Question

Topic: Just for Fun

Who's The #1 Businessman Of The 20th Century?

Posted by Anonymous on 11/8/2004 at 12:46 PM ET 25 Points
Who would you choose as the #1 businessman of the 20th century?FORTUNE posed this question a few years ago and picked Henry Ford.#2 was bill gates.It just so happens that the greatest businessmen are also the greatest marketers.Here are some candidates to consider:

Henry Ford
Bill Gates
Alfred Sloan
Jack Welch
Steve Jobs
Thomas Watson
etc etc

Which businessperson would you conder #1 and why?Based on dominance , innovativeness and strategies?

My #1 is bill gates
To continue reading this question and the solution, sign up ... it's free!
SUBSCRIBE
Or, SIGN IN

RESPONSES

  • Posted by Blaine Wilkerson on 11/8/2004 at 2:39 PM Accepted
    Here are my picks in order:

    1. Westinghouse -innovativeness
    2. Rockefeller- strategies
    3. Bill Gates - strategies
    4. Dupont - innovativeness
    5. J.C. Penny - strategies

    "The Rock" and Gates are two of my favorite strategists. J.D. saw everyone rushing around trying to strike Oil. He wanted in, but decided he would be better off providing a place for people to refine the oil. Turned out to be very wise.
    Gates saw an opportunity to exploit a much needed program and negotiate a licensing/lease agreement with IBM and others rather than selling out. This was the key to his success. Simple, but brilliant. He was able to keep ahold of the IP AND profit from it at the same time.

  • Posted by SteveByrneMarketing on 11/8/2004 at 4:02 PM Accepted
    Many of above are deserving of the title. I would add Thomas Edison as a candidate. In the early 20th century he had great success as both innovator and businessman.

    Good link to his story:
    https://www.thomasedison.com/biog.htm
  • Posted by SRyan ;] on 11/8/2004 at 7:23 PM Accepted
    Hmmmm... I think I'd pick Bill Gates, too.

    Richard Branson deserves an Honorable Mention in the gutsy entrepreneur category. Jeff Bezos, too, although he started with less capital.
  • Posted by Mushfique Manzoor on 11/9/2004 at 4:41 AM Accepted
    i agree with SteveB regarding Thomas Edison. If he hadnt invented then none would have been achieved later in 20th Century. so my list is

    Early 20th Century
    Thomas Edison & Henry Ford

    Late 20th Century
    Bill Gates

    cheers!!
  • Posted by SteveByrneMarketing on 11/10/2004 at 4:56 PM Accepted
    add to the list --

    Warren Buffett, the Oracle of Omaha.

    Buffett is arguably the greatest investor of all time. He has been reported to be worth over $30 billion, making him the second richest man in the world.
  • Posted on 11/15/2004 at 5:03 AM Accepted
    Ok, Bill Gates is the most obivous one. However, my number 2 slot goes to Richard Branson, as Shelley mentioned.

    Honorable mention: Silvio Berlusconi, our Italian Prime Minister and richest man in Italy. Imagine Donald Trump being elected President of the United States. That's Silvio. In Italy we have 6 tv stations: three are state-run and the other 3 are Berlusconi's. He also owns the Milan soccer team (number one in Europe last year). However, most Italians hate him and he's constantly being sued for corruption and conflict of interest.

    Here's a little background on this 10-billion dollar man:
    https://www.forbes.com/finance/lists/10/2004/LIR.jhtml?passListId=10&passYe...

BACK TO TOP

Post a Comment

Related Discussions

Community Info

Top 25 Experts
(Just for Fun)