Cover of Time Magazine (December 27, 1926)

Alfred Pritchard Sloan, Jr. (May 23, 1875 – February 17, 1966) was a long-time president and chairman of General Motors. Events 1430 - Siege of Compiègne: Joan of Arc is captured by the Burgundians while leading an army to relieve Compiègne Year 1875 ( MDCCCLXXV) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 1500 - Battle of Hemmingstedt. 1600 - Philosopher Giordano Bruno is burned alive at Campo de' Fiori Year 1966 ( MCMLXVI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. President is a Title leaders of Organizations companies, Trade unions universities, and countries. General Motors Corporation ( GM) ( is a multinational automobile manufacturer founded in 1908 and headquartered in the United States. ^[1]

Biography

Sloan was born in New Haven, Connecticut. Connecticut ( is a state located in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. He studied electrical engineering and graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1892. Electrical engineering, sometimes referred to as electrical and electronic engineering, is a field of Engineering that deals with the study and application of While attending MIT he joined the Delta Upsilon fraternity. Delta Upsilon ( ΔY) is the 6th oldest international all-male college Greek-letter social fraternity and is the first non-secret fraternity ever

He became president of Hyatt Roller Bearing, a company that made roller and ball bearings in 1899. For a brief period of time at the beginning of the 20th century, Ford Motor Company sourced bearings from Hyatt. Ford Motor Company is an American Multinational corporation and the world's fourth largest automaker based on Worldwide vehicle sales, following In 1916 his company merged with United Motors Corporation which eventually became part of General Motors Corporation. General Motors Corporation ( GM) ( is a multinational automobile manufacturer founded in 1908 and headquartered in the United States. He became Vice-President, then President (1923), and finally Chairman of the Board (1937) of GM. Year 1937 ( MCMXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. In 1934, he established the philanthropic, nonprofit Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. Year 1934 ( MCMXXXIV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display full 1934 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Alfred P Sloan Foundation is a philanthropic Non-profit organization in the United States. GM under Sloan became famous for managing diverse operations with financial statistics such as return on investment; these measures were introduced to GM by Donaldson Brown, a protege of GM vice-president John J. Raskob who was in turn the protege of Pierre du Pont — the DuPont corporation owned 43% of GM. Donaldson Brown (1885-1965 was a financial executive and corporate director with both DuPont and General Motors Corporation. John Jakob Raskob KCSG ( 19 March 1879 - 15 October 1950 was a financial executive and businessman for DuPont and General Motors, Pierre Samuel du Pont (1870-1954 was president of the DuPont company from 1915 to 1919 and served on its Board of Directors until 1940 E I du Pont de Nemours and Company (,) is an American chemical company that was founded in July 1802 as a Gunpowder mill by Eleuthère Irénée

Sloan is credited with establishing annual styling changes, from which came the concept of planned obsolescence. Planned obsolescence (also built-in obsolescence The purpose of planned obsolescence is to hide the real cost per use from the consumer and charge a higher price than they would He also established a pricing structure in which (from lowest to highest priced) Chevrolet, Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Buick and Cadillac did not compete with each other, and buyers could be kept in the GM "family" as their buying power and preferences changed as they aged. Chevrolet (ˌʃɛvroʊˈleɪ - French origin (also known as Chevy) is a Brand of Automobile, produced by General Motors (GM Pontiac is a Brand of Automobiles produced by General Motors that has been sold in the United States, Canada and Mexico Oldsmobile was a brand of Automobile produced for most of its existence by General Motors. Buick (ˈbjuːɪk is a Marque of automobile sold in the United States, Canada, China, Taiwan, Qatar, and Cadillac is a Brand of Luxury vehicles owned by General Motors. These concepts, along with Ford's resistance to the change in the 1920s, propelled GM to industry sales leadership by the early 1930s, a position it retained for over 70 years. Under Sloan's direction, GM became the largest and most successful and profitable industrial enterprise the world had ever known.

During Alfred P. Sloan's leadership of GM, many public transport systems of trams in the US were replaced by buses. A tram, tramcar, trolley, trolley car, or streetcar is a railborne vehicle, of lighter weight and construction than a Train There are some who believe that this conversion was orchestrated by General Motors, Firestone Tire Corp., Standard Oil of California, and the Mack Truck Co. in order to increase automobile sales; see General Motors streetcar conspiracy for details. General Motors Corporation ( GM) ( is a multinational automobile manufacturer founded in 1908 and headquartered in the United States. The Firestone Tire and Rubber Company was founded by Harvey Firestone in 1900 to supply pneumatic tires for wagons buggies and other forms of wheeled transportation Mack Trucks is one of the world's leading Truck - Manufacturing companies. The Great American Streetcar Scandal is a Conspiracy theory according to which Streetcar systems throughout the United States were dismantled and replaced

In the 1930s GM, long hostile to unionization, confronted its workforce, newly organized and ready for labor rights, in an extended contest for control. Sloan was averse to violence of the sort associated with Henry Ford. Henry Ford ( July 30, 1863 &ndash April 7, 1947) was the American founder of the Ford Motor Company and father of He preferred the subtle use of spying and had built up the best undercover apparatus the business community had ever seen up to that time. When the workers organized a massive sitdown strike in 1936, Sloan found that espionage had little value in the face of such open tactics. A sit-down strike is a form of Civil disobedience in which an organized group of workers usually employed at a factory or other centralized location take possession of

The world's first university-based executive education program G. Osuna University— the Sloan Fellows — was created in 1931 at MIT under the sponsorship of Sloan. A Sloan Foundation grant established the MIT School of Industrial Management in 1952 with the charge of educating the "ideal manager", and the school was renamed in Sloan's honor as the Alfred P. Sloan School of Management, one of the world's premier business schools. A second grant established a Sloan Fellows Program at Stanford Graduate School of Business in 1957. The Stanford Graduate School of Business (also known as Stanford Business School or Stanford GSB) is one of the professional The program became the Stanford Sloan Master's Program in 1976, awarding the degree of Master of Science in Management. Sloan's name is also remembered in the Sloan-Kettering Institute and Cancer Centre in New York. Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC is a Cancer treatment and research institution founded in 1884 as the New York Cancer Hospital. In 1951, Sloan received The Hundred Year Association of New York's Gold Medal Award "in recognition of outstanding contributions to the City of New York. Year 1951 ( MCMLI) was a Common year starting on Monday. Events of 1951 January The Hundred Year Association of New York, founded in 1927 is a Non-profit organization in New York City aimed at recognizing and rewarding dedication and service "

Sloan maintained an office in 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Rockefeller Center, now known as the GE Building. Rockefeller Center is a complex of 19 commercial buildings covering 22 acres between 48th and 51st streets in New York City. The GE Building is an Art Deco Skyscraper that forms the centerpiece of the Rockefeller Center in Midtown Manhattan. [1] He retired as GM chairman on April 2, 1956 and died in 1966. ^[1]

Criticism

In 2005, Sloan's work at GM has come under criticism for creating a complicated accounting system that has been placed upon American manufacturers that prevents the implementation of lean manufacturing methods thus leading to companies which cannot compete effectively with non-Sloan companies such as Toyota. General Motors Corporation ( GM) ( is a multinational automobile manufacturer founded in 1908 and headquartered in the United States. General Motors Corporation ( GM) ( is a multinational automobile manufacturer founded in 1908 and headquartered in the United States. Charles Erwin Wilson ( July 18, 1890 — September 26, 1961) American businessman and politician was United States Secretary Pierre Samuel du Pont (1870-1954 was president of the DuPont company from 1915 to 1919 and served on its Board of Directors until 1940 General Motors Corporation ( GM) ( is a multinational automobile manufacturer founded in 1908 and headquartered in the United States. William Signius "Big Bill" Knudsen ( March 25, 1879 - April 27, 1948) was a leading automobile industry executive and a General in Lean manufacturing or lean production, which is often known simply as " Lean " is the practice of a theory of production that considers the expenditure (pronounced) is a Multinational corporation headquartered in Japan, and is currently the world's largest Automaker. In a nutshell, the criticism is that by using Sloan's methods a company will value inventory just the same as cash and thus there is no penalty for building up inventory. However, carrying excessive inventory is detrimental to a company's operation and induces significant hidden costs. (Waddell & Bodek 2005)

Another factor is that Sloan considered people on the shop floor to be expendable as a variable cost item to manufacturing. This view is the opposite of how Toyota views employees. (pronounced) is a Multinational corporation headquartered in Japan, and is currently the world's largest Automaker. Toyota looks to shop floor employees as their main source of cost savings and productivity improvements. (Waddell & Bodek 2005)

Some critics claim that Sloan was also instrumental in the demise of public city transport throughout the United States; see General Motors streetcar conspiracy for details. The Great American Streetcar Scandal is a Conspiracy theory according to which Streetcar systems throughout the United States were dismantled and replaced

GM was found guilty of violating anti-trust laws and fined $5,000 and each executive was ordered to pay a fine of $1

Philanthropy

Main article: Alfred P. Sloan Foundation

The Alfred P. The Alfred P Sloan Foundation is a philanthropic Non-profit organization in the United States. Sloan Foundation is a philanthropic non-profit organization in the United States. Philanthropy is the act of donating money goods services time and/or effort to support a socially beneficial cause with a defined objective and with no financial or material A non-profit organization ( abbreviated "NPO" also "not-for-profit" is a legally constituted Organization whose objective is to support or engage The United States of America —commonly referred to as the It was established in 1934 by Alfred P. Sloan, Jr. , then-President and Chief Executive Officer of General Motors. President is a Title leaders of Organizations companies, Trade unions universities, and countries. A chief executive officer ( CEO) or chief executive is typically the highest-ranking corporate officer ( executive) or administrator General Motors Corporation ( GM) ( is a multinational automobile manufacturer founded in 1908 and headquartered in the United States. The Foundation's programs and interests fall into the areas of science and technology, standard of living, economic performance, and education and careers in science and technology. Science (from the Latin scientia, meaning " Knowledge " or "knowing" is the effort to discover, and increase human understanding Technology is a broad concept that deals with a Species ' usage and knowledge of Tools and Crafts and how it affects a species' ability to control and adapt The standard of living refers to the quality and quantity of goods and services available to people and the way these goods and services are distributed within a population Economics is the social science that studies the production distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The total assets of the Sloan Foundation have a market value of about $1. 8 billion.

The Sloan Foundation bankrolled the 1956 Warner Bros. cartoon Yankee Dood It, which promotes mass production. Year 1956 ( MCMLVI) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Warner Bros Entertainment Inc (or Warner Bros, Warner Bros Pictures) is one of the world's largest producers of Film and Yankee Dood It is a Warner Brothers Looney Tunes theatrical cartoon short released in 1956 and directed by Friz Freleng and written by

Quotes

• "The business of business is business. "
• "A car for every purse and purpose. " (Sloan 1963, p. 438)
• "I am sure we all realize that this struggle that is going on though the World is really nothing more or less than a conflict between two opposing technocracies manifesting itself to the capitalization of economic resources and products and all that sort of thing. " - May 1941
• "It seems clear that the Allies are outclassed on mechanical equipment, and it is foolish to talk about modernizing their Armies in times like these, they ought to have thought of that five years ago. There is no excuse for them not thinking of that except for the unintelligent, in fact, stupid, narrow-minded and selfish leadership which the democracies of the world are cursed with… But when some other system develops stronger leadership, works hard and long, and intelligently and aggressively - which are good traits - and, superimposed upon that, develops the instinct of a racketeer, there is nothing for the democracies to do but fold up. And that is about what it looks as if they are going to do. " - June 1940

See also

• The Alfred P. Sloan Prize. The Alfred P Sloan Prize is an award given each year starting in 2003 to a film at the Sundance Film Festival. Given to films dealing with science and technology by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation each year at the Sundance Film Festival
• Sloan was a leading member of The Crusaders, an organization that promoted the repeal of National Prohibition of alcohol in the US. The Alfred P Sloan Foundation is a philanthropic Non-profit organization in the United States. The Sundance Film Festival is a Film festival that takes place annually in the state of Utah, in the United States. The Crusaders was an organization founded to promote the Repeal of prohibition in the United States Prohibition of alcohol, often referred to simply as prohibition, also known as Noble Experiment, refers to a Sumptuary law which prohibits Alcohol

Further reading

• McDonald, John. A Ghost’s Memoir: The Making of Alfred P. Sloan’s 'My Years with General Motors'. MIT Press, 2003, ISBN 0262632853 online review; McDonald was the ghost-writer and Alfred D. Chandler was the researcher
• Christopher D. Alfred DuPont Chandler Jr ( September 15 1918 &ndash May 9 2007) was a professor of business history at Harvard Business School, McKenna, "Writing the ghost-writer back in: Alfred Sloan, Alfred Chandler, John McDonald and the intellectual origins of corporate strategy" Management and Organizational History 2006, Vol 1(2): 107–126
• Pelfrey, William. Billy, Alfred and General Motors. Amacom Publishing, 2006.
• Waddell, William H. ; Bodek, Norman [2005]. Rebirth of American Industry - A Study of Lean Management. ISBN 0-9712436-3-8.  
• Dobbs, Michael. "Ford and GM Scrutinized for Alleged Nazi Collaboration. " Washington Post. November 30, 1998. [2]
• Black, Edwin. "Hitler's carmaker". Jerusalem Post. Dec. 6, 2006. [3]
• Sloan, Alfred P. "My Years at General Motors" New York: Doubleday, 1964.

References

External links

• Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, whose total assets had a market value of over $1.5 billion in 2005
• Review of Klein and Olson's film Taken for a Ride
• Contribution of Alfred P. Sloan to changes in rapid transit systems
• Extract from Bradford C. Snell, American Ground Transport: A Proposal for Restructuring the Automobile, Truck, Bus and Rail Industries. Report presented to the Committee of the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Antitrust and Monopoly, United States Senate, February 26, 1974, United States Government Printing Office, Washington, 1974, pp. 16-24.
• Hitler's Carmaker: The inside story of how General Motors helped mobilize the Third Reich
• Find Law
• Taken for a Ride