Former Ferrari Chairman: Ferrari is “a company without a leader and without leadership”

I would say whoever designed that new SUV lacks leadership....

 

I think the company would have been better off with Luca Di Monetezemolo in charge. I was disappointed with his departure. However, I doubt very much he would have not OK'd the Purosangue.

 

Not only does Ferrari lack leadership, they also lack backbone. They go in a direction wherever the wind blows them , its disgusting to say the least.

Big G

 

One thing that I don’t understand about the company is the intent to introduce so many new models in such a short time. Models used to have a 5+/- year lifespan. Now it’s seems much shorter. Constantly retooling the lines for new models means there is not much they can deliver at any given time. That is definitely not a good thing for the bottom line.

 

In terms of the things that enthusiasts and tifosi think are important, going public was a bad idea. “The Market” expects certain things, and those things typically trump considerations that we might think have value. It profoundly changes the way a business is managed, and by whom. Ferrari was bound to lose its special unique qualities, and it has. It’s now a brand, not a dream factory.

 

Exactly, you nailed it Jack.

 

Amen!

 

Funny to read "I prefer not to comment" (but I'd do it anyway) "Ferrari lacks leadership" (because I'm the one who is a true leader)...
No matter what could be thought of the current questionable directions Ferrari is taking, one should not forget that LdM was 1) the one who increased Ferrari's production in never seen proportions after telling he would not ("we will never go beyond 4,000 cars a year" - just a couple years before reaching 7,000); 2) developed the crap Ferrari branding (remember Danny Bahar, appointed at LdM times?) 3) completely screwed up the integration of Maserati (in spite of it being the unique opportunity to increase production without diluting the Ferrari brand, using this other brand that already lost some of its prestige).
So looking at his tenure with rose-tinted glasses is not for me.

 

LdM had Ferrari on a business model that was best for FERRARI. Elkann wanted to ring Ferrari’s neck for very penny it was worth to finance the whole of FIAT. So here we are...

 

True. But because they are a public company they accepted my late deposit for an 812 GTS. So there is that.

 

How did their being public facilitate that?

 

They want the money.

 

Exactly. In the old days Ferrari would limit how many V-12s they would build. Now they need to crank them out to meet quarterly revenue and earnings.

 

In response to a question about F1


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To me, there is a big difference between a company owned by a single individual and that owned by a group.

Although Enzo Ferrari had to work with shareholders, he famously ran the company as his personal fiefdom with little regard for what the company might be after his tenure.

Normally, all commercial ventures seek to maximize profitability. There can be no sentimentality. The more shareholders there are, the shorter the timeframe for profits becomes. In Ferrari’s case, Piero Ferrari is likely trying to preserve a legacy but all others on the Board are focused on stock price.

 

Except that you forget that they were on the verge of bankruptcy in 1993, and that they owe their survival and growth to LCDM who "knows" Ferrari better than anyone, including Piero !!!
He was fired for opposing the IPO, nothing more.
Not only are they trashing the brand now,
cars being mostly disposable consumables,
but they won't survive electrification.
We'll talk about it again, I hope, in 10 years !

 

If anything, Ferrari owe their survival to FIAT...
And talking about financial results, they have not been actually bad since LdM's departure.
The future is another story - but one cannot objectively assess what will happen to Ferrari and what would have happened with LdM, and use speculation about the future to compare the merits of LdM and the current direction.

 

What I had hoped would happen would be a dozen or so multibillionaires with an affinity for Ferrari would step in and buy the company….several GTO owners are in that group plus Lauren, Stroll, Penske, McCaw, and more. There were enough of them to do it, but of course, how would they have got along in the board room?

 

The first kept the brand in line with Enzo (LCDM) and made it profitable, the second don't care at all from the moment the share price is good...they "capitalize" on the brand, thanks to those, including LCDM who led her where it is...
From the outside some have the impression that they know what they are doing, but it is only an impression !

 

Two of the men you mentioned are now heavily invested in Aston Martin, not Ferrari.

Marcel Massini

 

The reason these guys are billionaires is they don’t waste time and money on a hobby. [emoji6]


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AM has been passed around more than a joint at a Grateful Dead concert……..

 

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