The young Yaleman who recently entered executive training at Pittsburgh's H. J. Heinz Co. was typical in everything but his well-tested name: H. J. (for Henry John) Heinz III. The son, grandson and great-grandson of Heinz presidents, Jack Heinz, 27, may someday run the company—but that future is by no means assured. Widespread public ownership of companies that once were family-owned has ruled out most automatic successions, and the sons of corporate bosses have to work hard and compete with a lot of bright young men if they hope to win their fathers' posts. Fortunately for U.S. business, many sons are showing not only that they can guide companies to bigger growth and better profits, but that they can often do better than their fathers. In the process, they are disproving the Greek adage that "great men's sons seldom do well" and silencing the hoary sayings and snickers about the boss's son.
Talent & Work. San Francisco's Levi Strauss & Co., a family-owned firm that has grown from work pants to general men's sportswear, has nearly tripled its size under the aggressive direction of Walter A. Haas Jr., 49, who took over his father's old job in 1958. In the same year, Edward B. Rust, 46, became president of State Farm Mutual Insurance when Father Adlai stepped up to chairman; under Edward, the nation's largest automobile insurance firm has increased its policyholders from 5,500,000 to 8,500,000, raised its premium income 123% to $727,800,000.
Though Ralph Lazarus, 51, was assured a job with Cincinnati-based Federated Department Stores because he was the fourth generation of what Cincinnatians call "the Lazari," it was talent and hard work that made him rise to the presidency, where he is coequal with Father Fred Jr., 80, Federated's chairman. Ralph now does most of the traveling, makes most of the decisions, and is chiefly responsible for the first $1 billion sales year in Federated's history. Since his father died in 1959, Motorola Chairman Robert W. Galvin, 42, has increased sales 43%, introduced such profitable lines as color TV and space communications equipment. As president of family-held Anheuser-Busch, Inc., and the son and grandson of presidents, August A. Busch, 66, has made his company the nation's leading brewery, is gradually turning over responsibilities to August III, 28, who is currently proving himself as vice president of marketing.
Afternoons in the Plant. The list of well-known sons who have been successes is long, includes Kaiser Industries' Edgar F. Kaiser, 56, Douglas Aircraft's Donald W. Douglas Jr., 47, and General Tire's Michael G. O'Neil, 43, who runs his father's firm in a kind of triumvirate with Brothers Thomas, 49, and John, 47. One of the recent comers is Howard Johnson, 32, who took over complete control of the restaurant and motel chain when his father retired last year. He has increased the number of restaurants, quintupled the motel business by adding rapid-telephone reservations, introduced a new cola drink (HoJo) and is expanding to the West Coast. The younger Johnson also increased the number of corporate vice presidents from four to 45, moving his father to comment: "I had a lot of good people, but they were not allowed to express themselves as they do now."