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Alfred Sloan

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Alfred Sloan, the chief executive at General Motors for 35 years believed that no one should be called by their first names. It was always Mr. or Mrs. He practiced this style even to his top executives. He even called the president of GM, who was later Alfred’s successor, Mr. Wilson. They did not go by first name basis. He was known for his acts of kindness, of help, and for his of advice, and just warm sympathy when people were in trouble, but he had no friends within GM when he reached his old age. Sloan did not want any friends from GM because, GM was a business and friends should not be confused with business. The Alfred Sloan’s management style is a case in which management principles are discussed and analyzed. The case deals with …show more content…

Another big management principle that covers this case study is that he centralized administration and decentralized operations. GM adopted the strategy of “a car for every purse and purpose”. Sloan divided the vehicle market into price segments ranging from the low-price to luxury and targets each of GMs’ brands and models to a distinct segment, something no other manufacturer had ever done. Alfred Sloan grouped together items that had a common relationship. He also realigned the company 's products so that one brand of automobiles did not conflict with another brand. Each product, whether it was cars, electric or iceboxes, was set apart in its own division with its own unique characteristics. This management theory moved GM into the leader of the car companies for many years. (www. smallbusiness.chron.com) The third and final management principle that is shown in this case study is forecasting and planning. Forecasting and planning are found in this case study, because Alfred Sloan was examining the future, drawing up a plan of action, and laying the foundation for the elements of his strategy. This was seen at GM, since he realigned the company 's products so that one brand of automobiles did not conflict with another brand. Like I stated above, GM was the first car company to adopt the strategy of “a car for every purse and purpose”. Sloan divided the vehicle market into

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