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Delphi Makes Fortune 500 List of Most and Least Admired Companies
By John Davis

The new issue of Fortune 500 magazines rates the 10 most and least admired companies on their top 500 list. For over 20 years Fortune 500 has tracked the top companies in over 60 industries to determine which ones are considered the best of the best and the worst of the worst. The scores for each corporation are determined by eight categories. These include:

- Innovation
- People Management
- Use of Corporate Assets
- Social Responsibility
- Quality of Management
- Financial Soundness
- Long Term Investment
- Quality of Products

Our own Delphi made the list in a number of areas, but these areas seem to all be centered on management. By the way, not one time did Delphi make the list as the most admired it was always the least. On things that are employee driven such as quality and innovation, Delphi wasn’t on the bad list. Here are a few of the lists Delphi did make:

People Management – They ranked number 4 out of 10 on the worst list
Use of Corporate Assets – They were number 1 out of 10 on the worst list
Quality of Management – Number 6 out of 10 on the worst list
Financial Soundness – Another 1st place finish on the worst list
Long Term Investment – Again they ranked 1st out of ten on the worst list

Of the ten motor vehicle parts companies surveyed, Delphi ranked dead last with a 3.56 rating out of 10. So if this had been a test for the best management, then Delphi would have scored a 36 out of 100. That is roughly half of the minimum requirements for a passing grade.

Now, this is the same management group that Bankruptcy Judge Robert Drain approved an executive compensation bonus program of $38,000,000 for the top 21 executives to “keep the management team in place.” Compare this with the fact that according to the New York Times, the top 33 executives at Toyota (who happen to make the list of the most admired companies) make less than that in salary – never mind in bonuses.
The lawyers for Mobilizing@Delphi (the coalition of the unions representing Delphi workers) objected to the judge granting the motion for the executive compensation plan. Judge Drain replied to the objection by stating the only way to guide Delphi out of bankruptcy was to maintain the top management structure and to cut the worker’s wages. He contended the compensation plan was necessary to maintain the management structure.

This is no different than a teacher giving a student an A+ for a test where they scored 36.