The 5 Most Impressive Carlos Ghosn Moments
" You learn from diversity, but you're comforted by commonality ."
Carlos Ghosn
Several books can be written and endless movies can be produced about the many intriguing chapters of the once-in-a-lifetime story of Carlos Ghosn.
Throughout his unmatched career in the expansive world of auto, Ghosn repeatedly raised the bar and methodically abolished the word "impossible" from his glossary.
On his way to the top of the auto industry food chain, the influential Lebanese-Brazilian-French businessman achieved celebrity status in the most unlikely places in the world.
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While there is certainly no shortage of big events in his life and career, below are five of the biggest Carlos Ghosn moments.
#1 The beginning of a legacy
When Carlos Ghosn was 30 years old, he became the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Michelin's South American operations.
This was in 1985 after Ghosn had poured 7 years of his life into the European tire maker, where he started out as a management trainee in 1978 and climbed up the ranks over time.
Carlos Ghosn, at age 26, managing a Michelin plant in France. ~ Academy of Achievement
As COO, Ghosn was tasked with revitalizing Michelin's operations in its South American division, which was falling apart due to Brazil's hyperinflation at the time.
In two years' time, he restored profitability and stability to the division after forming diverse, cross-cultural management teams that reorganized operation among the different nationalities working under Michelin in the region.
It was this experience that formed the foundation upon which the celebrated businessman built his famous multicultural approach to business management.
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On that topic, he once said: "You learn from diversity, but you're comforted by commonality."
Around 3 years after his remarkable achievement, Ghosn was promoted to CEO of Michelin North America, in 1990. Later, he oversaw the restructuring of the company that he had invested a lifetime working for.
#2 "The Cost Killer"
In 1996, Carlos Ghosn joined Renault as the executive vice president overseeing manufacturing, purchasing, research, and development.
At that time, the French carmaker had been suffering massive failures and losses after its disastrous 1994 merger with Volvo.
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Ghosn quickly went to work, slashing the company's costs and implementing his effective restructuring knowledge and experience to turn a crumbling Renault around.
By 1997, Renault returned to profitability and Carlos Ghosn earned his famous nickname "Le Cost Killer" for his impressive feat.
#3 Erasing $20 billion of debt
“The widely held consensus was that he would fail, that Nissan wasn’t worth saving and it couldn’t be done."
John Casesa, top auto analyst at Merrill Lynch.
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After successfully doing the unlikely, Ghosn turned to do what was genuinely thought to be impossible.
The then-45-year-old Vice President of Renault was sent to Japan to become Nissan's COO after the French automaker bought a 36.8% stake in Nissan Motors.
In 1999, Ghosn arrived in Japan to restructure the mess that was Nissan.