Has GM cut enough cost, and does it have the right product mix? Troy Clarke is the rare General Motors Corp. executive: A veteran insider with an outsider's perspective. Clarke spent the last two years overseeing fast growing yet very lean GM Asia-Pacific operations. Tapped as president of GM North America five months ago, Clarke, 51, returns to a GM that is far leaner than the one he left, but still far from reaching sustained profits. In the second half, the former head of manufacturing and labor relations for GM has seen 34,000 U.S. hourly workers accept buyouts or early retirements and a dozen GM plants prepare to close by 2008. He manages a product portfolio that is turning away from large SUVs toward cross/utility vehicles, midsize and small cars.
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