Out With the Old, In With the Compact

General Motors (GM) is trading in its sprawling headquarters for something a bit more cozy. CEO Mary Barra announced the automaker is moving into a new Detroit headquarters that's considerably smaller than its previous home at the Renaissance Center, or "RenCen" as locals call it. The RenCen was originally built in the 1970s by crosstown rival Ford Motor Co. (F), which adds a certain poetic irony to the whole situation.

Barra's pitch is simple: smaller means better collaboration. The massive scale of the RenCen apparently wasn't doing the company any favors when it came to bringing teams together. "People closer together" is the goal, according to a Detroit News report. And this isn't just pandemic-era thinking retrofitted onto old plans. The move was in the works even before remote work became the default setting for corporate America.

David Massaron, GM's VP of Corporate Citizenship, put it bluntly in a statement to CNBC: "Particularly, in a post-pandemic world, you need office space that people want to come to." Translation: if you're going to ask employees to show up in person, the office better not feel like a 1970s concrete maze.

The new headquarters occupies the first four floors of the Hudson's Detroit building, covering 200,000 square feet. It's GM's fourth headquarters in the Motor City, and the company is framing it as a homecoming of sorts. "Today, we are returning to Woodward Avenue and launching a bold new era for the company," GM said in an official statement.

The EV Commitment (and the Price Tag)

While discussing the new digs, Barra also took time to reaffirm GM's commitment to electric vehicles, which she's previously called the company's "North Star." This is notable timing, considering GM just laid off over 3,400 workers across multiple EV production facilities and took a staggering $7.1 billion charge related to its electric vehicle efforts. That's on top of an earlier reported $1.6 billion charge.

"Once we have a robust charging infrastructure, I think people are naturally going to pick EVs," Barra told CBS Detroit. She highlighted the design flexibility EVs offer and the convenience of "not having to go to the gas station." It's an optimistic view, especially as the company navigates policy changes under President Donald Trump's administration.

Let's break down those charges: the $6 billion EV hit included more than $4.2 billion related to supplier commercial settlements and contract cancellation fees. The remaining $1.8 billion represented non-cash impairments, which is accounting speak for writing down the value of assets that aren't worth what you thought they were.

So GM is simultaneously shrinking its physical footprint, laying off thousands of EV workers, taking billions in charges, and insisting that electric vehicles are still the future. It's a contradictory moment, but Barra seems committed to the long game, betting that infrastructure improvements will eventually make EVs the obvious choice for consumers.

Price Action: GM shares declined 0.02% to $82.85 during pre-market trading on Tuesday, according to data.