I’m sure you’ve all seen the stories of GM’s bankruptcy and you all know how much money it has given to many clubs and to FIRST as a whole. So with Gm going under, what do you think the kickback will be on FIRST?
I think General Motors realizes the values and importance of FIRST, and when it brings itself out of bankruptcy, it will continue to fund FIRST and subsequent teams. Sure, the amount of funds given may be substantially less, but every little counts, right?
-Nick
GM won’t bring itself out of bankruptcy.
Teams that rely on auto sponsorship may want to find companies with factories/engineering locations stateside that aren’t failing, such as Subaru, and others. GM is dying, and what we’re seeing is the floundering of a company trying to stay alive.
As far as I know GM has been our teams primary sponsor since its inception. We’ve already been told that fundraising is going to have to be drastically increased if we want to stay around past next year, and I doubt that we’re the only team in that position.
Keep in mind that GM did more than donate money. They also provided support through donation of tools, providing mentors, and other additional services.
[partial speculation]As far as I know…And please don’t quote me on this as it is not a fact yet…GM is going to be pulling out of FRC as a primary sponsor. That is just what I’ve heard from a reliable source.[/partial speculation]
I actually think it would be a good idea for GM to cut back on FRC teams. Yeah it will suck for GM teams, but I’d rather see that money go to keeping some jobs around. JMHO
The difference between speculation and investment in the stock market is that you invest for the long term. That is what GM has done with FRC. FIRST provides the feedstock for GM’s next generation of engineers.
GM may certainly cut back the total dollars allocated to teams; our sponsor has done the same. This forces us to alter our strategy and work on alternative funding; not a bad thing. Nothing is static; our students need to learn this lesson and see how we regroup.
But the primary commitment of providing mentors to inspire students to enter STEM careers is so central to GM’s future success that I cannot see them backing away from that aspect of the program.
Also note that mentors and tool loans are not very expensive to the company. Certainly not as expensive as cash.
It would be a good idea for every team - GM sponsored or not - to cultivate some new sponsors. They don’t have to give in the 5k or even 1k range - 25 sponsors at $500 each tends to be a lot more stable than 2 sponsors at $6k. Surely there are 25 companies within 15 miles of the school…
Hopefully, GM won’t “go under”. If they go into Chapter 11 bankruptcy, that means that they will reorganize. This is currently what Delphi is still doing (since 2005) and what Chrysler is doing.
I believe that Craig is very wrong, and GM will emerge from a re-organization as a much smaller company. There will be many changes along the way, making GM a different entity within 5 years.
Here’s another way to look at this, from a FIRST perspective:
If any of us are in the market for a new or previously-owned vehicle, why don’t we go out and purchase a car that is made by one of the companies who have supported FIRST programs for many years?
Let’s see… Chrysler, GM, Ford… they have supported FIRST. Maybe we should support them, eh? I don’t see Subaru, Toyota, Honda, Mercedes, BMW, or other non-US-based auto companies being major sponsors of FIRST events and foundations. In this tight economic times, I suggest we support the companies who are supporting what we are passionate about, instead of piling on and giving up on them.
Andy B.
I’m with Andy on this one. I have GM cars in my drive and I have had them since 1984. I owned a Subaru and still feel that GM provides a superior product and it is a North American product.
That makes a lot of sense, kind of makes me wonder though. Is there anything else that FIRST and all of its teams could do to help out GM?
I have not seen any press releases stating that Tom Stephens has given up his seat on FIRST Board of Directors and I reflect on Tom’s comments that Dean brought up during the closing cerimonies in April…
<paraphase>we have to do more of this, and faster</paraphrase>.
With Tom as a Vice-Chairman at GM and FIRST as one of GM’s educational partnering organizations, I’m confident that GM’s support of FIRST will continue. How it manifests itself may change, as many things are going to at GM, but I expect that the support will be there. I am a second generation GM employee and have a number of things ‘at risk’ in this situation, but I am certain that we will continue to see a FIRST/GM relationship as long as Tom is still in the picture.
With the reports as to who will actually hold the value of the company, 70% will be the US government. I don’t expect that they will be willing to give out money to charitables for a while. Some of the remainder is owned by union members, and their first priority must be keeping their workers working and protect those in retirement. I am not saying this to be detrimental to the unions, they have their work cut out for them and have specific responsibility to the members who pay them dues. The rest is held by people who have given money and are owed more than the company is worth. I hope the GM, Ford and Chrysler teams will be able to make it through the next few years. They may have to resort to FTC for a few seasons, but with any luck can continue and hold together until times are better.
GM going bankrupt will hurt a lot of teams, as has been speculated.
Our story (as its the only one I am qualified to tell) is that GM has been a Great and Faithful sponsor for years. They have given us
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money (drastically reduced over the past few years),
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our home (a amazing amount of space for our machine shop and partial practice field, in a shop that is going to be shut down by the end of June…),
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our Mentors (a Great bunch of people that are more like friends than teachers, even though they have taught us a huge amount of information. a dedicated group of GM engineers that have been with the team for about 10 years), and
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just all sorts of help
I will be sad to see GM go but we will survive.
For us, we have been earning WAY more than GM has been giving us the past few years. If you ever go to the Michigan Renaissance Festival, we cook the Turkey Legs, its hot, greasy, smoky, dirty, and tiring but we earn $22,850- it is most of our budget.
It is possible to live without the Big sponsors, it just takes a lot of fund raising and hard work…
I couldn’t have said it better myself.
Any business or individual willing to support a bunch of eager high school nerds is OK by me. 
I think it will be a good thing if GM cuts back on monetary support for a few years. Leave the mentor support and as much facility support as you can spare from restructuring, but cut back the money drastically over about 2 years (if given that long).
The teams that don’t go down will be stronger than ever. They will know how to raise money, maybe even supporting the teams that don’t while they learn fundraising. raumeister and Don are dead on as to where your money can (should be) coming from. If you are dependent on one major sponsor to the point where your team will collapse if they stop funding you, you need to diversify. Small sponsors and fundraisers are the way to go. (And trust me, I took one look at that fundraiser for 68 and thought “They made THAT MUCH off one fundraiser? Why didn’t I think of that one? How would I get a team into that sort of thing?”)
If you can have a solid foundation even though you lose a key sponsor, you will be in for the long haul. I know that for a while, the students on my old team could fundraise more money by doing little things like car washes and “eat at X restaurant” nights than our biggest money sponsor gave us in one chunk. We’ve been around since 1998 (or 1997, depending how you count it), for reference. That’s the kind of funding you want.
I suspect you are quite wrong.
Are you aware that portions of subaru applied for bankruptcy in 2000, and they also applied for some of the $25 billion on auto aid loans authorized by the DOE this year?
I personally would buy a car for far different reasons than who they gave Charity too. It’s all about reliability, efficiency, weight, and performance for me, in that exact order. GM seems to have the opposite order. Yes, they have a few models that are exceptions, but the bulk of their product is heavy cars with good highway power. Americans clearly don’t want that type of car, or the sales would be much better. (And yes, I understand that I’m simplifying the issues here, but this is a sponsorship debate, not a Macroeconomics discussion)
Yep, entirely aware. However, in direct comparison across every factor, Subaru is currently beating GM. Reliability: Win. Efficiency: Major win. Performance: HUGE win in handling, because America is the only one with an obsession for Drag.
I guess I’m plagued by having no customer loyalty to any brand. I’ll buy the best out there for the best price, and currently no American car maker (other than Jeep) delivers what in my eyes constitutes as the best.
That being said, I in no way believe that consumers should give up on GM. If they release the volt for a reasonable price, you can bet I’d buy it if I had the money. When a company innovates, I’m all in favor. But that innovation has grown mainly stagnant due to the massive size of GM, and they’re currently shedding dead weight. Once the shedding is complete, if anything emerges, the beast will be far different. I have a feeling the company that emerges will remember to cater to the consumer, rather than attempt to dictate what the consumer wants. This isn’t the same type of times that Ford has gone through; and GM doesn’t have a Crown Victoria to be bought in large enough quantities to keep them afloat. After all, Ford would be long gone had they not repackaged the Crown Vic as the Police Interceptor.
TL;DR - I hope GM recovers and gets back on track with sponsorship, but as things stand now I don’t see them returning to the previous potency.
I have said this before, but I think it needs repeating. **Buy whatever you feel is best for you. However, if you are in the market to buy, please test drive those vehicles that have supported your programs. ** I am not asking you to spend money on a car you don’t want, but I am asking you to evaluate your options off of experience an not pre-concieved notion, or what the car rags are telling you.
If these companies have donated time and money to a cause you find near and dear to your heart, then go check out their products and compare them fairly to their competition. What you will find is some a better, some are worse, some are better value, some are not.
Also, please be aware that GM, Ford, and Chrysler sponsor more than just teams. They have been major sponsors of awwards, regionals, and FIRST as a whole. If they are not able to contribute to FIRST as a whole, we all should be concerned.
P.S.
Car and Driver and Motor Trend are loyal to their sponsors! If there is a shoot out between several cars, I can tell you who will win based almost solely of looking at the ads in the magazine. Use your brains, not theirs when looing for a car or truck.
Craig, where did you get the information regarding the Crown Vic ‘saving’ Ford? I work for Ford, and I’ve never once heard that bit of information.
Just thought of something. A large portion of GM will now be owned by the government (over 50% if I’m not wrong). If that’s the case and GM continues to support FIRST (in whatever way it does) then technically wouldn’t that mean that the federal government would be supporting FIRST? Yes? No? I don’t know just a thought. Sorry for straying off topic.