Tenneco leader advocates more collaboration, less bureaucracy between suppliers and car makers

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (Aug. 8)—Mark Frissora, chairman and CEO of Tenneco Automotive Inc., said North American auto makers and suppliers are not working together enough to create incremental value for consumers. In a speech delivered Aug. 7 during the annual automotive Management Briefing Seminars held in Traverse City, Frissora said discussions with car makers are almost exclusively driven by cost, even when a value-added innovation is on the table. This fuels the adversarial relationship between the two and hampers communication, he said. For the most part, suppliers are not given access to the information they need and often are not brought in early enough in the development process, he said. But later when questioned by a member of the audience about Tenneco´s treatment of its own supply base, Frissora admitted it also has work to do. It's difficult to change a corporate culture, he said. "We have the same issues."