Talk about sticking around the corporate suite long enough for a cup of coffee.

Eight days after joining General Motors as the new chief of the Buick and GMC brands, Michael Richards has left the automaker.

GM said Thursday morning that Richards, a former high-tech executive from Austin, Texas, left to pursue other career opportunities. "We wish him the very best," the company said.

Buick's number one new product -- the LaCrosse -- is being built in Kansas City, Kan., at the Fairfax assembly plant.

Richards was named to the post after Susan Doherty was promoted to head GM sales. The automaker's chairman Edward Whitacre is pushing for faster change at GM. He now has another executive to hire, in addition to filling the chief financial officer job.