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This really doesn't change the status quo at Tesla at all. We can armchair quarterback the company all day long about whether Musk is replaceable or not, but s

This really doesn't change the status quo at Tesla at all. We can armchair quarterback the company all day long about whether Musk is replaceable or not, but short of folks that have direct experience within the company we don't really know. What we can say with some confidence is that if Musk were really removed in any meaningful way the market would crush them utterly within hours. The shareholders want Stark Industries, not some near-insolvent car company with severe production shortfalls and a teetering runway.

GedByrne 8y ago
But they won’t find Musk when watching Iron Man or Avengers. To find him in film they have to watch the Greatest Showman.
- isostatic 8y ago
  They'll find Musk in Iron Man 2
jpalomaki 8y ago
Professor Aswath Damodaran gave his thoughts on this topic at Nordic Business Forum. (IIRC disclaimer here) He said that he sees some parallels to Steve Jobs, who once almost destroyed Apple and then later saved it - the difference being that on the second time he had Tim Cook. If Musk can find (or if he already has - I have no idea of Tesla management) his own "Tim Cook", then the future of Tesla looks much brighter. For me this makes sense and I've seen it also elsewhere. The person with lots of energy and ideas may not be the best person to execute things in a corporate context.
- everdev 8y ago
  As humans, we tend to see patterns wether they're there or not. Jobs and Musk are different people running different types of companies in different eras. There are probably only a small number of people who really understand how Jobs made or Musk makes business critical decisions day in and day out and I'd wager on the opposite that they probably do things fairly differently even if in the outside we see similarities (passion, vision, etc.)
  - Faark 8y ago
    Eh. Yes, we can only use known information and especially with little info, the patterns we perceive won't always be perfect. But applying those labels seems to have enormous value anyway. Reddit recently likes to compare Musk to Trump. And while i disagree with that comparison on most aspects, it did help me realize their social media usage patterns are a lot more similar than I'd like. Of cause this particular comparison got a lot harder to do, now, since the US seems to hold a CEO & Chairman to higher standards...
- ajslater 8y ago
  He's got Gwynne Shotwell running SpaceX he needs a Gwynne of Tesla.
706f6f70 8y ago
The really interesting part is the need to appoint two independent directors. Currently, Tesla's leadership could best be described as a monarchy, with King Elon appointing family and favoured friends. That will have to change now and I think it will be quite telling who ends up in the role as well as how long they remain at Tesla.
AtlasBarfed 8y ago
https://cleantechnica.com/2018/09/26/perspective-yo/ https://cleantechnica.com/2018/09/26/perspective-yo/
leroy_masochist 8y ago
> This really doesn't change the status quo at Tesla at all. It just subtracted $40mm from the status quo and, moreover, will likely have negative repercussions on the company's ability to raise capital in the future.
- rory096 8y ago
  $20 million. Musk pays the other half personally.
  - deepGem 8y ago
    I think Musk technically pays the full 40M through some stock purchase.
- MaupitiBlue 8y ago
  > likely have negative repercussions on the company's ability to raise capital in the future. Perhaps the increased independence of the board will facilitate raising capital?
kgwgk 8y ago
These orders in the settlement with Tesla mean that Musk cannot say in public things about Tesla anymore without proper supervision from the company. At least, he cannot say exciting, Stark-Industries-like things anymore. I let you decide if this change is removing him in any meaningful way. "(b) create a permanent committee (“Committee”) of the Company’s Board of Directors, consisting of independent directors only, overseeing the (i) implementation of the terms of this Consent and incorporated Final Judgment; (ii) controls and processes governing the Company’s and its senior executives’ disclosures and/or public statements that relate to the Company; and (iii) review and resolution of human resources issues or issues raising conflicts of interest that involve any member of executive management. The charter and composition of the Committee is subject to review and approval by the staff of the Commission; "(c) employ or designate an experienced securities lawyer (“Securities Counsel”) whose qualifications are not unacceptable to the staff and maintain such counsel (or a successor Securities Counsel) for so long as the Company remains a reporting company under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The Securities Counsel will review communications made through Twitter and other social media by the Company’s senior officers in a manner that is consistent with the Company’s disclosure policy and procedures, including the procedures and controls referenced in subsection (d) below, as well as advise the Company on securities issues, including, but not limited to, compliance with all federal securities laws and regulations; "(d) implement mandatory procedures and controls to oversee all of Elon Musk’s communications regarding the Company made in any format, including, but not limited to, posts on social media (e.g., Twitter), the Company’s website (e.g., the Company’s blog), press releases, and investor calls, and to pre-approve any such written communications that contain, or reasonably could contain, information material to the Company or its shareholders. The definition of, and the process to determine, which of Elon Musk’s communications contain, or reasonably could contain, information material to the Company or its shareholders shall be set forth in the Company’s disclosure policies and procedures;" Edit: I wonder what the SEC will think about “leaked” internal memos like https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-09-30/tesla-very-close-to-profitability-musk-says-in-staff-email https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-09-30/tesla-ver...

GedByrne 8y ago

But they won’t find Musk when watching Iron Man or Avengers. To find him in film they have to watch the Greatest Showman.

isostatic 8y ago
They'll find Musk in Iron Man 2

jpalomaki 8y ago

Professor Aswath Damodaran gave his thoughts on this topic at Nordic Business Forum. (IIRC disclaimer here) He said that he sees some parallels to Steve Jobs, who once almost destroyed Apple and then later saved it - the difference being that on the second time he had Tim Cook. If Musk can find (or if he already has - I have no idea of Tesla management) his own "Tim Cook", then the future of Tesla looks much brighter. For me this makes sense and I've seen it also elsewhere. The person with lots of energy and ideas may not be the best person to execute things in a corporate context.

everdev 8y ago
As humans, we tend to see patterns wether they're there or not. Jobs and Musk are different people running different types of companies in different eras. There are probably only a small number of people who really understand how Jobs made or Musk makes business critical decisions day in and day out and I'd wager on the opposite that they probably do things fairly differently even if in the outside we see similarities (passion, vision, etc.)
- Faark 8y ago
  Eh. Yes, we can only use known information and especially with little info, the patterns we perceive won't always be perfect. But applying those labels seems to have enormous value anyway. Reddit recently likes to compare Musk to Trump. And while i disagree with that comparison on most aspects, it did help me realize their social media usage patterns are a lot more similar than I'd like. Of cause this particular comparison got a lot harder to do, now, since the US seems to hold a CEO & Chairman to higher standards...
ajslater 8y ago
He's got Gwynne Shotwell running SpaceX he needs a Gwynne of Tesla.

706f6f70 8y ago

The really interesting part is the need to appoint two independent directors. Currently, Tesla's leadership could best be described as a monarchy, with King Elon appointing family and favoured friends. That will have to change now and I think it will be quite telling who ends up in the role as well as how long they remain at Tesla.

AtlasBarfed 8y ago

https://cleantechnica.com/2018/09/26/perspective-yo/ https://cleantechnica.com/2018/09/26/perspective-yo/

leroy_masochist 8y ago

> This really doesn't change the status quo at Tesla at all. It just subtracted $40mm from the status quo and, moreover, will likely have negative repercussions on the company's ability to raise capital in the future.

rory096 8y ago
$20 million. Musk pays the other half personally.
- deepGem 8y ago
  I think Musk technically pays the full 40M through some stock purchase.
MaupitiBlue 8y ago
> likely have negative repercussions on the company's ability to raise capital in the future. Perhaps the increased independence of the board will facilitate raising capital?

kgwgk 8y ago

These orders in the settlement with Tesla mean that Musk cannot say in public things about Tesla anymore without proper supervision from the company. At least, he cannot say exciting, Stark-Industries-like things anymore. I let you decide if this change is removing him in any meaningful way. "(b) create a permanent committee (“Committee”) of the Company’s Board of Directors, consisting of independent directors only, overseeing the (i) implementation of the terms of this Consent and incorporated Final Judgment; (ii) controls and processes governing the Company’s and its senior executives’ disclosures and/or public statements that relate to the Company; and (iii) review and resolution of human resources issues or issues raising conflicts of interest that involve any member of executive management. The charter and composition of the Committee is subject to review and approval by the staff of the Commission; "(c) employ or designate an experienced securities lawyer (“Securities Counsel”) whose qualifications are not unacceptable to the staff and maintain such counsel (or a successor Securities Counsel) for so long as the Company remains a reporting company under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The Securities Counsel will review communications made through Twitter and other social media by the Company’s senior officers in a manner that is consistent with the Company’s disclosure policy and procedures, including the procedures and controls referenced in subsection (d) below, as well as advise the Company on securities issues, including, but not limited to, compliance with all federal securities laws and regulations; "(d) implement mandatory procedures and controls to oversee all of Elon Musk’s communications regarding the Company made in any format, including, but not limited to, posts on social media (e.g., Twitter), the Company’s website (e.g., the Company’s blog), press releases, and investor calls, and to pre-approve any such written communications that contain, or reasonably could contain, information material to the Company or its shareholders. The definition of, and the process to determine, which of Elon Musk’s communications contain, or reasonably could contain, information material to the Company or its shareholders shall be set forth in the Company’s disclosure policies and procedures;" Edit: I wonder what the SEC will think about “leaked” internal memos like https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-09-30/tesla-very-close-to-profitability-musk-says-in-staff-email https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-09-30/tesla-ver...