William Gus Pagonis ( Greek Ουίλιαμ Γκας Παγώνης , English William Gus Pagonis ; April 30, 1941 ) [2] - American military logistician of Greek origin, lieutenant general . He was the Director of Logistics ( 1991 ) of the coalition of the Multinational Force (MNF), which took part in the Gulf War , and was widely recognized for its achievements in organizing and conducting an effective logistics support process for the MNF troops, in particular, during Operation Desert Storm " . [1] In 1993 , after successfully managing logistics in this war and receiving high marks from General Norman Schwarzkopf , Pagonis left the US Army and became executive vice president of logistics at the famous Sears, Roebuck & Co. department store chain. Sears Holdings . [3] Since 2000, he served as chairman of the board of directors / director of the RailAmerica, Inc. holding company . He was engaged in writing. Laureate of the Socrates Award from the American-Greek Progressive Enlightenment Union ( 1992 ). [four]
| William Pagonis | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greek Ουίλιαμ Παγώνης English William Pagonis | ||||||
 | ||||||
| Date of Birth | April 30, 1941 (78 years old) | |||||
| Place of Birth | ||||||
| Affiliation |  USA | |||||
| Type of army | US Army | |||||
| Years of service | 1964 - 1993 | |||||
| Rank |  lieutenant general | |||||
| Battles / wars | The war in Vietnam , [1] Operation Desert Storm | |||||
| Awards and prizes |
| |||||
Career
He graduated from Pennsylvania State University with a bachelor 's degree in transportation and traffic management, as well as a master 's degree in business administration . [five]
He was a member of the Alpha Chi Rho fraternity (alpha hi ro).
Norman Schwarzkopf called Pagonis "the sorcerer of logistics . " [6] [7] In his book “Logistics. The Art of Managing Supply Chain ”( Divering the Goods: The Art of Managing Your Supply Chain ) Damon Schechter writes: [6] [7]
At his famous press conferences and memoirs, Norman-Hurricane called the Desert Storm the “Logistic War” and claimed that the coalition owed much of its quick victory to its main logistician, or general of the quartermaster’s service, as they called him in the 19th century, to Lieutenant General Gus Pagonis. According to Schwarzkopf, "Pagonis is a real Einstein, he can do anything." Which, in fact, Pagonis did in Desert Storm.
and adds: [6] [7]
Although Pagonis has held a civilian position for more than ten years, Alexander the Great remains his favorite hero. And it was he who inspired Pagonis for his most impressive invention - the mobile logistics database. In conversations with me, he admitted that he respects such skilled logisticians as Generals Ulysses Grant and George Patton .
Gulf War
The expert on supplying the Norman Schwarzkopf commander in chief of the MNF coalition in the Persian Gulf war was Major General Gus Pagonis, a short-lived energetic American Greek. In fact, he was the first American to arrive in Saudi Arabia a few hours after the decision was made to send troops there. Having not received a hotel room, Pagonis slept for two nights in the back seat of a rented Chevrolet near the port of Dammam . For the entire period of this war, he received the only promotion to lieutenant general.
Pagonis proved that when it comes to logistics experience and general leadership in managing very complex projects and organizational processes, several people are more qualified than a retired three-star US Army general.
After resigning
After serving 29 years in the US Army , Pagonis retired with the rank of lieutenant general.
He was one of the key figures in the successful development of Sears . As the Executive Vice President of Logistics at Sears Logistics Group , Pagonis was responsible for communications with suppliers, distribution , transportation, home delivery, outlet centers , international logistics, and the integration of information systems for their consolidation. Thanks to the introduction of logistics into the business world, Pagonis managed to make this company (which only a few years ago was rejected as something outdated) a champion in the world of retail . As he himself says: "The secret of logistics is never to lose sight of who the customer is . " [8] [9]
After leaving Sears, he served as Chairman of the Board of Directors / Director of RailAmerica, Inc.
In 2002, he was appointed US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld to the post of chairman of the defense business committee, which was just founded at the Department of Defense .
He was vice chairman of GENCO ATC and an expert in CombineNet, Inc .. [ten]
He is the author of Moving Mountains: Lessons in Leadership and Logistics from the Gulf War , published by Harvard Business School . [11] [12]
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 The Encyclopedia of Middle East Wars. The United States in the Persian Gulf, Afghanistan, and Iraq Conflicts .
- ↑ Steve R. Waddell. United States Army Logistics: From the American Revolution to 9/11 . books.google.gr.
- ↑ William G. (Gus) Pagonis . veteransadvantage.com (Sep 5, 2001).
- ↑ William "Gus" Pagonis . indianalogistics.com.
- ↑ William ("Gus") Pagonis unopened (inaccessible link) . transportation.northwestern.edu. Date of treatment July 7, 2016. Archived on August 18, 2016.
- ↑ 1 2 3 Gordon Frank Sander, Damon Schechter. Logistics. The art of supply chain management . rulit.me.
- ↑ 1 2 3 Damon Schechter. Delivering the Goods: The Art of Managing Your Supply Chain . books.google.gr.
- ↑ GUS PAGONIS . http://keynotespeakers.com/ .
- ↑ Questie. NextLevel 2012 Keynote: William "Gus" Pagonis unopened (link not available) . sciquest.com (February 7th, 2012). Date of treatment July 7, 2016. Archived June 17, 2016.
- ↑ William G. Pagonis . smeal.psu.edu.
- ↑ Lt. Gen. William "Gus" Pagonis Neopr . http://goodmanspeakersbureau.com/ .
- ↑ William G. Pagonis. Moving Mountains: Lessons in Leadership and Logistics from the Gulf War . amazon.com.