J.D. Power
J.D. Power III (born James David Power on May 30, 1931 in Worcester, Massachusetts) is the founder of the marketing firm J.D. Power and Associates.
He attended Saint Peter's High School. Following graduation from College of the Holy Cross in 1953, Power served four years as a line officer aboard a Coast Guard icebreaker in the Arctic and Antarctic. He subsequently earned an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in Finance. He joined Ford Motor Company as a financial analyst and later worked for Marplan as a marketing research consultant for General Motors Corporation’s Buick and GMC truck and coach divisions. Prior to launching J.D. Power and Associates in 1968, Power worked as a marketing research executive for J.I. Case Company, a construction and farm equipment manufacturer, and was director of corporate planning for McCulloch Corporation, a Los Angeles-based engine manufacturer.
Power began conducting customer satisfaction research in 1968 as founder of the marketing information firm J.D. Power and Associates.
In 1992, Power was a recipient of the Automotive Hall of Fame’s Distinguished Service Citation, awarded each year to seven of the industry’s most accomplished leaders. He holds honorary doctorate degrees from College of the Holy Cross, California Lutheran University, California State University, Northridge, and Misericordia College. He also serves as an adjunct professor of marketing at California State University, Northridge. Mr. Power frequently speaks to top management and boards of directors of companies worldwide.[1]
His family currently resides in Westlake Village, CA.