- Robert Townsend (author)
Infobox Person
bgcolour =
name = Robert Townsend
image_size =
caption =
birthname =
birth_date = 1920
birth_place =Washington DC ,USA
death_date = Death date|1998|1|12
death_place =Anguilla
othername =
education =Princeton, 1942
occupation =author ,businessman
parents =
children =
yearsactive =
spouse =
homepage =Robert Townsend (1920-1998) was an American business executive and author who is noted for transforming Avis into a rental car giant. He was born in
Washington, D.C. in 1920. His parents moved toGreat Neck, N.Y. where he spent his childhood. After high school, he was accepted to Princeton, graduating in 1942. After graduating college, he was commissioned as anofficer in theUnited States Navy , serving for the remainder ofWorld War II .After the war, he was hired by
American Express in 1948. By the time he left the company, he was the senior vice president for investment and international banking. In 1962,Lazard Freres bought Avis, a struggling rental company that had never made a profit in its existence. One of the partners,André Meyer , convinced Townsend to leave American Express and become CEO of Avis. Under his direction as president and chairman, the firm became a credible force in the industry, fueled by the “We Try Harder” advertising campaign (1962–65). Avis also began to have profits, which Townsend credited toTheory Y governance. In 1965,ITT acquired Avis, leading to his departure as president. After leaving Avis, he became a senior partner ofCongressional Monitor (1969). He wrote the widely acclaimed essay on business management "Up the Organization", which spent 28 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list upon its publication in 1970. [cite web |url=http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0772581.html |title= Robert Townsend|accessdate= 2008-11-7] .In 1990, Townsend had to have
triple bypass surgery. During the late 1990s, he was the chairman of the executive committee ofLeadership Directories, Inc. On January 12th 1998, he was vacationing in Anguilla. While telling a fishing story on a ketch, he had a massive heart attack leading to his death. [cite web |url= http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B0CE6DD1039F937A25752C0A96E958260|title=Robert Townsend, 77, Dies; Wrote 'Up the Organization'|accessdate= 2008-11-7] [cite web |url= http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1P2-637067.html|title=Executive, Author Robert Townsend Dies|accessdate= 2008-11-7] .References
Sources
:(1) http://www.rileycom.co.uk/rileycom%5Cdata%5Cdocument.nsf/ID/68DC5461AC564A18802569D10042398D?OpenDocument:(2) http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B0CE6DD1039F937A25752C0A96E958260:(3) http://www.businessweek.com/careers/managementiq/archives/2007/05/paging_robert_t.html
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.