Bob Lutz (businessman)

Bob Lutz
Lutz in October 2008
Born	Robert Anthony Lutz (1932-02-12) February 12, 1932 (age 84) Zurich, Switzerland
Nationality	Swiss American
Occupation	Executive

Robert Anthony "Maximum Bob" Lutz (born February 12, 1932) is a Swiss American automotive executive.

Lutz was born in Zurich, Switzerland, the son of Margaret and Robert Harry Lutz. His father was a Vice Chairman of Credit Suisse. Lutz left Switzerland at the age of seven and spent time in Scarsdale, New York, becoming a U.S. citizen in 1943, and returned to Switzerland in 1947 to attend school in Lausanne. He is fluent in English, Swiss German, German, French and has a modest fluency in Italian.

Lutz received a bachelor's degree in Production Management in 1961 followed by an MBA with a concentration in Marketing with highest honors in 1962, both from UC Berkeley; he earned the latter when he was flying in the United States Marine Corps Reserve's 4th Marine Aircraft Wing and supporting two of four young daughters by selling vacuum cleaners in Walnut Creek, California. He also received an honorary Doctorate of Law from Boston University in 1985, and an honorary degree of Doctor of Management from Kettering University in 2003. He is a trustee of the Marine Corps University Foundation and the Marine Military Academy.

After leaving the Marines, Lutz spent eight years with GM in Europe before joining BMW serving as Executive Vice President of sales at BMW for three years. He takes some credit in the development of the BMW 3-Series as well as their Motorsport division.