Philip D. Reed
Encyclopedia
Philip D. Reed was president and chief executive officer of General Electric
Company from 1940–1942 and 1945-1959.
; he graduated from North Division High School
there, and then went to the University of Wisconsin in Madison
in 1917, but quit in his freshman year to join the Army
at the outbreak of the World War
. Due to an appendectomy, he was unable to join the American Expeditionary Force
; when the Armistice with Germany came he was in artillery
training at Fort Monroe
.
Reed was mustered out and returned to Wisconsin to complete his degree in electrical engineering
.
and later with the U.S. Mission for Economic Affairs, eventually succeeding Averell Harriman as head of the USMEA office in London
when Harriman was appointed U.S. Ambassador to the Soviet Union
. He resumed his GE office in 1945. Reed retired from GE in 1959 after 32 years of service.
General Electric
General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
Company from 1940–1942 and 1945-1959.
Background
Reed was born in Milwaukee, WisconsinWisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
; he graduated from North Division High School
North Division High School (Milwaukee)
North Division High School was one of the major public high schools in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, part of the Milwaukee Public Schools...
there, and then went to the University of Wisconsin in Madison
Madison, Wisconsin
Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
in 1917, but quit in his freshman year to join the Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
at the outbreak of the World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. Due to an appendectomy, he was unable to join the American Expeditionary Force
American Expeditionary Force
The American Expeditionary Forces or AEF were the United States Armed Forces sent to Europe in World War I. During the United States campaigns in World War I the AEF fought in France alongside British and French allied forces in the last year of the war, against Imperial German forces...
; when the Armistice with Germany came he was in artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
training at Fort Monroe
Fort Monroe
Fort Monroe was a military installation in Hampton, Virginia—at Old Point Comfort, the southern tip of the Virginia Peninsula...
.
Reed was mustered out and returned to Wisconsin to complete his degree in electrical engineering
Electrical engineering
Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...
.
GE
Reed joined GE in 1927, and became President and CEO in 1940. He resigned that $120,000-a-year post during the Second World War to work for the War Production BoardWar Production Board
The War Production Board was established as a government agency on January 16, 1942 by executive order of Franklin D. Roosevelt.The purpose of the board was to regulate the production and allocation of materials and fuel during World War II in the United States...
and later with the U.S. Mission for Economic Affairs, eventually succeeding Averell Harriman as head of the USMEA office in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
when Harriman was appointed U.S. Ambassador to the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. He resumed his GE office in 1945. Reed retired from GE in 1959 after 32 years of service.