Forbes.com readers and editors rank Alfred P. Sloan as the 12th most influential businessman of all time. As President of General Motors, Alfred P. Sloan attacked Ford Motors' dominance by offering customers what Ford refused to: a wider selection of cars, available in different colors, with updated models annually. Sloan also improved relations with labor and dealers. His financial policies and technological investments paid off: Even during the Great Depression, when car sales fell by 75%, GM remained profitable. Sloan led by persuasion, listening to his executives, workers, dealers and customers to improve production and give customers what they wanted. As historian Harold Livesay said, Sloan "bureaucratized the entrepreneurial function." In other words, he preserved creativity and risk-taking in a far-flung, multi-tiered business empire. Although Ford was the pioneer, Sloan's superior management techniques brought the car business into modernity. 　　 　　
　　
　　福布斯网站（Forbes.com）的读者和编辑将阿尔弗雷德•斯隆列为第12位有史以来最有影响力的商人。 　　
　　给顾客以更大的选择余地、提供多种色彩、并且每年更新车型，通用汽车公司总裁阿尔弗雷德•斯隆向福特汽车公司的统治地位发起了进攻，这些做法是福特公司所拒绝做的。斯隆也改善了与劳工和经销商的关系。他的财务政策和技术投资得到了回报：即使在大萧条时期，当车辆销售下降了75%时，通用仍然保持盈利。 　　
　　借由劝导并聆听执行经理、工人、经销商和顾客的意见以改进产品，并提供给顾客他们想要的，斯隆保持着领先。就象历史学家哈罗德•李弗斯（Harold Livesay）说的那样，斯隆将企业的功能整合成一个官僚机构，换言之，在一个分布广泛、层级甚多的商业帝国中他维持了创造力和风险承担能力。 　　
　　虽然福特是先锋，却是斯隆的优秀管理技术将汽车制造业带入了现代社会。