session 4 with Terry Woychowski

Terry Woychowski in an executive with General Motors -- responsible for more than 8000 engineers. He talked in this session about change. Terry drove onto the stage in a 2007 Chevy Silverado carrying the actual 2007 Motor Trend Truck of the Year trophy. Some notable quotes from his session:

·         One year ago we reported a $10 billion loss in one quarter.

·         We had to change or die. GM did not have the universal right to exist. We had to change or we would cease to exist.

·         We had to change our processes, our systems, even some of our people. I had to let 1200 engineers go who worked for me.

·         This past year was the most difficult year in my life by far. Change is hard. And massive change is massively hard.

·         Change is inevitable. The question is whether you will change for better…or change for worse.

·         There are roadblocks between your community and God. Your job is not to move the community to God. It is, rather, to remove the roadblocks that keep them from making their way to God.

·         To change…we often need to “feel” the need deeply to be sufficiently motivated to voluntarily change.

Terry pointed to the Motor Trend trophy and said that he worked three long years to win that award. But, some day it will burn or rust or be buried. But what you do, in church work, that really matters. That will last.