Thomas W. LaSorda, (born July 24, 1954, in Windsor, Ontario, Canada) is a Canadian-American automobile industry executive who served as CEO and President of the Chrysler Group. He is currently serving in the board of Fisker Automotive as a Vice President. [1]
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Tom LaSorda is the third generation of his family to work for Chrysler, being the son of a CAW union local official. He graduated from the University of Windsor in 1977 with a dual degree (Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Commerce), and earned an MBA in 1980.
In 1977 he joined General Motors, working chiefly in manufacturing. He helped to launch the GM-Suzuki joint venture plant, CAMI Automotive, in Ingersoll, Ontario and he also served as president of Opel's Eisenach plant in eastern Germany.[2]
In 2000, he joined the Chrysler Group as a Senior Vice President. He was first appointed to the board in 2004 when he became COO. He was the architect of Chrysler's Toledo Supplier Park in Ohio, which integrated suppliers in a close relationship with Chrysler to produce the Jeep Wrangler.
On January 1, 2006, LaSorda succeeded Dieter Zetsche, a German from the parent company DaimlerChrysler (now Daimler AG), as Chrysler's CEO, as Zetsche was promoted to chief executive of DaimlerChrysler Group as a reward for the turnaround of Chrysler. That same year, LaSorda became a U.S. citizen, while retaining his Canadian citizenship.
On August 5, 2007, there was the de-merger of Daimler and Chrysler, the latter being 80% purchased by Cerberus Capital Management. In the resulting management shuffle just days after the agreement was signed, LaSorda was relegated to the number two position as President and Vice Chairman of Chrysler LLC,[3] with Bob Nardelli succeeding him as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Despite the appointment of a second Vice Chairman, Jim Press, LaSorda stayed on.[2][4]
His titles at Chrysler LLC officially stated that he was in charge of manufacturing, procurement and supply, employee relations, global business development and alliances since August 2007. Despite his expertise in manufacturing, however, LaSorda's new role in the company was largely to find a new partner or buyer for Chrysler, leading to speculation that Cerberus Capital was less interested in rebuilding the auto manufacturer than it was to turning profit though a leveraged buyout.[5]
Out of the many auto companies that LaSorda contacted, only Fiat agreed to a partnership. LaSorda counts current Fiat/Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne, also Canadian raised and educated, as a close friend.
LaSorda told the Canadian House of Commons finance committee that the initial GM-CAW deal was insufficient and that Chrysler would demand an hourly wage cut of $20, breaking the CAW's negotiating pattern set by GM. He suggested that Chrysler may withdraw from Canada if it fails to achieve more substantial cost savings from the CAW. Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne has also threatened to walk away from the merger if the CAW did not make concessions, which the union eventually agreed to by cutting benefits. Chrysler LLC has since filed for bankruptcy, though Fiat would continue to implement the strategic alliance. [6] [7] [8]
While Fiat asked LaSorda to stay on, he instead opted to step down as President and Vice-Chairman and retired effective May 1, 2009, as Chrysler LLC filed for bankruptcy. [5]
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