Ex-GM CEO Henderson (left) and current CEO WhitacreFritz Henderson, the ousted GM CEO who steered the failing automaker out of bankruptcy until he couldn’t close deals to sell Saturn and Saab, among other things, has been hired as a 20-hour per month consultant to new CEO Ed Whitacre for a reported plus-$59,000 a month. That translates to about $2,950 an hour.
Whitacre served as GM’s board chairman; Henderson tendered his resignation to the board.
After replacing ousted GM CEO Rick Wagoner and working with the White House using government loans to move GM from the brink of failure, Henderson seemed to be refashioning the “old” GM way of operating to a “new” GM. But the board apparently thought Henderson wasn’t moving quickly enough toward the needed changes.
Whitacre also has a new CEO package, reportedly worth $9 million a year.