Robert McNamara

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'''Robert Strange McNamara''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|æ|k|n|ə|ˌ|m|ær|ə}}; June 9, 1916 – July 6, 2009), also known by his initials '''RSM''', {{cite thesis|last=Beveridge|first=Albert J.|title=Private Business to Public Service: Robert McNamara’s Management Techniques and Their Limits in Peace and War|type=PhD dissertation|publisher=Johns Hopkins University|location=Baltimore, Maryland|date=May 2014}} was an American businessman and government official who served as the eighth [[United States secretary of defense]] from 1961 to 1968 under presidents [[John F. Kennedy]] and [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] at the height of the [[Cold War]]. He remains the longest-serving secretary of defense, having remained in office over seven years. He played a major role in promoting the U.S. involvement in the [[Robert McNamara as Secretary of Defense#Vietnam War|Vietnam War]].{{sfn|Weiner|2009}} McNamara was responsible for the institution of [[Robert McNamara as Secretary of Defense#Systems analysis|systems analysis]] in [[public policy]], which developed into the discipline known today as [[policy analysis]].{{sfn|Radin|2000}}

'''Robert Strange McNamara''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|æ|k|n|ə|ˌ|m|ær|ə}}; June 9, 1916 – July 6, 2009) was an American businessman and government official who served as the eighth [[United States secretary of defense]] from 1961 to 1968 under presidents [[John F. Kennedy]] and [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] at the height of the [[Cold War]]. He remains the longest-serving secretary of defense, having remained in office over seven years. He played a major role in promoting the U.S. involvement in the [[Robert McNamara as Secretary of Defense#Vietnam War|Vietnam War]].{{sfn|Weiner|2009}} McNamara was responsible for the institution of [[Robert McNamara as Secretary of Defense#Systems analysis|systems analysis]] in [[public policy]], which developed into the discipline known today as [[policy analysis]].{{sfn|Radin|2000}}

McNamara graduated from the [[University of California, Berkeley]], and [[Harvard Business School]].{{cite news|url=https://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/07/06/robert.mcnamara.obit/index.html |access-date=July 4, 2024|url-status=live |date=July 6, 2009 |title=Robert McNamara, ex-defense secretary, dies |author=|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240228200716/https://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/07/06/robert.mcnamara.obit/index.html |archive-date=February 28, 2024 |publisher=[[CNN]]}} He served in the [[United States Army Air Forces]] during [[World War II]]. After World War II, [[Henry Ford II]] hired McNamara and a group of other Army Air Force veterans to work for the [[#Ford Motor Company|Ford Motor Company]], reforming Ford with modern planning, organization, and management control systems. After briefly serving as Ford's president, McNamara accepted an appointment as secretary of defense in the [[Presidency of John F. Kennedy#Administration|Kennedy administration]].

McNamara graduated from the [[University of California, Berkeley]], and [[Harvard Business School]].{{cite news|url=https://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/07/06/robert.mcnamara.obit/index.html |access-date=July 4, 2024|url-status=live |date=July 6, 2009 |title=Robert McNamara, ex-defense secretary, dies |author=|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240228200716/https://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/07/06/robert.mcnamara.obit/index.html |archive-date=February 28, 2024 |publisher=[[CNN]]}} He served in the [[United States Army Air Forces]] during [[World War II]]. After World War II, [[Henry Ford II]] hired McNamara and a group of other Army Air Force veterans to work for the [[#Ford Motor Company|Ford Motor Company]], reforming Ford with modern planning, organization, and management control systems. After briefly serving as Ford's president, McNamara accepted an appointment as secretary of defense in the [[Presidency of John F. Kennedy#Administration|Kennedy administration]].