When Walter E. Boomer was promoted to four-star general of the Marine Corps in 1992, he became one of only three men holding that rank. Now as a chief executive in the private sector, he's almost as rare. While some 1,600 Marine officers leave the service every year, only a handful ever rise to the upper command of Corporate America.
Among today's execs who were once Marines: FedEx (FDX
) Chairman and CEO Frederick W. Smith, PepsiCo (PEP
) Chairman and CEO Steven S. Reinemund, and General Motors (GM
) Vice-Chairman Robert A. Lutz. All three had been captains. In addition, retired Commandant Charles C. Krulak is now chairman and CEO of MBNA Europe Bank, after 35 years in the Marines.
Why so few? One reason is that many career officers don't want to start over in their 50s, preferring instead to retire or work part-time as a defense consultant. Moreover, only a limited number of top slots are open at large corporations. But the biggest reason, say management consultants, may be that corporate chieftains generally shy away from hiring vets for the CEO's job.
CORPORATE MISFITS? Smith, Reinemund, and Lutz all left the Marines when they were young enough to work their way up in the corporate world to transform themselves into what businesses typically look for: Executives who have experience in their industry or have handled similar chores at another outfit. Career military men don't fit the bill. "Here you are with this big talent box, but, oops, you don't have the experience of someone who worked at, say, Sears," notes Robert S. Morrison, a former Marine captain who was chairman and CEO of Quaker Oats Co.
Perhaps just as often, however, corporations simply have the wrong idea. No organization is more hierarchical than the military, so many outsiders assume former officers will be command-and-control freaks who'll micromanage and stifle creativity. Ironically, they're often the opposite, notes Rod Walsh, co-author of Semper Fi: Business Leadership the Marine Corps Way. He says officers succeed by team-building and earn authority by setting examples. Adds Krulak: "The military leader is, in reality, very open-minded, very innovative, absolutely not bureaucratic, and very mission-oriented."
Given the tough terrain Corporate America is traversing, it may be time to send in more Marines.
By Michael Arndt in Rogers, Conn. Edited by Beth Belton
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