Henry J. Kaiser fathered the HMO, and J.P. Morgan saved Wall Street--Sure - they're all great business pioneers, but who was the most influential businessman, in terms of the way things are done today? That's the question Forbes magazine posed to Joel Mokyr, a professor of economics and history at Northwestern University. So, he came up with a list of candidates. But there was one stipulation: None of them could be currently active in business. That means Bill Gates didn't make the cut--But here are the ones who did. These are Mokyr's Top 10 picks for the Most Influential Businessmen Of All Time.
#10 - J. P. Morgan: His banking firm saved Wall Street.
#9 - Henry Luce: He was the mass media pioneer who created Time magazine.
#8 - William Lever: He came up with the idea of using brand names to sell products.
#7 - Ray Kroc: He founded McDonald's - and fast food.
#6 - Henry J. Kaiser: He fathered the U.S. healthcare industry.
#5 - Edward H. Harriman: He built railroads that carried bigger locomotives, so more goods could be transported for less money.
#4 - Henry Ford: His Model T changed everyday life.
#3 - Walt Disney: He pioneered the use of sound, color and animation in motion pictures.
#2 - Andrew Carnegie: He helped make the U.S. the world's leading steel-producing country.
And the most influential business man of all time, according to economic history expert Joel Mokyr: It's Matthew Boulton - the man who powered the Industrial Revolution by manufacturing the steam engine.