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McDonald’s Corporation • Founders: Richard and Maurice McDonald and Ray Kroc. • Distinction: Initiated, and still leads, the global fast-food revolution. • Primary products: Burgers, chicken nuggets, fries, and shakes. • Annual sales: $35.9 billion worldwide. • Number of employees: 284,000 in the United States alone. • Major competitors: Burger King, Wendy’s, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut. • Chairman and CEO: Jack Greenberg. • Headquarters: Oak Brook, Ill. • Year founded: 1955. • Web site: www.mcdonalds.com . Most Americans can’t remember when cigarette commercials were commonplace on their televisions, just as they can’t recall when fast-food restaurants were not in their neighborhoods. Surprisingly, there’s a connection between these two emerging and descending icons. The connection stems from a business principle that was devoutly practiced by a man who is almost singlehandedly responsible for the proliferation of these casual eateries in every corner of the globe. Some f...

                      General moters • Founder: William C. Durant. • Distinction: World’s number-one automaker, and largest company in terms of sales. • Primary products: Cars, trucks and related parts. • Annual sales: $176.558 billion. • Number of employees: 388,000. • Major competitors: DaimlerChrysler, Ford, Toyota. • Chairman: John F. Smith Jr.; President and CEO: G. Richard Wagoner Jr. • Headquarters: Detroit, Mich. • Year founded: 1908. • Web site: www.gm.com. On the surface, it would seem that G. Richard Wagoner Jr. and Alfred P. Sloan have little in common. Sloan, the long-time leader at automotive giant General Motors, began his storied reign in 1923 when both industry and product were relatively new, competitors numbered in the dozens, and management had undergone a major upheaval. Wagoner, the most recent to assume control at GM, took over in June 2000 when both industry and product were quite mature,...

Sears Roebuck, and Co. • Founders: Richard Sears and Alvah C. Roebuck. • Distinction: World’s first mass-retailing network. • Primary products: Apparel, home fashions, appliances, home improvement products, lawn and garden equipment. • Annual sales: $41.071 billion. • Number of employees: 324,000. • Major competitors: Wal-Mart, Target, JC Penney. • Chairman, president, and CEO: Alan J. Lacy. • Headquarters: Hoffman Estates, Ill. • Year founded: 1886. • Web site: www.sears.com . Not long ago, the arrival of a Sears catalog in any American home was an event rivaling Christmas itself. Mom paged through the thick “Wish Book” from cover to cover, carefully examining new clothes and household goods and circling those needed for the upcoming season. Dad eagerly checked out tools, and lingered over pages of auto, garden, and home improvement items. Younger kids went straight for the toys; older ones leafed through sections with fashions or sporting goods. When a must-have list w...

General Electric Company • Founder: Thomas A. Edison. • Distinction: It lit up our lives. • Primary products: Electrical equipment, home applicances, jet engines, financial services, broadcasting. • Annual sales: $110.832 billion. • Number of employees: 340,000. • Major competitors: Matsushita, Rolls-Royce, Siemens. • Chairman and CEO: John F. Welch Jr. • Headquarters: Fairfield, Conn. • Year founded: 1892. • Web site: www.ge.com. Less than a year before he was scheduled to step down as head of General Electric, Jack Welch signed the most lucrative non-fiction book contract ever awarded. The fabled chairman and CEO, called “the leading management revolutionary of the century” by Fortune magazine, was given an astounding $7.1 million to share his story with the world. That was far more than other business leaders had received for similar projects. It was also more than the amount paid for any previous big-name autobiography, including those written by General Colin...

IBM Corporation