Tesla Loses Two Model S Executives Before Sedan Makes Debut

[extesla]

Sampson worked as Rawlinson's assistant at Corus. Sampson will follow Rawlinson. Aide de camp springs to mind. Or batman. Or valet.

 

[WhiteKnight]

Sampson worked as Rawlinson's assistant at Corus. Sampson will follow Rawlinson. Aide de camp springs to mind. Or batman. Or valet.

So were you previously employed by Tesla (in the engineering department perhaps)? Is that why you call yourself ex-tesla?

I'm asking because it would lend a lot of credibility to what you've posted about Rawlinson and Sampson.

 

[ckessel]

There's probably only so much he could say depending on his previous position.

It does go a long way to explaining both leaving at once in a better light. It's not uncommon for one person to follow another in all sorts of industries. That's far better than two people having independently gotten pissed off/burned out/whatever.

 

[Tommy]

For me, the most troubling info was that pic of the "Denali" conference room photoshopped to "Denial".

I remember a TV special about the Ford Co and their turnaround: A new CEO (Alan Mulally) was brought in and quickly noticed that one of their car launches was hopelessly behind schedule; however at the board meeting all departments working on the car stated that they were meeting their schedules and had no problems to report. Knowing this couldn't be the case, Mually encouraged the department heads to report any problems. At the next meeting, one brave soul reported they were having a problem and wouldn't be able to meet schedule. Mulally clapped his hands in approval. The next meeting more department heads reported problems knowing now that repercussions weren't going to happen and after a short time the problems were all known and thus began the turnaround of Ford.

I think DENIAL that anything is amiss is a common enemy in the manufacturing world; Elon is just using humor to label the room in the manner he did to serve as a reminder of where DENIAL in a company begins. Although it may be obvious to us on the outside that denying a problem exists does a disservice to a company; it seems that many department heads, executives, etc. still do it.

 

[vfx]

As I said, When we chatted with Peter at the LA Rally last summer he was well into the Model X design (and raving about it's potential).

I also noted his wife was excited for him but not excited in general.

 

[vfx]

I think DENIAL that anything is amiss is a common enemy in the manufacturing world; Elon is just using humor to label the room in the manner he did to serve as a reminder of where DENIAL in a company begins. ...

In a conference room who is doing the denial? Is it Elon who is in denial that schedules can't be met or is it the people who work for him that are in denial that they have the abilities to get things done on time?


Or is it just a place where people (at the top or bottom) ask for more time/money/resources and are simply denied?

 

[Norbert]

Or maybe they were missing rain, fish & chips...

 

[Tommy]

In a conference room who is doing the denial? Is it Elon who is in denial that schedules can't be met or is it the people who work for him that are in denial that they have the abilities to get things done on time?


Or is it just a place where people (at the top or bottom) ask for more time/money/resources and are simply denied?

Elon's tweet states that it is an executive conference room. On one hand I can see where the label infers this is the room where things are turned down as you suggest; however I can also see where the label refers to the situation Ford faced as I outlined in my post: that management often deny that problems exist. There may be another meanings to the label, such as the old DENALI label (which means "The great one") was a throwback to GM's NUMMI plant and Elon thought that was a very pompous label for the room and mixed up the order of the letters to get DENIAL. I don't see anything nefarious, mean spirited or spiteful.

 

[JRP3]

I find this quote from Elon's "Mahalo" interview somewhat revealing:

My drive to get it done is somewhat disconnected from hope or enthusiasm or anything else, I actually just don't care about hope, enthusiasm, motivation, I just give it everything I've got, irrespective of what the circumstances may be...yeah, you just keep going and get it done.

 

[extesla]

As I said, When we chatted with Peter at the LA Rally last summer he was well into the Model X design (and raving about it's potential).

I also noted his wife was excited for him but not excited in general.

Peter Rawlinson is a bachelor. An only child with a farmhouse in England.

 

[smorgasbord]

A 10 month old interview with Jerome Guillen, who's now taking Rawlinson's place (Rawlinson can be seen in an early shot).

 

[jbherman]

Not sure if this has been posted elsewhere:


Tesla Motors Announces Date for Company Update Conference Call



PALO ALTO, CA -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 01/15/12 -- Tesla Motors, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) announced today that it will host a conference call to provide a Company Update, including a discussion of recent personnel changes. The call will be held before market hours on Tuesday, January 17, 2012, at 5:00am Pacific Time (8:00am Eastern Time). The Company Update will include commentary from members of the senior management team, and be followed by a Question & Answer period.

What: Tesla Motors, Inc. Company Update and Question & Answer Conference Call
When: January 17, 2012
Time: 5:00am Pacific Time / 8:00am Eastern Time
Webcast: Tesla - Investors Overview (live and replay)
Live Call: (877) 312-5519 / (760) 666-3771 (International)

Approximately two hours after the call, a digital recording of the call will be available for a period of two weeks. To access the recording, please dial in to one of the following numbers using the conference ID shown.

Replay Dial In #: (855) 859-2056 Conference ID: 43839977
International Replay Dial In #: (404) 537-3406 Conference ID: 43839977

The webcast will also be archived on the Company's website for a period of one year following the date of the call.

About Tesla Motors

Tesla's goal is to accelerate the world's transition to electric mobility with a full range of increasingly affordable electric cars. Palo Alto, California-based Tesla designs and manufactures EVs and EV powertrain components. Tesla has delivered more than 2,000 Roadsters, the world's first electric sports car, to customers world-wide. Model S, the first premium sedan to be built from the ground up as an electric vehicle, goes on the market in mid-2012.

For additional information, please visit Tesla - Investors Overview.

Add to Digg Bookmark with del.icio.us Add to Newsvine

Source: Tesla Motors, Inc.

 

[Doug_G]

Look at the ludicrous graph printed with this article:

Tesla stock plunges 20% following exec departure - Jan. 13, 2012

Talk about artificial - makes it look like the stock has been staying flat over time, then plummets off a cliff. But look at the scales! 10 am to 4 pm, $28 to $22. Talk about damned lies and statistics!

 

[Mycroft]

If it bleeds, it leads.

 

[zack]

Yawn.

 

[vfx]

Peter Rawlinson is a bachelor. An only child with a farmhouse in England.

eeek!

So who was she?

 

[smorgasbord]

Just looked up Nick Samson on LinkedIn. His status is "Currently Seeking New Opportunities."

So, it would seem that the reasons for Rawlinson leaving are different than for Samson. Maybe.

 

[JRP3]

Not necessarily, they just may now be going in different directions after leaving for the same reasons. It seems as if they were hired as a team, not surprising that they left as a team.

 

[slavi]

Well, I liked the conference call so far. Put a few grand more in the stock before it shoots back up to the original levels. Here's to a successful Model X launch. Wish I bought more on friday...

 

[JRod0802]

Just looked up Nick Samson on LinkedIn. His status is "Currently Seeking New Opportunities."

So, it would seem that the reasons for Rawlinson leaving are different than for Samson. Maybe.

Good call. It was confirmed in the conference call that Rawlinson resigned, and about a week later Elon asked for Samson's resignation because he wasn't a good fit for the company.