When Dan Akerson took over the turnaround effort at General Motors Co., few could have predicted one impact he would start to have almost immediately: more important roles for women at GM, all the way up to the boardroom.
The Wall Street Journal's Alan Murray engaged the GM chairman and chief executive in a conversation about the contributions being made by women directors, executives, managers and engineers in the reinventing of the automotive giant. In the process, Mr. Akerson also paid tribute to a woman with a singular influence on his career—his mother.
Here are edited excerpts of their conversation.
General Motors Chairman and CEO Daniel F. Akerson talks with WSJ's Alan Murray about the number of women on the auto maker's board, his potential replacement as CEO and more, at the Women in the Economy conference.
ALAN MURRAY: Detroit, the auto industry, is probably one of the most male-dominated industries that you can imagine. You've made a concerted effort, as an outsider, to promote and bring in more women. Why?