No doubt some career counselors would say Kevin Clark, 49,made a good move in 1994, when he left his first job workingin the finance department of Chrysler to take a treasury post atauto supplier Federal Mogul, eventually moving on to become CFO atFisher Scientific and then a founding partner at a private equityfirm, Liberty Lane Partners.

But Clark, who's now back in the auto industry as CFO of Troy,Mich.-based Delphi, says his experience at Chrysler was a terrificintroduction to finance and his current Rust Belt industry post isan exciting challenge.

“Like a lot of folks growing up in Michigan, I was surrounded bythe auto industry,” Clark says. “When I finished B-School, Chryslerhad gone through a government rescue and was on the upswing. It wasa great opportunity. They were interested in getting kids with afinance background, and identified people they thought were highpotential and cycled us through different parts of theorganization.”