aerospace - Publications - Faculty & Research

John D. Hertz

Hertz founded the Yellow Cab Company in 1915 as a way to provide transportation services at a modest price. At the time, livery services were targeted only to the upper echelons of society, and Hertz believed that there was a vast untapped potential. Hertz’s... View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

Robert E. Gross

Gross developed the popular World War II military pursuit plane named the Lightning in the U.S. and the Hudson in Britain. Gross’ Lockheed accounted for 6% of U.S. airplane production during World War II building 19,000 planes and employing a peak of 94,000 employees... View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

Harvey S. Firestone

By securing a large tire order from Henry Ford in 1906, and aggressively promoting his tires in automobile races, Firestone was able to grow his company’s sales from $100,000 in 1901 to $15 million in 1913, joining the ranks of the “Big Five” of the tire industry.... View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

Victor Emanuel

During World War II, Emanuel produced all types of military aircraft, including giant bombers, aircraft carriers, and cruisers. After the war, Emanuel led the conversion of AVCO from a producer of aircraft and heavy goods to a manufacturer of consumer goods. Emanuel... View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

Donald W. Douglas

Douglas developed and built all types of military planes as well as civilian transport planes. The big breakthrough for Douglas came in the early 1930s when he introduced the DC series of planes. In 1935, Douglas introduced the DC-3, which had 21 to 28 passenger seats,... View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

Frederic G. Donner

An accountant by training, Donner was recognized as one of the sharpest financial minds in business. His overwhelming command of the financial aspects of running GM led him to set new records for sales, profitability, and dividend payments. He is principally credited... View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

William M. Allen

In 1945, when Allen was appointed CEO, Boeing faced cancellation of $1.5 billion in wartime contracts. Under Allen’s leadership, Boeing kept course and later prospered. In 1952, Boeing’s B-52 was chosen by the Air Force as its intercontinental bomber, and in 1959, the... View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

Guy W. Vaughan

Vaughan was instrumental in the creation of products such as the Wright Whirlwind J-6 plane, used by Charles Lindbergh, and the Wright Cyclone engine series, which were used in DC-1 aircraft. Vaughan’s real achievements, however, came during World War II, when he... View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

Alex Trotman

Being of Scottish descent, Trotman’s presence as CEO of Ford was seen as quite rare at the old auto giant. However, with Trotman’s special attention to leadership at all levels, he continued to improve the company’s operations. Instituting intensive, innovative... View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

Willard F. Rockwell, Jr.

Having worked in many of the company's subsidiaries since graduating from college, Rockwell Jr. assumed leadership from his father in 1967 and expanded the company across the globe through a series of mergers and acquisitions. View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

Willard F. Rockwell

Trained as an engineer, Rockwell had several positions in the auto-parts manufacturing industry prior to becoming president of the entity now known as Rockwell International. Though the company was successful as an auto-parts maker, Rockwell expanded it into many other... View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

Simon Ramo

A brilliant scientist, Ramo held 25 patents by the age of 30. He was responsible for much of the development of the Air Force’s ballistic missile, airborne radar, computer, navigation and armament control systems. He started his own company in 1953, and it merged with... View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

Larry L. Prince

Prince continued Genuine Parts’ record 50-year history of consecutive sales and earnings increases. Through an expanding product line and strategic acquisitions, the company revenues have increased from $3 billion to over $8 billion. Prince has also been a key leader... View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

John K. Northrop

After frustrating attempts at aircraft engineering with many other firms, John Northrop founded Northrop Aircraft and helped it grow into a very lucrative defense contractor, providing everything from bombers, fighter jets, and reconnaissance planes to the United... View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

Harvey H. Lamm

Lamm created the only publicly traded car importer in the United States through the founding of Subaru of America. He introduced the United States to “four wheel drive” and “all wheel drive” with the import of the Subaru wagon in 1975, a move that would spawn a new... View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

Paul G. Hoffman

Hoffman, the Studebaker company executive, is one of the few auto company presidents to have risen from the sales department. In the first nine-months of his tenure, sales totaled 30,194, which put the company fourth among the independent passenger car producers. By... View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

Joseph W. Crosby

Crosby built a small $3 million military supply (jet propulsion fuels) company into a $275 million advanced research and development operation. During his tenure, Thiokol designed sophisticated rocket launch equipment used for the Mercury and Gemini space programs and... View Details

Keywords: Automotive & Aerospace

March 2022 (Revised January 2023)
Case

Innovation at Moog Inc.

By: Brian J. Hall, Ashley V. Whillans, Davis Heniford, Dominika Randle and Caroline Witten

This case focuses on the challenges of incentivizing innovation within Moog, an engineering company based in New York state that designs and builds guidance systems for space, air, and land-based travel. The case enables students to grapple with the challenges of using... View Details

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March 2006 (Revised December 2013)
Case

Hexcel Turnaround — 2001 (A)

By: Paul W. Marshall, James Quinn and Reed Martin

Hexcel's new CEO is faced with deciding how to "take out" $60 million in cash costs in fiscal 2002, as two of the company's end markets—electronics and commercial aerospace—are expected to decline precipitously. Options include closing plants, exiting a business, or... View Details

Keywords: Private Equity; Negotiation; Management Teams; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Strategy; Change Management; Crisis Management; Borrowing and Debt; Aerospace Industry; Aerospace Industry; United States

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April 2017
Case

Planetary Resources Inc., Property Rights, and the Regulation of the Space Economy

By: Matthew Weinzierl and Angela Acocella

Planetary Resources, Inc. (PRI) had a bold, some said crazy, vision: to mine asteroids. One might have assumed that developing the right technology would be the greatest challenge facing PRI. But even if the fledgling company could develop and deploy the sophisticated... View Details

Keywords: Property; Rights; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Aerospace Industry; Aerospace Industry

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