François Michelin
François Michelin (15 June 1926 – 29 April 2015) was a French heir and businessman. He was the chief executive officer (CEO) of Michelin from 1955 to 1999. Under his leadership, a family business founded by his grandfather became the leading global tire manufacturer, dominating the market in Europe and the US. A practising Roman Catholic, he was idiosyncratically non-hierarchical and conducted business from his hometown of Clermont-Ferrand in the rural Auvergne. Early life François Michelin was born on 15 June 1926 in Clermont-Ferrand, Auvergne, France. His grandfather, Édouard Michelin, was the founder of Michelin, when it was known as Michelin & Cie. His father was Étienne Michelin and his mother, Madeleine Callies. He became an orphan at the age of ten. He received a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics. Career Michelin started his career in 1951. He worked under a false name with regular factory workers, to learn on the job. He first worked as a fitter, then a driver, and later in sales and marketing. He served as the CEO of Michelin from 1955 to 1999. He increased the marketshare from the tenth top tire manufacturer in the world to number one. For example, from 1960 to 1979,