Ever wonder why bios are written in the third person? As if somebody other than the person it’s about wrote it? It’s strange, right? Let’s see if we can change that. I was born in New York City at the beginning of the Baby Boom. I earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in psychology from the University of Dayton and a doctorate in clinical psychology from Duquesne University, where I learned qualitative research methodologies.
I began my career as a clinician in state mental institutions and worked in community mental health programs for 15 years. I thought I would spend my life as a clinical psychologist. It didn’t turn out that way.
I began consulting with health care organizations in the early 80s after managing the implementation of a management information system at my mental health center. That was the beginning of two enduring passions: technology and the behavior of people in organizations.
Since then I’ve worked in a wide range of industries, including publishing, insurance, transportation, communication and retail. For the last 15 years I’ve spent much of my time working with designers, mostly in the apparel and accessories segments.
In 1999 my partner, Peggy Kelston, and I renamed our firm TrueTalk, Inc. That name reflects our belief in the greatest under-utilized resource in any organization: the intelligence and wisdom of its people. Enabling productive connections among those people is our primary mission. We establish long-term working relationships with our clients and care deeply about their success. Oh, and as the traditional bio would say, I live in Connecticut with Karen, my wife.
A bio may be the ultimate framing challenge. Think about it. How many different ways can you frame the answer to the question “who are you?” Here’s how I framed me today…
In 1970-something, an aptitude test suggested that I would make a great accountant…or a great architect. I followed the data, studied accounting at UMass, and launched my accounting career at Arthur Andersen.
I learned two things:
In 1988, I chose gut over data and left Arthur Andersen to earn my MBA in Japan (in a joint venture program between the International University of Japan and The Amos Tuck School at Dartmouth).
Then, T George Harris asked me to help him track research in fields of health, social psychology, and consumer attitudes.
And everything changed… I began one of the steepest learning curves in my life — how to make academic research interesting to the average Joe. T George changed my life, my writing, and my capacity to look at the world in novel ways.
And when he asked me to join him at the Harvard Business Review, my career took its next tack: the world of management ideas and the process of innovation.
As part of the senior management team at Harvard Business School Publishing, I helped develop and implement an ambitious innovation strategy, including the conception, development, and launch of the Harvard Management Update newsletter.
Life lessons:
So, I tried something new…
Citibank hired me to lead the development of a Web-based knowledge management portal for their top 350 executives. The intersection of complexity, politics, and a merger was among the most challenging situations in which I’ve ever found myself.
Since 2000, I’ve worked with extraordinary people to help them develop, prototype, and present their ideas in novel ways. And since 2002, I’ve helped run the business operations of Farylrobin, a growing fashion footwear company.
I live in New York with my wife Lisanne and our three boys, Gabriel, Jaron, and Eric.