Word: french
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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Hanon's defenders argue that he was made the scapegoat for problems that were largely beyond his control. Indeed, the entire French auto industry has been hard hit by recession and government austerity measures; total car sales in France dropped by 12.9% in 1984. Moreover, Hanon was hampered by the government in trying to trim his work force of 98,000. Says one company official: "The government asked too much of Bernard Hanon, to be an effective corporate executive and to run Renault as a social showcase." Hanon attempted to toe that fine line with a plan that called...
...turned out to be too expensive ($4,095) for a two-door subcompact and looked too much like the old R-5. Early sales have run about 25% below projections. Conversely, demand for the new top-of-the-line R-25 has far outstripped production levels. Concedes a French government official: "In the all-out war that the auto industry has become, such errors are fatal...
Although Besse has no experience in the industry, he is renowned for imposing efficiency on giant operations. A graduate of Paris' Ecole Polytechnique, the prestigious engineering school, he was a founder of the French nuclear industry. At Pechiney since 1982, Besse launched a reorganization that took the conglomerate from a $484 million loss to a $53 million profit last year. "Besse is a great business manager," exults one government official. "He has always succeeded at everything." Now at Renault, Besse may meet the ultimate test of his business acumen...
...secretive standards, the Kremlin has been relatively candid about the fact that Chernenko is having health difficulties. A member of the Soviet Central Committee is reported to have told a visiting French official two weeks ago that Chernenko was ailing. Since then, the Kremlin has dropped hints that the President's condition is not serious. On Moscow's somewhat cloistered cocktail party circuit, Soviet officials have been quietly confirming to foreign diplomats that Chernenko is ill. Some of the Soviet gossipers have even averred that his condition is "quite" serious...
...high-ranking French Defense Ministry official, Rene Audran, 56, had just driven from his office in Paris to his home in the western suburb of Celle- Saint-Cloud late last week. As he pulled up in front of his house, he was ambushed by assassins who pumped six shots into his body before he could escape from his gray Renault. Audran, who headed the ministry department that deals with international arms sales, died instantly...