Marina v. Whitman

Marina v.N. Whitman is professor emerita of business administration and public policy. From 1979 until 1992 she was an officer of the General Motors Corporation, first as vice president and chief economist and later as vice president and group executive for public affairs. Prior to her appointment at GM, Whitman was a professor of economics at the University of Pittsburgh. She served as a member of the President's Council of Economic Advisers (1972-73), and as an independent director of several major multinational corporations. Marina received a bachelor's degree in government from Radcliffe College (now Harvard University) and master's and doctorate in economics from Columbia University. She is the recipient of numerous fellowships, honors, and awards, and holds honorary degrees from more than 20 colleges and universities. Her research interests include management of international trade and investment, and the changing role of multinational corporations, including the evolving concept of global corporate social responsibility. She is the author of The Martian's Daughter, a memoir, published by the University of Michigan Press in 2012.

Educational background

Ph.D., Columbia University

Professional affiliations

She currently serves on the Boards of the National Bureau of Economic Research, the Institute for International Economics, and the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey. She is a former member of the Boards of Harvard and Princeton Universities, and of the President's Advisory Committee on Trade Policy and Negotiations. She is also a member of The American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Council on Foreign Relations, and the Phi Beta Kappa Society.

Current research

She examines questions of international trade and investment, changing relationships between firms and their various constituencies, and current issues in corporate governance and global corporate social responsibility.

Recent publications

Several books and monographs, including New World, New Rules: The Changing Role of the American Corporation (1999) and American Capitalism and Global Convergence (2003) , and many articles, including : "The Open Economy Macromodel: Interactions Between Theoretical Developments and Real-World Behavior," in Arie Arnon and Warren Young (eds.), The Open Economy Macromodel: Past, Present and Future, 2002, "Trade and Growth: Restoring the Virtuous Circle" in Jerry Jasinowski (ed)., The Rising Tide: A Path Towards Higher Growth and Economic Prosperity, 1998; "Labor Market Adjustment and Trade: Their Interaction in the Triad" in Benjamin Cohen (ed.), International Trade and Finance: New Frontiers for Research, 1997; "Has Global Competition Killed the Socially Responsible Corporation?" in John W. Houck and Oliver F. Williams (eds.), Is the Good Corporation Dead? Social Responsibility in a Global Economy, 1996; "Using Board Guidelines As A Strategic Tool," The Corporate Board, September/October 1995; "Flexible Markets, Flexible Firms," The American Enterprise, May-June 1994.