C’mon…Dany Bahar was head-hunted by the then-owners of Group Lotus specifically as a high roller to create a ‘brand identity’ for the company.
Whether or not we think that’s right for the company isn’t something that would have even reached their radar; the name was perceived as, and pushed towards, a global name aimed at the ever -more aspirational buyer, mainly in China and Russia.
To achieve that requires a specific type of person who moves in those circles and has the address book to match. I doubt there’s anyone who’s achieved that level/capability without sailing close to the wind at times.
Dany Bahar was that man (at least in the eyes of Lotus’ paymasters).
So, am I condoning what he’s alleged to have done? No, just pointing out that he was/is simply a man doing a job. The blame - if there is any - should surely be aimed at those who appointed him.
[quote=tlracer]C’mon…Dany Bahar was head-hunted by the then-owners of Group Lotus specifically as a high roller to create a ‘brand identity’ for the company.
Whether or not we think that’s right for the company isn’t something that would have even reached their radar; the name was perceived as, and pushed towards, a global name aimed at the ever -more aspirational buyer, mainly in China and Russia.
To achieve that requires a specific type of person who moves in those circles and has the address book to match. I doubt there’s anyone who’s achieved that level/capability without sailing close to the wind at times.
Dany Bahar was that man (at least in the eyes of Lotus’ paymasters).
So, am I condoning what he’s alleged to have done? No, just pointing out that he was/is simply a man doing a job. The blame - if there is any - should surely be aimed at those who appointed him. [/quote]
All that you say is true - and all I’ve done is report the facts, i.e. the reason for his suspension, that’s all. No need to shoot the messenger
They were wrong, in my opinion, to appoint him in the first place, but, as you say, that’s another matter.
It seems the new owners were not aware he spend �1m on helicopters, gave away 218 cars and had two expensive rental properties he spend circa �1M on upgrading.
From what I can gather, the new owners where aware Lotus had borrowed shed loads of dosh but they weren’t aware the loans had been guaranteed by Proton and now them.
This was also “not the end of the world” until the new owners discovered various loan covenants had been broken and the bankers were now asking for their money to be paid back.
So now even if the new owners put Lotus into administration they still ahve to pay back the �270M.
I’m not sure that it is. It is certainly an informed and intelligent appraisal but a company may use any act of gross misconduct to dismiss somebody if they choose to do so. Also, I cannot believe that the new owners did not do their homework before making their bid and will have known the bottom line on each subsidiary company in the group, including Lotus.
The Group Lotus board must surely have known about the loans so no charge of misconduct could arise from that. If the Group Lotus board didn’t know about the loans then he’s not only out of the company but probably on his way to jail. Seems pretty unlikely?
The author is also wrong to say that the reasons have not been published in the British Press as THIS SUNDAY TIMES LINK shows. It was in the hard copy Newspaper as well and is the reason that I posted on the subject the other day.
No doubt the truth will out soon enough but it would be fair to assume that Danny is on his way out of Lotus…
The article implies that the “wrongdoings” (whatever they may be) were identified some time ago, & that after investigation DB has been suspended. All very sad,& as I said earlier fingers crossed for the good guys (ie general workforce)at Hethel.
Plans were agreed with the then-owners that Lotus would be restructured, with a new model range and ‘placed’ at the higher end of the car market. Making this plan happen was/is Dany Bahar’s remit;
Those plans required substantial funding, which was provided by the �270M loan agreements. These came with certain timeline covenants, compliance with which was the primary measure of progress and allowed drawdown on the funds to be pinned to those mileposts;
Part way through the restructure DRB-Hicom entered talks to buy Proton, which had the effect of slowing/freezing activity other than day-to-day business whilst the various due diligence surveys, etc. were carried out;
It came to light from Ernst & Young that some of the loan covenants were not in place, not least because of (a) the protracted nature of the takeover and (b) the general global slow-down;
DRB-Hicom’s appraisal of the situation was to consider a scale-down of the restructure, as it was looking increasingly tenuous having not kept to the progress/funding structure agreed with the banks;
Being the architect of the restructure, Dany Bahar’s future was/is firmly wedded to that happening as originally planned. Further, that need to ‘see it through’ is reinforced for him by the terms of his contract, specifically the bonus clause should Lotus be sold.
It may also be that - as Proton was bought by DRB-Hicom, it could be said that as an asset of the former, Lotus has been ‘sold’. Thus one could possibly argue - depending on the exact wording of the clause and interpretation thereof - that Dany Bahar’s 5% is due to him…
I find it somewhat extraordinary that someone with a CV including Red Bull and Ferarri can be headhunted into a high profile position with a brand as strong as the Lotus name, hire some high profile others from respected brands can then involve himself in wrongdoings that bring his reputation into profile.
If it is true that the employees fear Hicom more than anything then to me something doesn’t stack up.
For the time being the villan of this is surely Hicom for being so public in their actions at such a testing time in Lotus’ history. What a shambles.
Tim, too often powerful people believe that they are invincible. The ‘Arab Spring’ has highlighted some perfect examples, as has Murdoch and News International, not to mention a huge clutch of British MPs.
Maybe Danny thought he could do no wrong. Do we know why he left Ferrari? Did he jump, was he pushed? At Lotus he didn’t have a Mateschitz or a di Montezemolo to answer to. His ambitious and maverick plan may well have worked but borrowing so much money was bound to lead to scrutiny of the chosen path and the man treading it.
The Lotus plan was hardly a secret. DB has been telling everyone for quite some time. I just think the current situation has been very poorly managed by Hicom, and whatever the outcome will be to the detriment of Lotus, a lose-lose senario.
Intersting but some rubbish also included such as “the Exige S comes across as extraordinarily well kitted-out, at least by Lotus standards coming as it does complete with airbags, orthopaedic seats and a switch that activates the touring mode.”
Hardly new innovations at Lotus; and calling the car crude is missing the point.
… His ambitious and maverick plan may well have worked but borrowing so much money was bound to lead to scrutiny of the chosen path and the man treading it.
Tim, I absolutely agree - my point was that the new owners would take a close look at it.
