| Gerald C. Meyers | |
|---|---|
| Born | Buffalo, New York |
| Nationality | United States |
| Awards | Honorary Doctorate, Carnegie Mellon University |
Gerald C. Meyers, former chairman and CEO of American Motors Corporation (AMC) is an industrialist, author, lecturer, and management consultant.[1]
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Born in Buffalo, New York, Meyers attended public schools and in 1950 earned a B.S. in engineering and in 1954 a M.S. in business from Carnegie Mellon University.[2][3] He joined the Ford Motor Company in 1950, and later moved to Chrysler Corporation. Eight years with Chrysler, he became Director of Manufacturing for the company's overseas plants in 1961 and lived in Geneva, Switzerland for three years.
In 1962 he became Director of Purchasing for American Motors Corporation in Detroit. He was promoted to Director of Manufacturing, Vice-President of Manufacturing, Vice-President of the Product (Engineering) Group and Executive Vice-President. In May 1977 Meyers was named president and Chief Operating Officer, succeeding the retiring William Luneburg.[4] Although, Meyers was the executive who had been against AMC's purchase of Jeep in 1970 (of which the press kept reminding him), he was now one of Jeep's biggest proponents.[4]
Upon the retirement of Roy D. Chapin Jr. in October 1977, Meyers became Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.[5] At the time, Meyers was 49 years old and became the youngest top executive in the automobile industry bringing a wealth of manufacturing experience.[2] "The company was looking for a lot more than a steady hand on the tiller — it was looking for a savior" but Meyers disagreed and argued that the company could survive and remain a factor in the automobile industry by abandoning its policy of head-on competition and instead focusing on and revamping its four-wheel-drive vehicles, a market segment left untended by the large automakers, and by acquiring advanced technology.[6]
Meyers retired early in 1982, by which time the French state-owned Renault company controlled 46% of American Motors.[7] He was succeeded as chairman by former AMC President W. Paul Tippett Jr.[8]
Subsequently he was the Ford Distinguished Research Chair and Professor of Business at Carnegie Mellon University's Graduate School of Industrial Administration. He has written a book about business crisis management and co-authored another. Meyers is now a business consultant and public speaker. He is also a Visiting Professor of Organizational Behavior at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business in Ann Arbor.
He is President of Gerald C. Meyers Associates, Inc., a management consulting firm that assists and advises senior corporate officers. An expert in corporate governance and crisis management,[3] he is also a commentator on the automobile industry.[9]
On April 17, 2007 he received an honorary degree, doctorate of business practice, from Carnegie Mellon University.[3]
Gerald C. Meyers wrote When It Hits the Fan, Managing the Nine Crises of Business, published by Houghton-Mifflin. He also co-authored Dealers, Healers, Brutes & Saviors, Eight Winning Styles for Solving Giant Business Crises with his daughter, Susan Meyers, published by John Wiley & Sons in 2000.
Meyers served as an officer in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War.
| Business positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Roy D. Chapin, Jr. |
Chairman and CEO of American Motors 1977–1982 |
Succeeded by W. Paul Tippett Jr. |
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