Alan Webber

Alan Webber (born September 18, 1948, St. Louis, Missouri^[1]) is an American entrepreneur, writer and progressive Democrat who unsuccessfully ran for Governor of New Mexico in 2014.^[2] In 1981, Webber worked as an employee of the Harvard Business School, where he went on to serve for six years as managing editor and editorial director of the Harvard Business Review.^[3] In 1995, Webber co-founded the technology business magazine, Fast Company, where he was named Adweek's Editor of the Year in 1999.^[3][4] In 2000, investors sold Fast Company for $360 million, which was at the time the second highest price ever paid for a U.S. magazine.

Early life and education

Webber's father was a camera salesman.^[1] Webber started school at DeMun School in Clayton, and later attended St. Louis Country Day School in St. Louis; he went on to graduate from Amherst College with a B.A. in English. While an employee of Harvard Business School, Webber worked with faculty on Changing Alliances, a book-length study of the competitiveness of the U.S. auto industry.^[5]

Early career

After graduating from Amherst, Webber moved to Portland, Oregon where he worked at a start-up political journal, The Oregon Times.^[6] Subsequently, he served in the office of then-Portland City Council member Neil Goldschmidt and continued as his administrative assistant and policy advisor when he became Mayor of Portland in 1972. The years Webber spent working alongside Goldschmidt resulted in Webber identifying Goldschmidt as his dear friend and mentor. ^[7]

Beginning in 1978, Webber served as editorial page editor of the alternative Oregon weekly newspaper, Willamette Week, where he received an Oregon State Newspaper Publisher’s Association Award for news and feature writing.^[8]

In 1980, Webber and his family moved to Washington, DC, when Goldschmidt was named Secretary of Transportation in the Carter administration. While working as Special Assistant to the Secretary of Transportation, Webber worked on the Chrysler Corporation bailout, the crisis in the U.S. auto industry, and overall national economic competitiveness issues.^[3]

Webber worked at the Harvard Business School in 1981 as a senior research assistant and project coordinator on the auto industry in America. The project culminated in a book called Changing Alliances.^[9]

He spent six years as the managing editor/editorial director of the Harvard Business Review (HBR). During his tenure, HBR was twice named a finalist for National Magazine Awards.^[10]

Webber worked as a speechwriter and policy advisor for several governors, including Massachusetts Governor (and later Democratic Presidential candidate) Michael Dukakis.^[11]

Publications

• (co-author) Changing Alliances - The Harvard Business School Project On The Auto Industry And The American Economy, 1987, ISBN 978-0071032308
• (co-author) Going Global, 1996, ISBN 978-0670863082
• Rules of Thumb: 52 Truths for Winning at Business Without Losing Your Self, 2009, paperback ed. 2010 ISBN 978-0061721847
• The Global Detective, 2010, Kindle eBook
• (co-author) Life Reimagined: Discovering Your New Life Possibilities, 2013, ISBN 978-1609949327

He has also written columns and articles for The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, U.S.A. Today, Huffington Post, The New York Times Sunday Magazine and The Washington Post. Life Reimagined was featured in Forbes as one of the "The Best New Books For Your Career".^[12]

Awards and recognition

Webber received an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from the Boston Architectural College,^[13] and has been designated an Honorary Senior Fellow at the Design Futures Council. He is a former fellow of the U.S.-Japan Leadership Program and a John J. McCloy Fellow.

Personal life

Webber married Frances Diemoz, an architect and furniture maker, in 1977. In 2003, they moved to New Mexico. They have two children, Adam and Amanda Webber.

References

External links

• “Alan Webber joins race for New Mexico governor.” Santa Fe New Mexican, October 28, 2013
• campaign website
• November 2013 interview {48:29} on Insight New Mexico