George Albert Smith Jr. (1905–1969) was a professor at

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...

who wrote several books on management practice and other issues. Smith was the only son and third child of

George Albert Smith George Albert Smith Sr. (April 4, 1870 – April 4, 1951) was an American religious leader who served as the eighth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Early life Born in Salt Lake City, Utah Territor ...

, who would become the eighth

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...

(LDS Church), and his wife Lucy Woodruff. Lucy was the daughter of Wilford Woodruff Jr., a son of

Wilford Woodruff Wilford Woodruff Sr. (March 1, 1807September 2, 1898) was an American religious leader who served as the fourth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1889 until his death. He ended the public practice of ...

, who was the fourth president of the LDS Church. At the time of George Albert Smith Jr.'s birth his father was a member of the

Quorum of the Twelve Apostles A quorum is the minimum number of members of a deliberative assembly (a body that uses parliamentary procedure, such as a legislature) necessary to conduct the business of that group. According to ''Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised'', the ...

. As a young man, Smith was a

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

for the LDS Church in

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

and

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. Smith received his bachelor's degree from the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...

and a graduate degree in business administration from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

. He served as student body president of the Harvard Business School Association from 1933 to 1934. In 1934 he was appointed a member of the editorial board of the ''Harvard Business Review''. From 1934, Smith was a professor at Harvard Business School. During the 1950s, he was one of the main proponents of sizing a business's competitive strategy in light of the general trends in its specific market. Smith is also credited as one of the principal developers of

SWOT analysis SWOT analysis (or SWOT matrix) is a strategic planning and strategic management technique used to help a person or organization identify Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats related to business competition or project planning. It ...

. In July 1935, Smith married Ruth Nowell in the

Salt Lake Temple The Salt Lake Temple is a temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. At , it is the largest Latter-day Saint temple by floor area. Dedicated in 1893, it is the sixth temple ...

. They had three sons, who all attended Harvard Business School. Smith wrote three books: ''Policy Formulation and Administration'' (1951), ''Managing Geographically Decentralized Companies'' (1958), and ''Business, Society, and the Individual'' (1962).

Notes

References

Alibris listing of books by George Albert Smith Jr.
*

Francis M. Gibbons Francis Marion ("Frank") Gibbons (April 10, 1921 – July 16, 2016) was the secretary to the First Presidency (LDS Church), First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1970 to 1986 and a church general aut ...

. ''George Albert Smith: Kind and Caring Christian: Prophet of God''. (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book, 1990) p.p. 35, 160
Biographical note connected with Harvard's collection of Smith's papers
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, George Albert Jr. 1905 births American Latter Day Saints American Mormon missionaries in Germany University of Utah alumni American Mormon missionaries in Switzerland Harvard Business School alumni Harvard Business School faculty Smith family (Latter Day Saints) 1969 deaths 20th-century Mormon missionaries Latter Day Saints from Massachusetts