James Michael Roche (December 16, 1906 – June 6, 2004) was an American statistician who served as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Chairman of the Board at

General Motors Corporation General Motors Company (GM) is an American multinational automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The company is most known for owning and manufacturing four automobile brands: Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, ...

. He is credited for promoting racial equality within General Motors (GM).

Early life and background

Roche was born in

Elgin, Illinois Elgin ( ) is a city in Cook County, Illinois, Cook and Kane County, Illinois, Kane counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. It is located northwest of Chicago along the Fox River (Illinois River tributary), Fox River. As of the 2020 United Stat ...

. He married Louise McMillan in 1929Flint Timeline Project-George H.Durand
and eventually had a daughter and two sons, James Roche, Doug Roche and Joan Roche.
/ref> Roche never went to college
/ref> because of his father's early death. He was one of the few American industrialists lacking a college education.

General Motors career

He joined GM as a statistician in 1927 in the Chicago sales and service branch and slowly worked his way up through the ranks, becoming president of the corporation in 1965. Most of his career was spent at the

Cadillac Cadillac Motor Car Division, or simply Cadillac (), is the luxury vehicle division (business), division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM). Its major markets are the United States, Canada and China; Cadillac models are ...

Division, becoming head of the division in 1957. Roche became vice-president of General Motors in 1957, and executive vice-president and board member in 1962.

Involvement in equal opportunity and other controversies at GM

Roche is cited as dedicating General Motors and himself personally to ensuring equal employment opportunities. In 1971, he offered Rev. Leon Sullivan, a Philadelphia minister active in the civil rights movement, a seat on the GM board - GM's first black board member. Sullivan later sought to have GM and other corporations leave

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

in protest of the country's

apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English: , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...

policies. In 1966, Roche issued an apology for the company's efforts to discredit consumer activist

Ralph Nader Ralph Nader (; born February 27, 1934) is an American lawyer and political activist involved in consumer protection, environmentalism, and government reform causes. He is a Perennial candidate, perennial presidential candidate. His 1965 book '' ...

after Nader published the book '' Unsafe at Any Speed'', which criticized the GM-built Corvair as being unsafe. During Roche's tenure, public opinion about automobile companies was changing from praise for producing cars which allowed freedom and mobility to dissatisfaction.

Chairman and Chairman of the Board

Roche served as Chairman of GM from June 1, 1965, to October 31, 1967, and as Chairman of the Board of Directors from November 1, 1967, to December 31, 1971. He retired in 1971 because of a mandatory retirement age.

Other career achievements

Roche served on the board of directors of

Pepsi Pepsi is a Carbonated water, carbonated soft drink with a cola flavor, manufactured by PepsiCo which serves as its flagship product. In 2023, Pepsi was the second most valuable soft drink brand worldwide behind Coca-Cola; the two share a long ...

Co, Jack Eckerd Corp., the

New York Stock Exchange The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is the List of stock exchanges, largest stock excha ...

and other entities. After retirement he served several years as chairman of the National Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve. He also volunteered in many community development programs, mostly in

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

. Roche was quoted as saying in 1987, "Anybody who achieves a top position in an organization owes a debt of some kind,... If you have a talent and you have your health, you should help others." Roche is an inductee to the Automotive Hall of Fame. Ten colleges and universities awarded him honorary degrees. ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

'' magazine called Roche "a folksy sort who never shows his temper and whose greatest failing, according to companions and competitors alike, is that 'he may be too much of a gentleman.' "

Death

Roche died on June 6, 2004 in his home in Belleair, Florida at the age of 97.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roche, James M. 1906 births 2004 deaths General Motors executives American manufacturing businesspeople 20th-century American businesspeople American statisticians Businesspeople from Illinois People from Elgin, Illinois