That was the week that was

Here is a photograph of me ( middle )with some of my team at Saab Design 2005

I am not sure whether this was a good week or not.
There is no question that it will be one to remember.
Decision made, it was a fantastic week.

This is going to be an enormous flywheel that could be difficult to get going at first but the inertia that will be created will make it difficult to stop.

Plans B,C& D are now on ice. Sorry Trollhattan no fish & chip shop just yet. You'll just have to make do with Pizzas and kebab.

Back in 2005 GM announced that Saab Design would close and move to Russelsheim which it did in 2006.
Both my studio colleagues and I went through exactly the same agony.What were the alternatives ?? Russelsheim was not an option, A dark grey city in the middle of a country that I have never been particularly fond of living. ( My apologies but I miss the elements that makes Sweden special for me )

All possibilities were open for future career opportunities.
Within my team we discussed it almost every day.
More as a joke than anything else I got locked on two ideas.

1. A fish & chip shop - As I mentioned in an earlier blog Pizza,Pizza & Pizza is on the Trollhattan take away menu.I have a friend from my childhood whose parents had a F&C shop close to where I lived. Eventually he took over and created a chain of F&C shops and made a fortune. It was called Pete's Plaice. I could do this over the whole of Sweden and maybe compete with Ronald Macdonald. The one thing that deterred me was that I didn't fancy the idea of smelling of old frying oil.Prada and Versace are more in my line.
I will continue this story as it is connected to idea number 2


2. Idea number 2 was an internet launderette. For those who are not familiar with launderette's it is where you can do your laundry.
The concept came to mind as Trollhattan high school was become a university.
An influx of 10000 new students mostly from 18 - 22 were to descend upon the town.

The concept was to offer a cafe with internet connection where the students could sit while doing their laundry, chat,mingle,surf or whatever.
This was a sure winner as here in apartment dominated Sweden you need to book a time in the communal washing room. I figured students would find it difficult to work with this concept preferring more to " drop in "


The reason these two ideas are connected is that one of the guys who worked for me ( Erik ) was one of life's wonderful characters.I have my arm around Erik in the photograph. The whole team had hours of fun at his expense. Never cruel he enjoyed it,he felt loved and wanted which he was.
I teased him that he would be the ideal person to run my two money spinning ventures.
Erik is a jolly good natured man who can talk and laugh for Sweden. If laughing was an officially recognized sport in the Olympic games he would win gold for sure.
Erik would be the perfect front man to success.

In addition I teased him about running the launderette.

The design of the cafe would be such that it could take 20 washing and 10 drying machines. There would be a room or passage way behind the row of machines that when people put the money in it would go straight into Erik's pocket..black money.

Erik's bonus I assured him was that he would get the additional benefit of dealing with attractive young girls and their various forms of ( minute ) clothing

Pure fantasy but we had a lot of fun.

This journey has not been at all the same. Much more serious and much more concerning, but today I feel great. It is both Friday and I can put the last 13 months behind me.
This definitely was that was the week that was.

OKSAAB

Happiness is an understatement

I took part yesterday in the welcoming home of Jan-Åke Jonsson and Victor Muller at the Saab Museum.
What an event !!
It is difficult to estimate exactly how many Saab emplyees had left their workplaces to join. It certainly appeared that the vast majority were in attendance.

We were encouraged to car share, park away from the museum in side roads and extra public transport was layed on.
The carnival atmosphere was charged with goodwill,happiness and relief.
I could here similar conversations using the same adjectives.
It was freezing cold and snow but nobody cared. This was the day that we had all been waiting for for so long.

A sound stage had been set up, a new 9-5 and a Spyker C8 were on display ( Spyker really need to do somthing about that design )
The press were in full attendance.
I am unsure whether either Jan-Åke and Victor Muller new anything about the event as they were ferried directly from " Trollhättan International Airport " having flown in directly from Stockholm.
Needless to say the standing ovation they received was overwhelming especially for Jan-Åke who had some difficulty in composing his speech. Totally understandable.
Here is a man who has really travelled the year long roller coaster.


Today starts the beginning of a new era in Saabs history. The challenge is enormous , to change the tide of public perception will not be easy

I plan to buy shares in Saab Spyker Automobile NV as the new company will be called.

Not many but enough to vote and have my say. Enough to show commitment to an independent SAAB ( Spyker )

I will order a new SAAB 9-3 SC next week and I truly hope that many many more will do the same.I will lobby the Audi BMW and Mercedes owners that I know to change to a great brand with spirit and determination. Determination enough to fight and

SAVE SAAB

Now the campaign begins

This is truly FANTASTIC news and I cannot find enough adjectives to describe how I feel.
I watched the press conference from Stockholm live and was enormously impressed with the commitment and passion of both Jan Åke and Victor Muller

I received a number of mails yesterday evening including one from the RESCUE SAAB.COM
campaign.
Having heard the news this morning I was a little surprised.

The mail headline was " Saab Rescued-Mission accomplished ". I guess that I understand their message but in my book the " Mission " has only just begun.

The mission is now to turn the tide of negativity surrounding SAAB. To challenge the Swedish analysts and pundits who as was on the news this morning questioning Saab's long term viability.They gave SAAB 2-3 years at most.
What are these people like !!!!
As I mentioned in an earlier blog edition, the Swedish media have no idea how to be positive and supportive.

My son who is 10 years old is pretty smart.

At exactly 17.33 he called me on my mobile as I was on my way to a course that I am taking.
" Your job is safe you do not have to worry anymore , Saab is sold to Spyker "

I had not realized that he was even really aware of the situation we as a family were facing. Clearly I underestimated him. He had heard the discussions, he was listening to the news and in all probability understood to some extent that closing Saab whould have some impact on his life too.

The campaign begins in earnest.
To launch and develop new vehicles, move faster and more efficiently and more importantly to challenge the media.Improve the brand image and sell more Saab's.

For those supporters out there who have campaigned so hard to " SAVE SAAB " ( for which we will be eternally grateful )

Keep the nostalga in the garage and take them out on fine sunny days.

Order your new SAAB from your dealer now !!! and encourage your BMW / AUDI freinds to do the same !!! -

OKSAAB

Mr. Whitacre's press conference

I left work yesterday and rushed home specifically to watch the press conference live on GMtv.I had sent the link as we are unable to view this at Saab.
Fresh coffee in place I eagerly waited for the 17.30 slot.This had to be it.
After a day of positive reports started by SVt's RAPPORT this was the news SAAB fans the world over had been waiting for.........SAAB had been sold to Spyker...........WRONG !!!

This was not the press conference subject matter at all. This was a typical back slapping what a great team GM is type of Press conference.

I have to say at this point that I am not a great fan of Mr. Whiticare, his mannerism's and his style .........then who am I to judge.
I tried to count how many times he mentioned what a great leadership team he had around him but was distracted by two of my kids and gave up at somewhere between 11 and 13.

Strangely enough a song from the musical ' EVITA' came into my head. I have no idea why but over and over again I kept thinking " oh what a circus , oh what a show ".

Circus pretty much describes this whole situation.

Over the last 2 or 3 months I have not seen my colleagues as positive as they were yesterday afternoon.....The deal was DONE !!, plans were being made, we could move forward with determination and speed.
As the afternoon progressed it became quite clear that SVt's article was far from accurate. The Swedish government very quickly came out with statements denying that they had approved the EIB loan guarantee's.......What a bummer !!!

A note to SVT
Yesterday due to sensationalism and inaccurate reporting the emotions of thousands of people once again travelled the roller coaster ride just as they thought they could get off.Pretty poor taste I would say.

Today I guess we will travel a similar journey

OKSAAB Nervous beyond belief

Every news wire in Sweden is reprorting that the deal is DONE.

I feel butterflies in my stomach I am so nervous

Is it really true ????????????

Press conferences at 14.30 today by the Swedish Government and what is the betting that GM hold one at the same time ( not announced yet )

I think the whole company must have every news wire open. I currently have 7

Got important things to do

Come back later

The SAAB Community and a great weekend

At first glance the titles are not linked but indeed odly enough they are.

First to the weekend which as I mentioned on Friday was my birthday weekend .

My wife had farmed out the kids and the dogs ( 3 of each ) and took me to a surprise spa weekend atVarberg a resort on the south west Swedish coast.
( Thankyou Lena it was wonderful !! )

I can most definately recommend it.

A couple of very relaxing treatments later combined with saunas, etc. great food and drink ( you know the type of thing ) I returned home having not read a newspaper looked at TV or logged into mail.
I was news-less and totally relaxed.
It was not only the spa treatment but the resolute refusal to think or worry about SAAB and the future.

Naturally as soon as I returned hope on went the computer scanning for the latest ...........Shame on me !!

That takes me to the " SAAB Community "

I logged into mail both private and SAAB's and was absolutly astounded that I had received birthday greetings both from old freinds and past colleagues but also people who I had never met and am not likely to. An enormous amount. For which I am extremely apreciative.
Thankyou very much indeed.

The reason that I highlighted this is that the main thread in the greetings were " fingers crossed " and " good luck "

Was the meaning fingers crossed and good luck that I would survive my birthday.
Of course not it was for SAAB, that the iconic brand itself had created a common cause ..a community.........The SAAB community.......My Community

News this morning is so positive that the champagne is getting colder. Lets wait and see shall we.

Rumour has it that a Spyker car was spotted at the museum yesterday.

Both Spyker and GM are in Stockholm.

Today I am going to keep my fingers crossed and figure out the subject matter for the next blog. Clearly it can be nothing to do with saving SAAB.......If the deal goes through.

OKSAAB

Showing the money was obviously not that easy

When Mr. Whitacre gave the cast off remark at the Detroit show it all sounded so easy
" show us the money ". Did he mean the $1 or the $450 million. ???

It does not neccessarily matter as two weeks on there is still no deal.

I for one am quite hopeful that the delay is a good sign. As SWADE said this morning " Treading Water " that is all we can do

I am certain that I can tread a while longer having achieved bronze, silver and gold awards for treading water as a kid.

Most people believe rightly or wrongly that there will be a positive outcome for SAAB.The silence the amount of time that the silence is taking is positive.
What other conclusion is there ?
The liquidation team is in place , the gun is loaded but no shot fired.

It is my birthday on Sunday and I need to be on top form.

I will put everything on hold for the coming days and pick up the thread again very early on Monday morning

Genii still at the table ?

If I read the article published yesterday by Lars Carlström I would have to say that his comments are not consistent with a company still in negotiations with GM.

Purely my speculation however I do not believe that I have EVER read a more open criticism of the Swedish Press, Government and further open comments regarding GM's accounting practices contributing to Saab's losses over the years.
He goes further to heavily point the finger of responsibility for Saab's bad press at the pundits,analysts and press in general.

It saddens me to say that I have found this to be the case in Sweden.
Saab has ALWAYS received negative press when compared to VOLVO and I have absolutely no idea why this should be the case.
A similar analogy can be made between Stockholm and Gothenburg. Stockholmers do not give a damn if the auto industry dies or gets flat packed and shipped to China....Because they are not affected. That is the same with SAAB. If the guy down the road is not DIRECTLY affected he does not give a damn. On the contrary he will post a comment on an article WILLING that SAAB will be closed.
I know that I have mentioned this before but it would NOT happen in Spain,France Germany,Italy or even Belgium for that matter.
It would however happen in the UK where the auto industry has been decimated due to poor management and disastrous political decisions over the years.
Incidentally in the 1920'2 - 1930's in Coventry which was the heart of the UK auto industry there were 86 separate vehicle manufacturers.

An article in Dagens Industry www.di.se this morning highlighted that the Vovo / Ford / Geely negotiations were not as far along the road as had been claimed by all parties.There seemed to be serious concerns over IP's and control. Fundamentals in my book. It will be interesting to see how that one unfolds.

Hummer is as quiet as SAAB - and has been for some time while awaiting Chinese state approval.
When buying a house you do not go out agree the deal,sign the contract and put down the deposit without talking to the bank. Why should the auto industry be any different ??

Enough said.

One day at a time and still optimistic I have the news feeds on standby

And by the way well done Lars Carlström.

OK SAAB's Dream

I woke up this morning having dreamt about my OKSAAB blog.

To you guys I am sure you are thinking " so what "

For me remembering a dream has tremendous significance as only twice has this happened before. I wont go into the details as one was not the best outcome and the other well.....thats embarrassing !!

Only to say that on both occasions that following day was eventful.

Back to my dream.

I awoke having dreamt that the OKSAAB blog had become hugely successful,that in fact it was so successful it had been sindicated around the world. Advertizers clamoured to get space space on the OKSAAB blog.

SAAB was the "IN WORD " trendy and got to have.

The URL http://OKSAAB.blogspot.com appeared everywhere in emails and on the net.

500000 hits a day and both my own and Saabs future was secure !!!!

What is the significance and what events are about to unfold ?.........Damned if I know but it made me very happy I know that !!!!

Yesterday I chatted ( via messenger with an ex team mate from OPEL

I refer to him as ex because in the last year we have both separated and divorced.

3 years ago when I joined my current organization we were going into the GM Global world.

A huge programme management system was develeped specifically to run our part of the business.

Going global meant that as a global team we could effectively manage global programmes simultainiously in Korea, Australia,Europe and North America.

Global teams,Global decision boards,Global forums were put into place.

Metrics were regional and global.

It may sound too much and there were elements and processes I would have done differently, but it actually worked !!!

I had European responsibility which meant my team was both in Opel and Saab at the same time resulting in extensive travel. I enjoyed it and miss it.

Miss the colleagues and the multinational aspect.

Our delivery on time was as good as it gets and we were empowered and accountable with given boundries.

The process was so successful that it was wound down.

Our boss in North America decided to retire.

The system was shut down and we went from global to regional and now back to SAAB.

One message was loud and clear in my chat with my ex.

Its no easier right now for the guys at OPEL. Moral is low

What OPEL have to their advantage are 4 very key factors

1. GM need a volume car manufacturer in Europe to stay in the global game


2. A strong leader in Nick Reilly - That is NOT to say that JAJ is not a strong leader only that he has a track record of saving GM's arse in Korea.


3. Strong unions that WILL stand and fight yet make the right concessions


4. Finaly a strong goverment nationally and regionally that puts hard cash on the table to keep their auto industry alive.

As we know OPEL is not the strongest brand name in Germany .

SAAB on the other hand has the brand name but misses the other 4 elements. It has passion and passionate followers that OPEL or indeed any other manufacturer that I know of will never have.

Back to my dream

Remembering my dream has made me very upbeat. So much so that I changed the blogs name to simply OKSAAB as the previous title sounded so negative.

I am going to go to bed quite early tonight ( unless news breaks today ) and see if I can dream some more.

The convoy seems to be making some news around the world.
What with yesterdays "after convoys " there have been around 40 in total.

There is very little other news. Saab has dropped off the news wires again and not surprisingly considering everything else that is going on.

Stephen Taylor the appointed liquidator has not called in the unions yet.

Are the Spyker / Genii negotiations really getting serious ?

I try not to be optimistic but even that is difficult.

There is so much plan B stuff swirling around in my head right now it is difficult ( as for most ) to stay focused, but focus we must and the plan today is to run the regular weekly project review meeting. As we have had engineers on CAD courses , sick etc it will be good to get everyone back together and get moving again.
Stimulation as opposed to living in a vacume.

Plan B - an interesting question. what could it be.

As with a turbine my mind tends to spin at high revs throwing out different ideas and then crossing them off the list. Its an interesting way of keeping active.
There are no limits to what I think of for the future state - very open thinking which is something I like.
Last week I was out on the net looking at businesses for sale here in Sweden.
There did not seem to be the right opportunity but an amazing amount of Pizzarias.

Trollhättan incidentely has the highest Pizzaria rate per capita in Sweden. - A useless piece of information.

Fish and chip shops on the other hand....Zero.........Now there's an opportunity

Yesterday was a day filled with irony.

I joined the Trollhattan SAAB convoy from the SAAB Museum to the factory

The convoy was one of 36 yesterday to show the mighty GM the solidarity and support for the SAAB brand.
It really was amazing to see people having travelled from far and wide. Danmark,Norway and Finland were well represented

An estimated 1500 SAABS of all models,types. I would have put the figure higher.

As luck would have it I ended up towards the front of the convoy only because the convoy set off from various directions and my group was directed in such a way that we received a short cut.
It took two and a half hours for the stragglers to reach the factory wher by that time I was freezing my nuts off even though I had my winter blue and orange jacket with a big standard issue SAAB on the back.

Now for the irony

Yesterday was 11 years to the day since I started working at Saab.I came upon this noteworthy occasion as I was sitting in my car in the convoy. I hadn't thought about it prior to that.

Irony # 2
If there were 1500 SAAB's in the convoy with an average of 2 people in each car, ( and I am sure that they are both low estimates )then that did not represent the SAAB workforce ( 3400 ).
That being the case the total numbers should have been around 3500 cars and 7000 people. - Where was everybody on that cold and snowy Sunday afternoon !!!!
Is the apathy so great that SAAB workers could not show their feelings and solidarity for the cause.?- This is our jobs and our livelyhoods we are talking about.
With that said I met a number ( not a great number ) of colleagues past and present which was great.
Even some from our neighbours from down the road VOLVO:

What was interesting to see were the " important people " hovering.

Hovering not in the literal sense but you could see them growing for the cameras,standing in a place to be seen at the front facing the crowd.
Peter Backstrom who runs the museum as always did a tremendous job.
There is one guy who shows a deep passion and knowledge for SAAB.

Irony# 3

I did not see Ed Whitacre, Bob Lutz or any of the GM crowd - strange
Neither were the Swedish red / Green alliance representatives on hand. In fact they have been totally silent for many weeks. New games to play I guess


Today is the start of of a new week of uncertainty.
Will the axe fall today,tomorrow or Friday.
I am not so positive. This is all about determination. If as Mr. Whiticre appears to be you are DETERMINED to shutter the SAAB brand then you will do it.

Look at the Flint Michigan GM plant that was closed a few years ago THIRTY THOUSAND people YES 30000 !!! were out of a job without batting an eyelid.

Today Flint is a ghost town by comparrison.

What the hell do 3400 souls in a town named Trollhattan somewhere in Europe matter ( by the way it is not between Austria and Italy )

To Mr. Whitacre in means Zip,Zero nothing. And that takes me back to irony number # 2

Apparantly it does not mean so much to some of the 3400 SAAB workers either. Nor the local and national politicians or the shops,the people planning to sell there houses in the next year or so.

As self rightous as it is sounds and as I am, I can say that I was there on a cold windy snowy afternoon on a convoy in Trollhattan..........And it felt damn good !!!!

Total silence
The press agencies have been so short on news surrounding Saab that they needed to quote the previous buyers as saying that they could have bought Saab fr 1 Skr.
If I had of known I would done it myself !!

Sunday 17th Jan there are a series of convoys around the world.
The Tollhättan convoy will meet at the SAAB museum which is only 3oo mtrs from where I live. I'll be there.
They then plan to drive in convoy to the SAAB plant.......COOL

I would have preferred it if they had done this on a weekday and stopped th liqudators getting in.


Today I asked to join a SAAB group on Linkedin. Not sure why but I felt solidarity somehow. It would be a real bummer ifthey turned me down !!!

Finally Steven Wade founder of Saabs-united.com - What a hero. A real Tasmanian tiger.

I have to take my hat off to him for pursuing such a crusade on our behalf.
Well informed and well listened to by both the media, Saab employees and those that comment on his site.

As I mentioned at the beginning - No news either from GM or Spycker / Genii / Merbanco. Is this actuallly a positive sign ?? - This is like waiting for the dentist and Christmas at the same time.
GM have already made the SAAB windown statement repeatedly so that is not what we are waiting for. Are they actually working out how to say SAAB is sold..Perish the thought

I have the browser tabs set for all the major agencies during the nigt with a little gadget that will alert me on my iPhone as soon as the news breaks.

Blogging feels pretty good again mostly for my own sanity

Footnote - If anyone out there thinks my spelling is crap ( which it is ) I have noticed that while using the blog the keyboard becomes unpredictable and misses letters and spaces which I need to go back and correct. If anyone has aslution fo this it would be very much appreciated.

Other than that sd of fr tody

I needed a little therapy followng the last 4 weeks No pun intended.

I actually took a long sabatical during Christmas and to be honest I could not be "arsed" to blog. Sad but true

Having so much snow I did not have time anyway
Almost every morning digging out more snow 20cm a day for 5 days X 5mtrs wide and 120 mtrs long. Must work out the volume and mass at some point and how much energy I consumed .

Back to the SAAB thingy.

I would have used the word circus but they are generally speaking quit entertaining.
Farse is also not qute right.
What I am looking for is that one special word that describs a bunch of useless arrogant businessmen who having failed with their own company would rather ( maybe out of spite )close their own failure than see another succeed ( or maybe not )

In any event like most at Saab I want to see an end to this torture one way or another and move on.

I was part of a " manifestation" at Saab yesterday lunchtime.

Fo those who do not know what a manifesation is ( and I'm not sur I really do ) it is a symbolic gathering to show support or feelings for an issue.

In yesterdays event it was organized by the SAAB unions at short notice outside the main gate. Its purpose to show GM management and the world the felings of the SAAB workforce.
It seemed as though everyone at SAAB was there.
I was along way back and could not hear a word hat was said. I clapped when everyone else did to not only not look stupid (double negative )
Suddenly the crowd was turning towards me. It was all over within five minutes ( bit like sex I guess ) and everyone was returning back to their work place.
BIZZARE - much too peacful for me but very Swedish

The same day JAJ was replaced by the liquidator I am asahmed to say a BRIT

Today has bee a lot of thinking about plans B,C and whatever.

More on that later