Ed & Me or How my mind is changing about General Motors
I promised last month that all would be revealed about my trip to ChiTown in a future post.
The future is now...
The email subject was "An Opportunity...the Chicago Auto Show" and I almost deleted it.
Why would I do such a thing? Well, every day Aviva and I open our email and read requests from individuals or companies asking us to mention their product, program or service on our site. They tell us "your readers want to know...." Then there are some who blatantly kiss our collective tush by calling us "influencers" and those are the ones that seem to scream "delete me!" and we often do. It's not that we discount the value of being taken seriously, it's just that the term "influencer" has become That Word.
We already understand we are recognized experts because we've worked that same collective tush off in order to become respected, trusted and Internationally recognized online and in real life, as they say it. The fact is we're not going to take that same collective tush and put it on the line for just anyone or just anything. After all, there is a big difference between being a resource and being a mouthpiece. N'est-ce pas?
What Aviva and I have together is called a "powerful platform" and ours was built not by a book publisher or a hired publicist. Our street cred is the result of dogged determination belonging to none other than Aviva and me. It's given us the power to take on the world advocating the joys of parenthood on our terms. We want to bring to you the best of what we know, see and do. Honestly, and with integrity. Period.
We use this power for good. Everyone's good, not just our own. We subscribe to the idea "Power is the ability to do good things for others." It was with this in mind I accepted the invitation from General Motors to attend the Chicago Auto Show. Was I in the mood to drink corporate Kool-aid and sell it myself? No. I actually liked the way I was approached. No expectation on GM's part that I was putting my glass out to be filled and no demand from them that I pony up some kind of positive promotion for them. No special agreements, no promises on anyone's part.
I've already blogged about the great party I attended at House of Blues. You already know I am a maniac on the dance scene when given the tiniest bit of encouragement. Nothing new there.
What you don't know about is the dinner I attended with the General Manager of Chevrolet,
Ed Peper. (That's Kim and Me towering over Ed in the pic, btw.)Before you get up in my grill about selling you a car, that isn't what dinner was all about for me. Sure, the team discussed their new family crossover suv, which was certainly expected, but it was the unexpected which gave me insight GM has made changes since Roger & Me. Starting with General Manager Ed Peper and the team he had with him from Chevy.
You know what Ed told us at dinner? He's a dad with guilt. Yup, he admitted it right there at the table. In front of everyone, "I have tremendous daddy guilt." Ed travels a lot, he is dad to an infant who doesn't stop growing while dad is away on business trips. Ed feels the pull to be home, yet knows he has job responsibilities and employees to take care of as well. Fair enough to say this isn't exactly news, but I don't know all that many folks who used to be in Ed's corporate position Back In The Day who would discuss that fact at a business dinner. This was my first experience with radical transparency. And it was damn refreshing.
Not only did Ed's admission bring a new level of humanity to a business meeting, it also paved the way to discuss the difference between that which is concierge service and that which is true family benefit offered across the entire employee spectrum; from workers on the assembly line all the way up to absolving Ed of his daddy guilt. Ed was listening, his team was listening to Ed and I think everyone came away from that dinner feeling a little bit surprised, but in a really good way.
I am going to keep track and see what happens next because GM seems to be trying to figure out how to not only provide a new vehicle that will take consumer families where they need to go, but try new ways to go where their own corporation's families need them to be. I'm heading to Spring Hill TN in a couple of days to visit the plant where the Traverse will be made. Look for another post about that soon.
The future is now...
The email subject was "An Opportunity...the Chicago Auto Show" and I almost deleted it.
Why would I do such a thing? Well, every day Aviva and I open our email and read requests from individuals or companies asking us to mention their product, program or service on our site. They tell us "your readers want to know...." Then there are some who blatantly kiss our collective tush by calling us "influencers" and those are the ones that seem to scream "delete me!" and we often do. It's not that we discount the value of being taken seriously, it's just that the term "influencer" has become That Word.
We already understand we are recognized experts because we've worked that same collective tush off in order to become respected, trusted and Internationally recognized online and in real life, as they say it. The fact is we're not going to take that same collective tush and put it on the line for just anyone or just anything. After all, there is a big difference between being a resource and being a mouthpiece. N'est-ce pas?
What Aviva and I have together is called a "powerful platform" and ours was built not by a book publisher or a hired publicist. Our street cred is the result of dogged determination belonging to none other than Aviva and me. It's given us the power to take on the world advocating the joys of parenthood on our terms. We want to bring to you the best of what we know, see and do. Honestly, and with integrity. Period.
We use this power for good. Everyone's good, not just our own. We subscribe to the idea "Power is the ability to do good things for others." It was with this in mind I accepted the invitation from General Motors to attend the Chicago Auto Show. Was I in the mood to drink corporate Kool-aid and sell it myself? No. I actually liked the way I was approached. No expectation on GM's part that I was putting my glass out to be filled and no demand from them that I pony up some kind of positive promotion for them. No special agreements, no promises on anyone's part.
I've already blogged about the great party I attended at House of Blues. You already know I am a maniac on the dance scene when given the tiniest bit of encouragement. Nothing new there.
What you don't know about is the dinner I attended with the General Manager of Chevrolet,
Ed Peper. (That's Kim and Me towering over Ed in the pic, btw.)Before you get up in my grill about selling you a car, that isn't what dinner was all about for me. Sure, the team discussed their new family crossover suv, which was certainly expected, but it was the unexpected which gave me insight GM has made changes since Roger & Me. Starting with General Manager Ed Peper and the team he had with him from Chevy.You know what Ed told us at dinner? He's a dad with guilt. Yup, he admitted it right there at the table. In front of everyone, "I have tremendous daddy guilt." Ed travels a lot, he is dad to an infant who doesn't stop growing while dad is away on business trips. Ed feels the pull to be home, yet knows he has job responsibilities and employees to take care of as well. Fair enough to say this isn't exactly news, but I don't know all that many folks who used to be in Ed's corporate position Back In The Day who would discuss that fact at a business dinner. This was my first experience with radical transparency. And it was damn refreshing.
Not only did Ed's admission bring a new level of humanity to a business meeting, it also paved the way to discuss the difference between that which is concierge service and that which is true family benefit offered across the entire employee spectrum; from workers on the assembly line all the way up to absolving Ed of his daddy guilt. Ed was listening, his team was listening to Ed and I think everyone came away from that dinner feeling a little bit surprised, but in a really good way.
I am going to keep track and see what happens next because GM seems to be trying to figure out how to not only provide a new vehicle that will take consumer families where they need to go, but try new ways to go where their own corporation's families need them to be. I'm heading to Spring Hill TN in a couple of days to visit the plant where the Traverse will be made. Look for another post about that soon.
Labels: Chevrolet, Ed Peper, Family Policy, General Motors
posted by Devra @ 11:28 AM
5 Comments:
I LOVE that you had no problem holding his feet to the fire.
You rock woman!
hello.
MammaLoves, I got the sense Ed understands my position that
we need major corporations to take the lead and decide "enough with work/life, let's make it life/work" and it's gonna take a really brave corporation to do it.
But in all fairness to any automaker, it's gotta be the Corporation and Union who must join hands and take the leap together, and on top of that we need our Government to have laws in place that support carework. It's not a simple process by any means, but I think the buzz is beginning, I hear it at companies, I hear it from families, I hear it in Congress.
The cultural shift will happen, definitely not all at once, but bit by bit. From what I heard from GM I think they are putting the wheels in motion, both literally and figuratively. I think it looks promising. More promising than I initially thought. But we gotta get other big companies in on this too!
You guys could be his kids.
Glad to hear about this meeting. I really hope that something new and innovative comes from GM. One of the challenges is finding a larger corporation who is genuinely seeking work/family balance. As you stated, not a common commodity these days, although I do theorize that the work/life demands of Gen Y, when they start having kids, will create a profound shift with companies. In the meantime, I'm looking forward to hearing more about GM. Will Peper be just another typical worker dad who bemoans his desire to have better balance but thinks it's impossible to achieve or will he become someone who steps beyond this mindset? In any case, thanks for sharing!
Dana Glazer
Director
The Evolution of Dad Project
www.evolutionofdad.com
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