Steve Rattner -- a major Democratic party fundraiser who heads the investment firm Quadrangle Group is the leading candidate for a position that does not formally -- and should never in my view -- exist. That is, Rattner for Car Czar. The Car Czar's job -- if Congress creates it -- will fix the U.S. automobile industry by using the threat of throwing the companies into bankruptcy to force economic "haircuts" on labor unions, dealers, bondholders and others.

I worked with Rattner in the Kerry presidential campaign and hold him in high regard. He worked to raise money for Hillary Clinton and when she did not win the nomination Rattner raised $100,000 for Barack Obama. And Rattner does not just serve Democrats -- reportedly he is managing independent New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's $13 billion fortune. I find that feat to be a remarkable testimony to Rattner's investment acumen.

Nevertheless, I think it would be better to find a different way to use Rattner's talents. If the Car Czar position does get created, it should go to an individual with demonstrated experience turning around large organizations in deep trouble. The person who comes to mind is Louis Gerstner who fixed International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM). Gerstner is not a car guy but he knows how to fix a big organization and could bring in automotive expertise as needed.

Rattner would be an asset to Obama's administration, but if there must be a Car Czar -- find a better fit.

Peter Cohan is president of Peter S. Cohan & Associates. He also teaches management at Babson College. His eighth book is You Can't Order Change: Lessons from Jim McNerney's Turnaround at Boeing. He has no financial interest in IBM securities.

Rattner for Car Czar? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 09 Jan 2009 10:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Private equity powerhouse, The Carlyle Group, has more than 500 investment professionals across 21 countries. Of course, some of them are corporate luminaries like Louis Gerstner.

Well, after being the chairman of Carlyle since 2003, he is now departing -- his last day will be September 30th. Although, he will remain as a Senior Advisor to the firm.

Gerstner has had a stellar career. In 1993, he took the challenge of becoming IBM's (NYSE: IBM) chairman. At the time, the company was crumbling.

Despite not having much tech experience, Gerstner set forth an ambitious strategy that not only saved IBM but returned the company to greatness. He even wrote a book about his experience in a book called Who Says Elephants Can't Dance?: Leading a Great Enterprise through Dramatic Change, which is definitely worth reading.

Before his tenure at IBM, Gerstner was the CEO of RJR Nabisco, where he had to deal with the debt-load from a mega leveraged buyout (from KKR). He was also the president of American Express (NYSE: AXP) and a director of management at McKinsey & Co., Inc.

While at Carlyle, Gerstner made a big impact. He helped globalize the firm as well as diversify the investment base. As of now, Carlyle manages about $75 billion in assets across 57 funds and controls a portfolio that has aggregate revenues of $87 billion.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates MergerBook.com.

Gerstner leaves the Carlyle Group originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.