Who is YOUR Hero?

In a continuing series of dialogue, we at AutoMax Recruiting and Training, LLC wondered whether or not it is important to have a hero to admire. We questioned what makes a person a hero to others? Why care about accomplishments of others? What difference does it make to you?

Spanning the duration of every industry, including the automotive industry, there are individuals who are leaders; who inspire, motivate and propel others to greater levels of achievement. Heroes come from all backgrounds and their contributions can be well documented. Take, for example, Robert Bosch, the eleventh of twelve children. During 1897, Bosch was the first to adapt a magneto to a vehicle engine. In doing so, he solved one of the greatest technical problems faced by the nascent automotive industry. The invention of the first commercially viable high-voltage spark plug as part of a magneto-based ignition system by Robert Bosch’s engineer, Gottlob Honold, in 1902 greatly enhanced the development of the internal combustion engine. Bosch launched innovations for the motor vehicle, including diesel fuel injection in 1927. In only a few years’ time, he succeeded in turning his company from a small automotive supplier into a multinational electronics group. Is he a hero? I would say yes! Not only did he personally develop a product of value from which nearly everyone has benefitted, but he also inspired others to take his idea and further improve upon it, and was a very successful businessman during the course of his life.

Granted, intentionally, the example is of a person of whom most people are unaware, as he passed away in 1942. Nonetheless, it brings to point that a hero can be anyone we want to consider a hero. We should all be inspired by the paths that others have paved bettering our industry. Right now today, there are men and women in our life, whether directly or indirectly, who are influencing the way we think and act. Are you a hero to someone else? Could you be? Does it make a difference?

Tell us who YOUR hero is, whether in or out of today’s automotive industry.

Written by Ernie Kasprowicz,General Manager of AutoMax Recruiting and Training

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Craig Lockerd on December 22, 2011 at 11:18am

Robert Kearns takes on the Detroit automakers who he claims stole his idea for the intermittent windshield wipe.....Check out the movie "Flash of Genius

Permalink Reply by Craig Lockerd on December 22, 2011 at 11:18am

And My dad,Ed Lockerd...best car guy ever!

Permalink Reply by Richard Emmons on December 22, 2011 at 3:22pm

In the car industry Preston Tucker was a real hero that went unrecognized. He made several of the most innovated cars ever made. He was stomped on and put out of business for no good reason. His cars now are among the most valuable in the world! He never had a chance!

The 1948 Tucker Sedan or Tucker '48 Sedan (initially named the Tucker Torpedo^[3] ) was an advanced automobile conceived by Preston Tucker and briefly produced in Chicago in 1948. Only 51 cars were made before the company folded on March 3, 1949, due to negative publicity initiated by the news media, a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation and a heavily publicized stock fraud trial (which allegations were proven baseless in court with a full acquittal). Speculation exists that the Big Three automakers and Michigan senator Homer S. Ferguson also had a role in the Tucker Corporation's demise. The 1988 movie, Tucker: The Man and His Dream is based on Tucker's spirit and the saga surrounding the car's production. A 1948 Tucker sedan was featured in the July 26, 2011 installment of NBC's It's Worth What? television show. The car's estimated value is $1,200,000.00.

Permalink Reply by Ernie Kasprowicz on December 23, 2011 at 11:09am

That's a good one Rick. Sure is a rather nifty looking car. It seems a shame for his dreams and vision not to be fulfilled.