Edward Whitacre, Jr.

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Edward Whitacre, Jr. : biography

November 4, 1941 –

In May 2008, Whitacre was elected to the board of directors for ExxonMobil., ExxonMobil news release, May 28, 2008

On June 9, 2009, General Motors named Whitacre as chairman., The Dallas Morning News, 21 December 2010 He took the position when the automaker emerged from bankruptcy proceedings on July 10, 2009. On December 1, 2009, Whitacre became interim CEO following Fritz Henderson’s resignation., GM Press Release, December 1, 2009 Since taking the helms, he has been dubbed the GM Reaper by many in blogs, noted for his strong desire to "kill off" brands and projects, such as Saab and a sub-Volt Toyota Prius competitor planned for Chevrolet. In January 2010, chairman Whitacre was appointed permanent CEO after serving in the post in an interim capacity. On September 1, 2010 he relinquished the CEO position to Daniel Akerson but agreed to continue on as GM Chairman to the end of the year.Vlasic, Bill, , The New York Times, August 19, 2010 (August 20, 2010 print edition)

He continues to live in San Antonio, but frequently travels to Detroit.

Honors

AT&T headquarters in downtown Dallas was dubbed "Whitacre Tower" in honor of Whitacre’s 44 years at the company, 17 of which were spent as chairman and CEO.

In 2004, he was awarded an honorary doctorate degree by the University of the Incarnate Word., San Antonio Business Journal, Tuesday, May 4, 2004

On November 12, 2008, Texas Tech announced that its college of engineering will be renamed the Edward E. Whitacre Jr. College of Engineering. In 2007, AT&T created an award called the "Whitacre Award" to honor the former chairman and to demonstrate its commitment to delivering best-in-class service.

Whitacre was inducted into the Junior Achievement U.S. Business Hall of Fame in 2009.

In 2010, Whitacre was named as a finalist for Texan of the Year.

On Thursday, November 10, 2011 Mr. Whitacre was honored with the Amistad Award by the San Antonio-Mexico Friendship Council Inc (SAMFCO). This award recognized Mr. Whitacre as an individual who, according to SAMFCO, personifies the mission of said Council and for distinguishing himself by his dedication to strengthening and promoting the cultural and historical ties shared by the citizens of San Antonio and Mexico. The award ceremony was preceded (?!) by , senior chairman of the board of Frost National Bank, , Director of Administration at the North American Development Bank (NADBANK), and , Consul General of Mexico in San Antonio. Mr. Whitacre is the 15th person to receive this award, sharing this grant with outstanding people such as Henry G. Cisneros, Juan Ramón de la Fuente, and the very own (Whitacre was the person who presided over the ceremony when Frost was given the award in 1999).

Book

  • American Turnaround: Reinventing AT&T and GM and the Way We Do Business in the USA. 2013. ISBN 1455513016