Former Chrysler Corporation

Lido Anthony Iacocca became famous for manning and reviving the American car manufacturer, Chrysler Corporation, in the 80s and being an esteemed business executive.

Lee Iacocca, born on October 15th 1924, grew up in Allentown, Pennsylvania. He studied at William Allen High School and later at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania; where he graduated with an Industrial Engineering degree.

Before he worked for Ford Motor Company, he was at Princeton University studying plastics and politics. He was an engineer at Ford, but he was eventually transferred to sales and further to product development. He contributed to the design and marketing of Ford’s famous automobiles, namely the Ford Fiesta, Lincoln Continental Mark III, and the Ford Mustang. He as well assisted in the revival of the Mercury brand with the Mercury Cougar and Mercury Marquis.

Following his exit from Ford, Iacocca was employed at Chrysler Corp, where he helped the flagging automobile business get back on its feet. At the time of the company’s bankruptcy, he was there to rebuild it by restructuring levels, selling off divisions that proved to liabilities, and reducing the company’s workforce. He even brought over professionals he worked with at Ford and introduced the MiniMax project, a minivan model, to help the company regain its status.

In 1993, Lee Iacocca resigned from Chrysler, just before acquiring Jeep’s parent company, AMC. Despite departing from the company, he still speaks and writes on behalf of Chrysler Corp.

Apart from dedicating his life to the automotive business, Iacocca is also into writing, having published a series of books.