My Years With General Motors
Before considering the subject of particular products it is advisable to outline the controlling purposes that presumably underlie the organization and proposed operations of the Corporation. That is, the whole picture should first be clearly drawn in order that the present particular subject may be considered, not just alone, but in its essential
... See moreJohn McDonald • A Ghost's Memoir: The Making of Alfred P. Sloan's My Years with General Motors (The MIT Press)
By 1920 its lineup ranged from Chevrolet at the low end through Oakland and Olds, Scripps-Booth and Sheridan, to Buick and Cadillac at the top. But GM’s product lineup, having been assembled through acquisition, was a shambles. There was lots of overlap between brands in the middle of the range, while the lowest-price car was too expensive (the che
... See moreTom Standage • A Brief History of Motion: From the Wheel, to the Car, to What Comes Next
John J. Raskob was Pierre Du Pont's mentor and guide in matters of finance, as Charles Kettering came to be in technology-both very good in their fields but with flaws that would endanger the survival of General Motors. With great foresight into the future of the automobile business, Raskob wrote down several good reasons for the Du Pont company to
... See moreJohn McDonald • A Ghost's Memoir: The Making of Alfred P. Sloan's My Years with General Motors (The MIT Press)
The pattern for pricing Ford cars was based on apparent comparative prices for 1909 and 1910: the greater the volume the lower the price. Hawkins and his people brought us our first challenging volume. That challenge had to be met by faster production. True, it was the car that made the salesmen, but it was the sales organization that sparked the g
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