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Mary Teresa Barra (born December 24, 1961) is the Chief Executive Officer of General Motors. She has held the position since January 15, 2014, and she is the first female CEO of a major global automaker. On December 10, 2013, GM named her to succeed Dan Akerson as Chief Executive Officer, and prior to that, Barra served as the Executive Vice President of Global Product Development, Purchasing and Supply Chain at General Motors.
In April 2014, Barra was featured on the cover of Time's "100 Most Influential People in the World."
She was born Mary Teresa Makela. Her father worked as a die maker at Pontiac for 39 years.She studied electrical engineering at General Motors Institute (now Kettering University), obtaining a Bachelor of Science degree. Receiving a GM fellowship at Stanford Graduate School of Business in 1988, she obtained a Masters in Business Administration from the school in 1990.
She started working for General Motors at the age of 18 as a co-op student in 1980 and subsequently held a variety of engineering and administrative positions, including being manager of the Detroit/Hamtramck Assembly plant.
In February 2008 she became Vice President of Global Manufacturing Engineering. In July 2009 she advanced to the position of Vice President of Global Human Resources, which she held until February 2011, when she was named Executive Vice President of Global Product Development. The latter position included responsibilities for design; she has worked to reduce the number of automobile platforms in GM. In August 2013, her Vice President responsibility was extended to include Global Purchasing and Supply Chain.
In December of 2013, Barra was named to replace outgoing CEO Dan Akerson, and assumed the position of CEO in January of 2014. During her first year as CEO, General Motors was forced to issue 84 safety recalls involving over 30 million cars. Barra was called before the Senate to testify about the recalls and deaths attributed to the faulty ignition switch. Barra and General Motors also came under suspicion of paying for awards to burnish the CEO and corporation's image during that time.
Barra was listed as one of the world's most powerful women by Forbes, for the third time, in 2014. She was listed seventh, rising from 35th in 2013.
On May 3, 2014 she delivered the Spring Commencement address for University of Michigan's Ann Arbor campus at Michigan Stadium. She received an honorary degree.
Barra's parents are of Finnish descent. She is married to consultant Tony Barra, whom she met while studying at Kettering University, and has two children. The family lives in Northville, a suburb of Detroit. She has named the Chevrolet Camaro and the Pontiac Firebird as her favorite cars.
The celebration of the first woman ever to head a Big 8 automaker and the largest seller in the U.S. market ended soon after the champagne popped. Mary Barra took the reins of GM in January and in April was summoned to Congress to answer for faulty ignition switches linked to at least 21 deaths. Throughout a 30-million-car recall, the 34-year veteran has remained poised and confident. Barra says GM is on track for 10% operating margins in North America and to restore profits in Europe by 2016. Her leadership, she said, will bring about a "new GM," able to regain customer trust. In September the Detroit automaker announced a 2017 Cadillac that drives itself--a model that'll let drivers take their hands off the wheel at highway speeds.
In April 2014, Barra was featured on the cover of Time's "100 Most Influential People in the World."
She was born Mary Teresa Makela. Her father worked as a die maker at Pontiac for 39 years.She studied electrical engineering at General Motors Institute (now Kettering University), obtaining a Bachelor of Science degree. Receiving a GM fellowship at Stanford Graduate School of Business in 1988, she obtained a Masters in Business Administration from the school in 1990.
She started working for General Motors at the age of 18 as a co-op student in 1980 and subsequently held a variety of engineering and administrative positions, including being manager of the Detroit/Hamtramck Assembly plant.
In February 2008 she became Vice President of Global Manufacturing Engineering. In July 2009 she advanced to the position of Vice President of Global Human Resources, which she held until February 2011, when she was named Executive Vice President of Global Product Development. The latter position included responsibilities for design; she has worked to reduce the number of automobile platforms in GM. In August 2013, her Vice President responsibility was extended to include Global Purchasing and Supply Chain.
In December of 2013, Barra was named to replace outgoing CEO Dan Akerson, and assumed the position of CEO in January of 2014. During her first year as CEO, General Motors was forced to issue 84 safety recalls involving over 30 million cars. Barra was called before the Senate to testify about the recalls and deaths attributed to the faulty ignition switch. Barra and General Motors also came under suspicion of paying for awards to burnish the CEO and corporation's image during that time.
Barra was listed as one of the world's most powerful women by Forbes, for the third time, in 2014. She was listed seventh, rising from 35th in 2013.
On May 3, 2014 she delivered the Spring Commencement address for University of Michigan's Ann Arbor campus at Michigan Stadium. She received an honorary degree.
Barra's parents are of Finnish descent. She is married to consultant Tony Barra, whom she met while studying at Kettering University, and has two children. The family lives in Northville, a suburb of Detroit. She has named the Chevrolet Camaro and the Pontiac Firebird as her favorite cars.
The celebration of the first woman ever to head a Big 8 automaker and the largest seller in the U.S. market ended soon after the champagne popped. Mary Barra took the reins of GM in January and in April was summoned to Congress to answer for faulty ignition switches linked to at least 21 deaths. Throughout a 30-million-car recall, the 34-year veteran has remained poised and confident. Barra says GM is on track for 10% operating margins in North America and to restore profits in Europe by 2016. Her leadership, she said, will bring about a "new GM," able to regain customer trust. In September the Detroit automaker announced a 2017 Cadillac that drives itself--a model that'll let drivers take their hands off the wheel at highway speeds.
