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suzydunk's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
vijai747's review against another edition
5.0
Having always been a distant admirer of the auto industry, Iacocca provides a window into one of its most fascinating sagas while also providing sage leadership advice that transcends that era and continues to remain relevant today.
As a story-teller, Iacocca comes into his own when describing his relationship with Henry Ford II and the struggles he faced during the mid-70s working for an increasingly paranoid and overbearing boss who could not bear to have his image eclipsed by the President of his grandfather's company. Having never been a great fan of the Mustang, I found his recollection of its development interesting, but the former was far more entertaining (even though Iacocca's statements regarding Henry Ford II are completely biased and in some cases petty).
Without a doubt, his account of the Chrysler turnaround was a thrilling read. His impression of the congressional proceedings, the history of loan-guarantees, how he marketed the K-car and improving quality to showcase Chrysler's strong engineering fundamentals was brilliant. I couldn't help but keep turning the pages when reading these chapters. Having spent a summer in Detroit and worked in the auto industry, I was able to relate to many of the challenges faced by the engineering team.
I was impressed with Iacocca's ability to describe the highs and lows of his tenure at Ford and Chrysler, I was also struck by his ability to step back and distill what it meant for the industry and America as a whole. What makes this more impressive is the fact that he was able to do so just a few years after the repayment of the loan-guarantee from the federal government , and while still actively involved in running the Chrysler corporation. His plea for fair trade laws with the Japanese, creating a national industrial policy, need to renegotiate union contracts (affecting the future of manufacturing in America), stringent fuel standards, etc. have proved to be highly prescient in the nearly three decades since the book was first published.
The refreshing candor with which Iacocca describes his management style includes a discussion about human nature and what motivates people from all walks of life to do great work. In addition, his prescription for what makes managers great was far more engaging than countless leadership books I've previously read. No wonder it was one of the most widely read books in business schools across the country.
Lastly, I can't recommend this book enough due to it's writing style. While I haven't read many autobiographies and can only guess at the advantages provided by that style of presentation over others, I can certainly say that while reading this book, I didn't feel like I was reading an account of Iacocca's life or the auto industry. I felt as though I were having a conversation with the man himself.
Although I have just finished reading this book, I have a strong feeling that Iacocca: An Autobiography will be among the few that stay on my bookshelf for a long time.
As a story-teller, Iacocca comes into his own when describing his relationship with Henry Ford II and the struggles he faced during the mid-70s working for an increasingly paranoid and overbearing boss who could not bear to have his image eclipsed by the President of his grandfather's company. Having never been a great fan of the Mustang, I found his recollection of its development interesting, but the former was far more entertaining (even though Iacocca's statements regarding Henry Ford II are completely biased and in some cases petty).
Without a doubt, his account of the Chrysler turnaround was a thrilling read. His impression of the congressional proceedings, the history of loan-guarantees, how he marketed the K-car and improving quality to showcase Chrysler's strong engineering fundamentals was brilliant. I couldn't help but keep turning the pages when reading these chapters. Having spent a summer in Detroit and worked in the auto industry, I was able to relate to many of the challenges faced by the engineering team.
I was impressed with Iacocca's ability to describe the highs and lows of his tenure at Ford and Chrysler, I was also struck by his ability to step back and distill what it meant for the industry and America as a whole. What makes this more impressive is the fact that he was able to do so just a few years after the repayment of the loan-guarantee from the federal government , and while still actively involved in running the Chrysler corporation. His plea for fair trade laws with the Japanese, creating a national industrial policy, need to renegotiate union contracts (affecting the future of manufacturing in America), stringent fuel standards, etc. have proved to be highly prescient in the nearly three decades since the book was first published.
The refreshing candor with which Iacocca describes his management style includes a discussion about human nature and what motivates people from all walks of life to do great work. In addition, his prescription for what makes managers great was far more engaging than countless leadership books I've previously read. No wonder it was one of the most widely read books in business schools across the country.
Lastly, I can't recommend this book enough due to it's writing style. While I haven't read many autobiographies and can only guess at the advantages provided by that style of presentation over others, I can certainly say that while reading this book, I didn't feel like I was reading an account of Iacocca's life or the auto industry. I felt as though I were having a conversation with the man himself.
Although I have just finished reading this book, I have a strong feeling that Iacocca: An Autobiography will be among the few that stay on my bookshelf for a long time.
sarahpallett's review against another edition
4.0
Learned so much about business in general from this book, plus government and the auto industry. He is a great story teller. What a great leader.
bobonnie's review
4.0
Interesting insight into Lee Iacocca - one of the best things that ever happened to automobiles!
misshgtraveling's review against another edition
2.0
Certainly an interesting read - not sure it was the most classy way to handle the narrative. An important part of American business.
gregkraken's review against another edition
informative
relaxing
4.5
I picked up Iacocca in a bookstore in Antiparos, from an English section that felt like it was exclusively stocked with books left behind by tourists (I left one of my own).
This turned out to be the perfect book for me on this trip – it was light but extremely differentiated compared to what I generally read.
- It's written far enough back in the past that half of the appeal is seeing how attitudes concerning business, society, etc., have changed.
- In particular I was fascinated by the discussion of labor relations, especially during his period at Crystler. He was very positive / respectful of the role unions have to play in American capitalism. At the same time, he seems to make an outlandish (to my ear) case that PTO policies are compltely foolish.
- Among modern business icons, most are founder/CEO types; I liked getting the perspective of a pure-operator CEO. I think this was a personality type that was more valuabled in America prior to the age of the tech startup / unicorn.
I originally read this book in college, for a course called History of American Business. In that class, the professor generally had a pet theory he wanted us to figure out, and class discussions were mostly the whole class trying to work out what that was.
I think for this book, the theory was something about how pro-competition government policies held American business back post-WWII. There's a section where Iacocca says that after he got fired from Ford, he was, for the first time, able to get dinner with a GM executive who lived next door to him. He also talks about how U.S. competition laws put American car manufacturers at a disadvantage to Japanese companies.
jellison's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
Significantly better than I thought it would be, but Lee Iacocca definitely has some times when he shows his a** by demeaning the working class and making statements that only a greedy capitalist would make
But the book is still a good read and makes for good conversation in a book club
But the book is still a good read and makes for good conversation in a book club
anirudh0102's review against another edition
4.0
An inspiring autobiography..but I don't believe in autobiographies coz everyone tells only their side of the story which they think is true and right..
dsoreads's review against another edition
3.0
Takes you to the world of making a car. Quiet fascinating to think about all the effort that goes behind a new car. Also, how to deal with a board... A bit self-centered, yet very well accounted.
pickleballlibrarian's review against another edition
4.0
Very interesting story about then head of Chrysler. Pretty much tells the life story of this legend.