Chairman, CEO and President General Motors Corporation – Detroit, Michigan
Ideally, the person that runs America’s largest and most profitable corporation, General Motors, would have a comprehensive understanding of the automobile industry. John F. Smith, Jr., Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of GM, is just such a person. Since 1961, Mr. Smith has ascended the corporate ladder of the company, from the Fisher Body facility in his home state of Massachusetts to comptroller of GM in 1980 to President of GM Canada in 1984. Overseeing European operations in the late 1980’s, his pragmatic approach to new products and customers resulted in further growth and profits. He has functioned as the CEO and President since 1992 and became Chairman on New Year’s Day of 1996. His tireless devotion to community projects finds him on numerous boards such as Detroit Renaissance, Economic Club of Detroit, United Way and the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Mr. Smith is also a member of the Procter and Gamble Company Board of Directors and Chairman of the Government Regulation Task Force. The daily challenges of running the number one company of the Fortune 500 appears to be in the most experienced hands GM has. “Individuals can always make a difference, but when it comes to changing and refocusing an organization the size of General Motors, not much happens without the full commitment of the entire team.”
