As of august 2014, the ceo of general motors is mary barra. It is widely regarded as one of the best management books, among others by peter drucker and bill gates. Henry ford ii 1945 to 1979 ceo henry ford i 1906 to 1945. Apr 30, 2009 the worst american ceos of all time throughout the history of business, the failure or success of a company has relied on many factors, not the least of which is the corporate savvy or managerial. Aug 21, 2019 the ceos of general motors and ford claim the business world needs a shift in priorities, geelys hard hits in the home market foretell of more bad things to come, walmart is suing tesla and. By 2019, however, the definitive american corporation had recovered. The decline and fall of the us car industry by freedman, craig.
The history of general motors business the guardian. This book contains his memoirs about this time and was released in 1964. My years with general motors audiobook by alfred p. Its major products include automobiles and trucks, automotive components, and engines. She was elected chairman of the gm board of directors on january 4, 2016, and has served as ceo of gm since january 15, 2014. The book includes vivid, wartsandall portraits of the legends of the golden age of the automobile, from crazy henry ford, ransom olds, and charles nash to the brilliant but uncredited david dunbar buick and cadillac founder henry leland. Mar 19, 2020 william knudsen was president of general motorsthe largest corporation in historyin 1940 when president franklin roosevelt charged him with heading up all military production in the u. One such situation was between ralph nadar and general motors. Mar, 2010 the book jacket tells us that this is an inside look at the collapse of general motors and the detroit auto industry. Sloan was the ceo and later chairman of general motors for 35 years from around 1920 to 1955. Ge is one of the largest and most influential business firms across the globe.
Throughout general electrics past, each of the ge presidents has had a restless drive for business growth, technology innovation and a better world. General motors doesnt want anyone to know these 20 strange facts. Discount prices on books by general motors, including titles like 2019 camaro wall calendar. Only a handful of business books have reached the status of a classic, having withstood the test of more than 50 years time. The book starts with a history of the automobile that as a car buff i found very interesting. For fans of management books, this month marks a big anniversary. I found this book brilliant and informative, huge selection of photographs from all of gms motors over the last 100 years, history of gm is very good, really enjoyed reading it,a great book for any gm fan. Durant capitalized gm as a holding company, he purchased buick motor company and shortly after that, acquired more than twenty companies, including oakland, now known as pontiac, cadillac, oldsmobile, and mclaughlin of canada. When sloan took over the firm in the early 1920s, general motors was a mess. History of general motors wikimili, the best wikipedia reader. Founded in 1892 through a merger of edison general electric company, schenectady and thomsonhouston electric company of lynn, massachusetts, ge had its headquartered based in connecticut, us while both the operating plants were based in new york. In any discussion of executive compensation it must be remembered that many reports in the news media focus on extreme cases, and that the compensation for executives of the top200 companies is likely to be much higher than for smaller companies, of which there are tens of thousands.
General motors works in many parts of asia like china, india, indonesia, etc. Gm built cars, trucks, buses, trains, ships, airplanes, earth moving equipment, home appliances, and millions of kinds of parts in factories on 6 continents. Chairman and ceo are single position unless noted ceos who were not chairman were generally president at the time john s gray was the first ceo president. Bill gates told fortune, my years with general motors is probably the best book to read if you want to read only one book about business. A long history of the company is associated with egypt when the company began assembling the cars there in 1920s. The history of general motors gm, one of the worlds largest car and truck manufacturers, reaches back more than a century and involves a vast scope of industrial activity around the world, mostly focused on motorized transportation and the engineering and manufacturing that make it possible. Normally i dont like management books so much because i think often the role o the ceo is glorified.
Gms ceo since 2014, barra has invested billions in electric vehicles, selfdriving cars and a rideshare service called maven. William knudsen was president of general motorsthe largest corporation in historyin 1940 when president franklin roosevelt charged him with heading up all military production in the u. The history of general motors gm, one of the worlds largest car and truck manufacturers. The story of how roger smith, chairman of general motors, transformed the industry leader into a fallen giant by albert lee. His father operated a wholesale tea, coffee and tobacco business, which he moved to new york city in 1885, settling the family in brooklyn. General motors is turning its back on its long history in europe to return cash to shareholders, improve profitability, invest more in china and.
General electric story ceo, founder, history, profile. However, gm has worldwide companies including buick, cadillac, chevrolet, gmc, holden, hummer, opel pontiac, saturn, saab, and vauxhall. But it declined in the 1980s and 1990s, and in 2009 it was bailed out and went bankrupt. The worst american ceos of all time throughout the history of business, the failure or success of a company has relied on many factors, not the. Billy, alfred, and general motors is the tale not just of the two extraordinary men of its title but also of the formative decades of 20thcentury america, through two world wars and sea changes in business, industry, politics, and culture. September 5, 2006 to july 1, 2014 ceo william clay ford jruassic october 30, 2001 1 to september 5, 2006. Under barras leadership, gm envisions a world with zero crashes, to save lives. There was controversy between general motors and ralph nadar. Her father was a diemaker at a pontiac plant for almost 40 years, fortune reports. Interesting facts about general motors did you know cars. An awardwinning journalists insights into the auto industry, the decline of oncegreat companies, and the failures of management the collapse of general motors captured headlines in early 2009, but as alex taylor iii writes in this indepth dissection of the automakers undoing, gms was a meltdown forty years in the making. Ross perots battle with general motors ft alphaville. Why gm ceo mary barra killed chevrolet cars, approved plant. Book charts rise of gm ceo mary barra detroit free press.
To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up. The ratio of a ceos pay to a laborers was tiny compared to today. Last week, the results of a general motors investigation into how a recall crisis festered were released. Billy, alfred, and general motors is the tale not just of the two extraordinary men of its title but also of the formative decades of twentiethcentury america, through two world wars and sea changes in business, industry, politics, and culture. See all 2 formats and editions hide other formats and editions. Durant, had created the corporation by cobbling together more than a dozen smaller car and part. As general motors prepares to celebrate its 100th anniversary and faces possible bankruptcy, here are some key events in the giant automakers history. William clay ford jr october 30, 2001 to september 5, 2006. Durant, after founding company that builds chevrolets, regains control. Concept of the corporation 1946 is a book by management professor and sociologist peter. Sloan tells a little about the concept of centralized. Under barras leadership, gm is focused on putting the customer at the center of everything, in a transforming world of personal mobility with advanced technologies like connectivity, autonomous driving and car sharing. Originally published in the britannica book of the year. General motors profile, history, founder, founded, ceo.
General motors, american corporation that was the worlds largest. Gm names mary barra as car industrys first woman ceo the. Founded in 1908, gm rose to dominate the us auto industry. Jul 02, 2019 when general motors incorporated in the fall of 1908, its ceo, william billy durant, went on a buying spree, building his empire by gobbling up the lions share of the competition within. Short of being the ceo of a giant corporation, it is hard to get an appreciation of whats. It is more a book about what sloan and his contemporaries at general motors did and why they did it. History of general motors wikimili, the best wikipedia. Patrick wright wrote a book named on a clear day you can see general motors. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Nov 27, 2018 mary barra has methodically reshaped general motors. General motors corporation is an automobile production company within the united states. The gm nod phase became popular to explain how the largest u.
History of general motors wikipedia republished wiki 2. We have the ambition, the talent and the technology to create a world with zero crashes, zero emissions and zero congestion. Like most large companies, general motors has faced some situations that have caused controversy over the years. Why gm ceo mary barra killed chevrolet cars, approved. The history of corporate executive wages and executive. The average chief executive earned as much as 40 times that of the average employee as reported in 1960 and by 1990 the average ceo earned up to 107 times as much. Its more a business history of the early years of general motors, from the viewpoint of its. Ralph nadar is an author who published a controversial book called unsafe at any speed in 1965. Apr 08, 2014 general motors recall hearing general motors ceo mary barra is sworn. Executive chairman william clay ford, jr september 6, 2006 to present.
General motors runs under the brand name holden in new zealand and australia. The history of the automobile industry can be understood as a series of dreams. List of books and articles about general motors online. As barra nears her fiveyear anniversary as gm ceo, the full scope of her imprint on the nations largest automaker is. General motors was founded in 1908 by william billy durant, who had started out as a manufacturer of horsedrawn vehicles. General motors during the early twentieth century and served as the companys ceo.
General motors was such an economic and industrial juggernaut that a book like this couldnt begin to do more than just give the most superficial look at its history. General motors turns its back on long history in europe. When general motors incorporated in the fall of 1908, its ceo, william billy durant, went on a buying spree, building his empire by gobbling up the lions share of the competition within. He was chairman and ceo of general electric between 1981 and 2001. Discover historical prices for gm stock on yahoo finance. Founded in 1908 as a holding company in flint, michigan, as of 2012 it employs approximately 209,000. Alfred sloan was the ceo of general motors from 1923 to 1946 when the car company.
The book is an examination of general motors operations, delving into how large corporations. General motors, american corporation that was the worlds largest motorvehicle manufacturer for much of the 20th and early 21st centuries. Mary barra is chairman and chief executive officer of general motors company. The history of general motors gm, one of the worlds largest car and truck manufacturers, dates to more than a century and involves a vast scope of industrial activity around the world, mostly focused on motorized transportation and the engineering and manufacturing that make it possible. Consider, for example, the tale of two ceos of what was once the greatest automobile company in the world. Mary barra has methodically reshaped general motors. It has since been used as a manual for managers, offering personal glimpses into the practice of the discipline of management by the man who perfected it. Mr taylor did not work for gm, but he has covered the auto industry for many years for fortune magazine. General electric ge is an american multinational corporation operating in sectors like consumer capital finance, energy, technology infrastructure and industrial finance. A partial list of people who had a chance to change gms. General motors, the most successful and one of the biggest car manufacturer company of the united states, commonly abbreviated as gm has a long history that begins in 1908 and is still in process. The book includes vivid, wartsandall portraits of the legends of the golden age of the automobile, from. Sixty to zero by alex taylor iii at gm, kicking tires and taking names in sixty to zero, alex taylor iii examines the collapse of general motors and the detroit auto industry in. In november 2019, gm sued fiat chrysler over an alleged bribery.
View daily, weekly or monthly format back to when general motors company stock was issued. Apr 22, 2019 the history of general motors is one of acquisitions and the takeover of many wellknown car manufacturers. View historical gm stock price data to see stock performance over time. Publishers weekly very few people know the story of alfred sloan, even though he was one of the most innovative businessmen of the twentieth century. General motors recall hearing general motors ceo mary barra is sworn. As barra nears her fiveyear anniversary as gm ceo, the full scope of her imprint on the nations largest automaker is becoming clearer. Billy, alfred, and general motors audiobook by william. General motors books list of books by general motors. One is general motors current ceo, dan akerson, who last monday told the detroit news. Gm built cars, trucks, buses, trains, ships, airplanes, earth moving equipment, home appliances, and. Even today, bill gates praises my years with general motors as the best book to read on business, and business week has named it the number one choice for its bookshelf of indispensable reading. My years with general motors became an instant bestseller when it was first published in 1963.
History of general motors last updated march 29, 2020 the renaissance center in detroit, michigan, is the world headquarters of general motors the history of general motors gm, one of the worlds largest car and truck manufacturers, dates to more than a century and involves a vast scope of industrial activity around the world, mostly focused on motorized transportation and the engineering. A large element included in executive compensation is pension which in many cases. This company also designs and distributes vehicle parts and sells financial service. A history of general motors hardcover may 1, 1992 by timothy jacobs author 4. View gm business summary and other industry information. General motors tuesday named longtime executive mary barra as chief executive, making her the first woman to rise to the top of the maledominated world of u. May 29, 2009 gm incorporated as general motors corp. Pages in category general motors former executives the following 61 pages are in this category, out of 61 total. His 1964 book on management, my years with general motors, is a business classic, and his methods placed gm at the top of the automobile world, yet he remains unknown.
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