listening to the Prophecy Pod from the Vox Media Podcast Network. We will catch you on Saturday for no Mercy, no malice, as read by George Hahn. And please follow our Propg Markets pod wherever you get your pods for new episodes every Monday and Thursday.