John Smale was arguably the most influential corporate leader of the second half of the 20th century. He grew one great company, Procter & Gamble, more than six-fold during the 21 years he led as president, CEO and chairman of the board. He helped another great company, General Motors, regain momentum in his role as chairman of the board at a critical time in GM's history - and set a new standard for corporate governance that has since transformed the role that Boards of public companies a...

John Smale was arguably the most influential corporate leader of the second half of the 20th century. He grew one great company, Procter & Gamble, more than six-fold during the 21 years he led as president, CEO and chairman of the board. He helped another great company, General Motors, regain momentum in his role as chairman of the board at a critical time in GM's history - and set a new standard for corporate governance that has since transformed the role that Boards of public companies a...