Bob Galvin, cell phone innovator and precursor to Steve Jobs, dies at age 89
Mr. Galvin was an entrepreneur at heart and a pioneer in the concept of 'Total Quality Control' in manufacturing and management. He was the Steve Jobs of his era, the 1950s through the 1980s.
“We in America can readily hold our own against excellent Japanese companies if we invest in research and development sufficiently and implement that research properly, if we invest in modern production techniques and use them, if we work very hard and very smart in our participative management processes and, furthermore, if we have at least the same quality expectations.” (Robert Galvin)
Chicago, October 13, 2011— Robert Galvin died. He was 89 years young. The loss of Steve Jobs was mourned worldwide, while Mr. Galvin's passing is much more quiet.
Yet, there would be no iWorld, no Macs nor iPhones, without Motorola Mobility and Motorola Solutions or the integrated circuits developed under Galvin’s reign as CEO of Motorola.
Mr. Galvin was an entrepreneur at heart and a pioneer in the concept of 'Total Quality Control' in manufacturing and management. He was the Steve Jobs of his era, the 1950s through the 1980s. He was a quiet man. Motorola and not Mr. Galvin was prominent, hence he may not be an name familiar to all - even as he also impacted our lives.
Motorola was started by Paul Galvin. Bob's father, after he acquired the patents to the car radio and the rights to the name Motorola, from another pioneering entrepreneur, William Lear.
Mr. Lear went on to develop the Lear Jet. Robert Galvin, known as Bob, succeed his father as CEO of Motorola in 1959. He took to heart his father’s two rules of entrepreneurship. First, “ Do not fear failure! Fear of failure can prevent a potential entrepreneur from taking risks.” Second, “Recognize the signs! Recognize the possibility of failure. Have an exit strategy and quickly cut losses when you recognize a new project will not be profitable.”
Motorola, under Bob Galvin, developed the first “walkie talkie” for the military, a device whose technology led to the development of the cell phone you use today.
Bob Galvin instituted his own entrepreneurial management style at Motorola. Hiring professional management he instilled in a belief they had a proprietary interest in the company. He took Motorola from 200 million dollars in sales to a global institution with 67 billion dollars in sales at the time of his retirement 1986.
Mr. Galvin was a pioneer and a visionary in his own right. Along with one of his engineers, he developed the famed Six Sigma quality control system, a system usually attributed to G.E. Mr. Galvin knew the only way to compete with the Japanese companies was to out do them in total quality control.
Bob Galvin was also one of the first businessmen to see market opportunities in Asia and other continents. He invested 100 million dollars alone in opening up Chinese markets for his products.
On Mr. Galvin’s watch Motorola introduced police communication systems, cable boxes, hearing aids, pagers, cell phones, cell phone infrastructure systems, and other wireless devices. He also helped lay the ground work for missile guidance systems. Under Mr. Galvin, Motorola developed and sold many of the products, architecture, and infrastructure we take for granted every day.
In retirement, Mr. Galvin formed a real estate investment company and two think tanks focusing on transportation and energy. He had a keen interest upgrading the electrical grid.
Mr. Galvin was an innovator, an entrepreneur, a salesman, and a stickler for quality. He also introduced a respect and integrity system for all employees at Motorola. He insisted everyone be respected and everyone be honest and trustworthy.
We should celebrate the lives of men like Mr. Jobs and Mr. Galvin. They represent the spirit of American innovation, entrepreneurship, and free enterprise. They took industries to new and higher levels of excellence through their products, innovations, leadership, and entrepreneurial drive. They produced products and services consumers, needed, wanted, desired, bought, and even paid a premium price for.
They were pioneers, explorers, and futurists.
“The absolutely distinguishing quality of a leader is that a leader takes us elsewhere.” (Robert Galvin)
Source: www.washingtontimes.com
