Title
Harwood, Chuck (Charles) oral historyCatalog Number
102702211Type
DocumentDescription
After graduating from Harvard College and the Harvard Business School, Charles Harwood worked his way up to the positions of General Manager and Corporate Vice President of two product divisions of Corning, Inc., based in Corning, New York. In 1970 he moved to Silicon Valley to become the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Signetics, a Corning subsidiary and, at that time, one of the largest integrated-circuit manufacturers in the world. Chuck Harwood had the distinction of being the only non-engineer who served as CEO in a Silicon Valley semiconductor company through the 1990’s.During Mr. Harwood’s tenure at the helm of the company, sales grew from $35 million to $720 million. In 1975, Philips Electronics acquired Signetics, and he remained as president and CEO for another 10 years. After leaving Phillips, he co-founded the Quality Improvement Company, serving as both co-general manager and consultant to clients. In this oral history Mr. Harwood discusses his career path, the growth of Signetics, life as a subsidiary of Corning, the many technical innovations in which Signetics either participated or developed, his role as CEO and the acquisition of his company by Philips Electronics, a Europe-based organization.
Date
2009-10-29Contributor
| Harwood, Charles C., Interviewee |
| Wadsworth, Duane, Interviewer |
