為什么埃隆·馬斯克會迅速地從備受尊敬的顛覆性高瞻遠矚人士淪為人人譏諷的行業笑料? 從前的馬斯克曾經是一位獨行俠,在開創未來方面屢建奇功。他曾經幫助發明了PayPal的在線支付功能。他所執掌的團隊在沒有尋求底特律汽車產業大佬幫助的情況下打造了一款卓越的電動汽車。他還創建了商業太空探索業務,并展示了如何讓住宅太陽能電板業務進入主流市場。諸如此類的事情還有很多很多。 但馬斯克所犯的錯誤也不比其傳奇事跡少多少。他杠上了政府監管方,挑起了一場極具破壞力的不必要爭斗。有一天他說,特斯拉將關閉其所有展廳。隨后《華爾街日報》稱,展廳地主并不打算讓特斯拉退租。馬斯克隨即澄清,公司并非要關閉所有的展廳。他曾經宣布了一些自己工廠無法實現的生產目標,然后又重蹈覆轍。Bernstein的分析師托尼·薩科納吉在抱怨馬斯克承諾過的新Model Y兩廂車的交付時限時說道:“我們忍不住要問,這一幕難道不覺得眼熟嗎?” 乍一看,馬斯克展現出了擁有遠大理想的經理人以及經驗不足的高管所具備的所有特質。這類人會追隨潮流,要么是因為這些潮流與自己的怪念頭不謀而合,要么因為此舉能夠掩蓋現有的問題。但馬斯克并非是新手,他創建的是實實在在的企業。 再者,批評他的人一直在說汽車制造是一項不同的業務。它屬于批量生產,需要在資本配置、勞工管理和監管合規方面慎之又慎。借助特斯拉,馬斯克和他的同事(千萬別忘了,無論光景的好壞,這都不是馬斯克一個人的功勞)為世人奉上了當今最偉大的藝術品之一。要想將這項業務轉變為一家國際汽車公司,僅靠即興發揮還遠遠不夠。(財富中文網) 譯者:馮豐 審校:夏林 |
How is it that Elon Musk has traveled so quickly from slavishly admired disruptive visionary to widely ridiculed industry punchline? Vintage Musk was the maverick who time and again showed others the future. He helped invent online payments at PayPal. He oversaw a team that built a gorgeous electric car without Detroit’s help. He led the way to commercial space exploration. He showed how the residential solar panel business could go mainstream. The list is endless. Fumbling Musk’s list of screw-ups is equally long. He picks unnecessary and distracting fights with government regulators. One day he says Tesla will close all its showrooms. Then The Wall Street Journal reports that landlords have no intention of letting Tesla out of its leases. Musk next announces not all the showrooms will close after all. He declares production targets his factories can’t meet. Then he does it again. “We can’t help but wonder whether we’ve seen this movie before,” laments Bernstein analyst Toni Sacconaghi about manufacturing timelines Musk has promised for the new Model Y hatchback. At first blush, Musk is demonstrating all the attributes of a bright-shiny-objects manager, an inexperienced executive who chases fads either because they suit his whims or because they cover up existing problems. But Musk is no rookie. He has built real businesses. Then again, his critics always said automobile manufacturing would be different. It’s a mass-production business that requires otherworldly attention to capital allocation, labor management, and regulatory compliance. With Tesla, Musk and his colleagues—it’s always important to remember this isn’t a one-man show, in good times and bad—delivered one of the great artisanal products of our day. Turning that into a global car company requires the types of skills that winging it simply won’t supply. |