Word: bland
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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Chairmen of the board at General Motors tend to be bland organization types. Though they command a vast $60 billion industrial empire that controls more than 60% of the U.S. automobile market, none in recent decades has had the public impact of Henry Ford II or Lee lacocca. Three years ago, when Roger B. Smith, a 5-ft. 9-in., red-haired man with a squeaky voice, moved into the walnut-veneered chairman's office on the 14th floor of the General Motors building in Detroit, he was expected to blend into the woodwork. Smith had joined...
...Reagan Administration greeted last week's dissolution of the Vienna talks with a familiar litany of its own: expressions of regret and declarations of a readiness to negotiate whenever the Soviets are willing. President Reagan also kept a bland demeanor after meeting at the White House last week with Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, who urged him to try harder to clarify the peaceful aims of U.S. arms control policies. Said Trudeau: "I found myself telling him that he should be communicating better, and he's the expert communicator." The President thanked Trudeau "for coming here and sharing...
Says Marketing Professor Louis Stern of Northwestern University: "Sears had nothing, just bland stores that were unappealing and not exciting...
...question of the moment, however, is how much longer the Soviets will be able to impose a bland countenance on their leader's absence. Important public events continue to loom in Moscow, including a semiannual Central Committee plenum that is held in late November or early December. That closed-door session is traditionally followed by a highly publicized meeting of the country's Supreme Soviet, which is normally announced 30 days in advance. Failure to hold those events on schedule would cause muffled embarrassment in the Kremlin, and further uncertainty about the Kremlin abroad. -By George Russell. Reported...
...became chairman, succeeding the colorful and quotable John deButts, who was a company spokesman in AT&T commercials. Brown's image has been bland by comparison. While respected for his intelligence and technical expertise, he has never been a great communicator. His speeches to groups of employees or Wall Street analysts can have a narcotic effect. Asked to explain his formula for success, he admits that "it isn't my charisma." AT&T insiders say he hides his emotions and signals distress only by growing ominously silent. On balance, that stolid style has been an asset. Says Rawleigh...