Count Raoul de Vitry d'Avaucourt (1895-1977) was a French aristocrat and business executive. He served as the chief executive officer of

Pechiney Pechiney SA was a major aluminium conglomerate based in France. The company was acquired in 2003 by the Alcan Corporation, headquartered in Canada. In 2007, Alcan itself was taken over by mining giant Rio Tinto Alcan. Prior to its acquisitio ...

from 1958 to 1967, then France's largest aluminium producer.

Early life

Raoul de Vitry was born on June 28, 1895. His father was Marie-Hyacinthe-Fernand de Vitry d'Avaucourt and his mother, Marie-Élisabeth-Louise de Louvencourt. De Vitry graduated from the

École Polytechnique (, ; also known as Polytechnique or l'X ) is a ''grande école'' located in Palaiseau, France. It specializes in science and engineering and is a founding member of the Polytechnic Institute of Paris. The school was founded in 1794 by mat ...

in 1914. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he served in the

French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (, , ), is the principal Army, land warfare force of France, and the largest component of the French Armed Forces; it is responsible to the Government of France, alongside the French Navy, Fren ...

from 1914 to 1919. He graduated from the

École des Mines de Paris École or Ecole may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * Éco ...

in 1922.

Career

De Vitry joined

in 1927. He joined its board of directors in 1931. By 1938, he was appointed as its general manager. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he supported the

French Resistance The French Resistance ( ) was a collection of groups that fought the German military administration in occupied France during World War II, Nazi occupation and the Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy#France, collaborationist Vic ...

financially. He served as the chief executive officer of Pechiney from 1958 to 1967, when it was France's largest aluminium producer. De Vitry believed in working through "a planning system", including making five-year plans for company investments. Meanwhile, he believed in promoting or demoting employees depending on their performance regardless of their initial credentials. De Vitry was the co-founder of the

American Research and Development Corporation American Research and Development Corporation (ARDC) was a venture capital and private equity firm founded in 1946 by Georges Doriot, Ralph Flanders, Merrill Griswold, and Karl Compton. ARDC is credited with the first major venture capital ...

. He served on the board of directors of the

Digital Equipment Corporation Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC ), using the trademark Digital, was a major American company in the computer industry from the 1960s to the 1990s. The company was co-founded by Ken Olsen and Harlan Anderson in 1957. Olsen was president until ...

. De Vitry was a donor to

INSEAD INSEAD ( ; French: ''Institut européen d'administration des affaires'') is a non-profit business school with locations in Europe (Fontainebleau, France), Asia (Singapore), the Middle East (Abu Dhabi, UAE) and North America (San Francisco, USA ...

, where his name is inscribed on a plaque in the entrance. De Vitry was the recipient of the

Croix de Guerre The (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awarded during World ...

for his World War I service. He was also a Commander of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

, a Grand-Officer of the National Order of Merit.

Personal life and death

De Vitry married Marie-Claire-Henriette-Nicole Le Bret. They had ten children, including four sons who, like him, attended the

. He was the father-in-law of

Marc Julia Marc Julia (23 October 1922 – 29 June 2010) was a French chemist and the winner of the 1990 CNRS Gold Medal in chemistry. He discovered the Julia olefination reaction in 1973. Biography Julia was born in 1922 in Paris as son of the renowned m ...

. He died on October 5, 1977.

References

1895 births 1977 deaths Counts of France French military personnel of World War I École Polytechnique alumni Mines Paris - PSL alumni French chief executives French corporate directors Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1914–1918 (France) Commanders of the Legion of Honour Grand Officers of the Ordre national du Mérite {{France-business-bio-stub