September 30, 2005 – From Mayor Han Zheng, Chris Gubbey, British citizen and Executive Vice-President of Shanghai GM, took the “Shanghai Honorary Citizenship” badge and document this morning at the VIP Hall of the city government house, in recognition of his outstanding contributions over the years to the prosperity of the city economy and boom in Shanghai GM.
Along with reforms and openings in China , more and more expatriates have come to work in Shanghai , helping enormously with the city economy and development. Three awards are therefore offered in tribute of the city to the most outstanding of them – honorary citizenship, magnolia award and silver magnolia award. Today, Chris Gubbey was offered the best – honorary citizenship. With it, he will be able to enter Shanghai visa-free and apply for permanent city residency.
Mr. Gubbey has been Executive Vice-President of Shanghai GM ever since October 1, 2000, mainly in charge of purchasing, vehicle line platforms, and engineering departments. As a senior management expert in the automobile industry, he has extensive expertise in auto making, production management, project management as well as engineering and sales and marketing, after serving on key posts in American, British and Japanese auto firms. He's always given the first priority to the benefits of the joint venture. Under his leadership, all our efforts to improve the quality, process and cost control of whole car projects in SGM, lower auto parts procurement costs and cut delivery cycles have paid off significantly. After developing for years on the high gear, Shanghai GM has grown three production bases in Shanghai , Yantai and Shenyan, with economies of scale and competitive strength leading the industry in China . Under the three umbrella brands of Cadillac, Buick and Chevrolet are 10 categories of over 30 product lines, with each leading the segments they belong. His hard work and great contributions are indispensable with our success today.
Mr. Gubbey loves China and Shanghai . In his role as Standing Councilor of SAEFI (Shanghai Association of Enterprises with Foreign Investment) , he has been active in promoting the exchange between foreign investors and the Chinese government, and providing his in-depth and invaluable perceptions for improving the investment environment in Shanghai . During the ravaging of the SARS epidemic, he set a great example to stick there with his work. After such a role model, none of the dozens of expatriate members of Shanghai GM were scared enough to flee their job. What's more, Mr. Gubbey had joined the shooting of a newsreel -- “Hand in Hand Against SARS” -- to demonstrate his confidence in China and Shanghai everywhere he went. His persistence and special identify worked at that special time to shore up the Shanghai City Government as it tried to rekindle and reinforce confidence in Shanghai and China at large among foreign investors and the international business community.
Back in 2003, Mr. Gubbey had won the “Magnolia Award,” while in the following year, Mark William Bernhard, our Australian Chief Financial Officer, took the “Silver Magnolia Award.” They are but a few examples of many our expatriate managers had won from the city government over last few years. It indicates on one hand that the outstanding performances of our expatriate staff are indispensable with the fabulous achievements of Shanghai GM. On the other hand, memorable partnership among the local and expatriate members of the management team had laid a solid ground for healthy and sustainable growth in Shanghai GM.
