Robert C. Stempel became chairman and chief executive officer of General Motors Corporation on August 1, 1990 and left that position on November 1, 1992. Immediately prior to his election, he had been president and chief operating officer since September 1, 1987. Stempel joined Oldsmobile in 1958 and began a multi-faceted career at GM that spanned more than 30 years.

Stempel was born July 15, 1933, in Trenton, New Jersey. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusetts in 1955. Michigan State University granted him a master’s degree in business administration in 1970.

After joining GM's Oldsmobile Division as a senior detailer in the chassis design department in 1958, Stempel held various positions with Oldsmobile: senior designer (1962); transmission design engineer (1964); motor engineer (1969).

One of his first assignments at Oldsmobile was designing a wheel. As Stempel gained experience, Oldsmobile called on him to be part of the team to develop the 1966 Toronado, the first American front-wheel-drive car in nearly 30 years. He was assigned to design the front suspension and develop the engine and transmission mounting system — developments that Stempel considered among his proudest achievements as an engineer.

By 1972, Bob had advanced to assistant chief engineer of the Oldsmobile car division, during which time he attended Michigan State University at night to get his MBA. In 1973, GM President Ed Cole named him special assistant and asked him to coordinate development of emission control devices for passenger cars. That work led to the design of the catalytic converter which is now used on vehicles around the world to control exhaust emissions.

He joined the engineering department of the Chevrolet Division as chief engineer - engines and components in 1974 and was named Chevrolet's director of engineering in 1975.

On November 6, 1978, Stempel was appointed general manager of the Pontiac Motor Division and elected a vice president of General Motors. During his tenure at Pontiac, design work began on the two-seat, plastic-body Fiero. That technology eventually was applied to GM's new family of all-purpose-vehicles (APVs).

In September 1980, Stempel was appointed managing director of Adam Opel AG in Germany, with responsibility for European-sourced passenger-car operations. In that position, he was noted for his friendly rapport with the Opel workers, and backed development of the car that became the strong-selling subcompact Kadett. Two years later he was named general manager of Chevrolet.

Stempel returned to Detroit in 1982 when he was named general manager of Chevrolet. His managerial skills came to the forefront in 1984 when GM began the massive reorganization of its North American automotive operations. He was named vice president and group executive in charge of the Buick-Oldsmobile-Cadillac group.

His management responsibilities were broadened in 1986 when he was elected an executive vice president of GM and a member of the Corporation's Board of Directors. He assumed responsibility for the worldwide Truck & Bus Group and the Overseas Group. In 1987, he became president and chief operating officer.

Stempel had served as executive vice president of General Motors and a member of the Corporation's Board of Directors since February 3, 1986. In that position he had responsibility for both the worldwide Truck & Bus Group and the Overseas Group.

At the time of his election to the GM Board of Directors, he was vice president and group executive in charge of the Buick-Oldsmobile-Cadillac Group, a post he had held since January 1984.

Robert C. Stempel resigned as chairman and chief executive of GM on October 26, 1992. He was Chairman of the Board of Energy Conversion Devices, Inc. since December, 1995. In August 31, 2007, he retired as ECD's Chief Executive Officer.

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