"You're about to
read the story of a man who's had more than his share
of successes." is the first statement in the prologue.The following
statements in the prologue give the reader a hint of the
bitterness and the vengeance with which this
autobiography has
been penned solely with the purpose of "setting the record straight".
Beginning with his family and schooldays and moving smoothly to his
first job and the ensuing promotions to his being fired from Ford
despite exemplary performance as President and then his pulling
Chrysler Motor out of the grave:the awe-inspiring autobiography
gives a
detailed aacount on the career path of Iacocca interspersed with pearls
of Business and
Management wisdom( enough to write a pocket
book on
Management) learnt the hard way.It also gives a glimpse of the deep
understanding of human nature developed by Iacocca.
The book give a very deadly example of the devastating effects of
working under a highly insecure and low-on-achievement boss and
outshining him.The Corporate world is full of told and untold stories
of such insecure bosses.After his being fired from Ford as President
despite posting a $1Billion+ profit Iacocca joined Chrysler which was
already neck deep in financial crisis.He gives a very overwhelming and
detailed account(10 chapters) of his stint(1979-1983) at Chrysler which
might be too much to stomach for the average reader.It is here that
Iacocca writes with a vengeance, not hesitating his ex-boss Henry Ford
II, a bastard and pouring out all his resentment and bitterness at his
being ill-treated by the former. Published first in 1984, the book has
a section called Straight Talk at the end in which Iacocca discusses
issues like High Cost of Labor in the USA and Saving lives on the
Street(issues still relevant to this day). There is a
chapter titled
"The Japanese Challenge" which I belive should be replaced by a chapter
titled "The Chinese Challenge", if the book were to be published in
this millenium.
This absorbing and inspiring book is a must read for a management
student and for any person faced by overwhelming difficulties in
life.If you think that you are swimming in testing waters, wait till
you read this.
More reviews about the Iacocca