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16 • February/March 2015 latinoleaders.com

Grace Lieblein is not just an ordinary executive. As the Vice

President of Global Quality at General Motors (GM), this

dynamic Latina shares her views on the current challenges and the future of the automotive

industry in America and on why GM is an excellent place for

Latinos to work.

THE AUTO INDUSTRY TODAY AND TOMORROW

What’s your name and position at GM? Grace Lieblein, Vice President Global Quality. What is the most fascinating aspect of the auto industry?The fact that we’re living in a time of exciting changes and tremendous achievements. Our industry is going to see more advances in the next five to ten years than we have seen in perhaps the last five decades. I’m talking about huge improvements in vehicle electrifi-cation, connectivity, propulsion, safety, even autono-mous cars. We’re at the start of a technological revolu-tion that will change the way we drive and interact with our vehicles. The transition will be as momen-tous as the transition from horses to horsepower. The great people at GM are committed to driving these changes based on the requirements and input from customers with the goal to deliver the most compel-ling Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac products.

GRACE LIEBLEIN

Vice President, Global Quality, GM

What is the main challenge facing the indus-try today and how will GM overcome it?The automotive industry is one of the most challenging overall. There’s never a second to rest or hesitate because global competition is fierce. Those companies with the most motivated employees who truly listen to the voices of the customers around the world will be winners. At GM the customer is the center of everything we do. We have developed and established methods to incorporate customer input and requirements into the way we design, engineer and manufacture cars and trucks to win with consumers in markets around the world. We are committed to providing automobiles with the highest levels of quality, fuel-efficiency and safety. Why is working at GM so rewarding?GM has been a home to me since 1978, and I’ve come to personally learn and appreciate how this company places a huge value on several critical components to make both the firm and the individual successful. One of those is the focus GM places on education, especially STEM (Science, Technol-ogy, Engineering and Math) education and promoting STEM careers for Hispanic youth, as well as other minorities. The list of all the STEM initiatives that GM supports is too long to cover here, but suffice to say we are doing everything we can to encourage STEM education across all regions, races, and age groups. And I strongly encourage every other company to do the same thing. It’s the most important thing we can do for the future of our respective companies, industries, communities, and for this nation as a whole.GM is also a rewarding place to work as it affords its employees to learn various aspects of this exciting industry. GM challenges and enables its employees to constantly improve, to share knowledge and culturally relevant insights, and to make it the best place to work. At GM we are proud of our company’s

long-standing commitment to diversity, but we understand that we can’t be locked in time. We know that new chal-

lenges require new thinking and continued innovation. Would you recommend for other Latinos to consider a career in this industry? Why?If you’ve ever entertained a career in the automo-

tive industry, I would invite Latinos to do so. This is an exciting time to be a part of the future of the automobile.

If you enjoy designing and creating a product that makes a difference in the lives of so many, if you want to shape and help drive the world of marketing and advertising, if you want to explore the world of purchasing materials and vehicle com-ponents, or if you want to use your math and financial skills, we have great positions for you. In essence, the auto industry needs people of many diverse talents to help design, build

and sell the next generation of vehicles. In a fast-changing, consumer-driven business like ours, you win by constantly bring-ing a steady stream of new products and technologies that win with customers in the market. And at GM, we’ve never been in a better position to do just that.

“At GM we are proud of our company’s

long-standing com-mitment to diversity”

18 • February/March 2015