As the current President of the
AIB, I inform you with a heavy heart of the passing of JACK
BEHRMAN on August 19, 2016 at the age of 94. Professor
Behrman was one of the original twelve founders of the
Academy of International Business in 1958, and the last
surviving founder.
Among many books he had published
in his life time, the most influential one that carved out his
presence in academia and public policy field is Jack Behrman (1970), National Interests and
the Multinational Enterprise, Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. In my mind, it remains an
IB classic that has stood the test of time to date. Although many of us are
too young to know his work, this book is worth reading as
there is so much to learn from his insights into MNE codes of
conduct, role of governments and supranational institutions,
and economic development.
Jack Behrman was one of those
rare IB birds who combined major public and private services
although he was also a first-rate international economics
scholar. He served as the fourth AIB President in 1967-1968
but was particularly famous for having served as Assistant
Secretary of Commerce for Domestic and International Business
under President John F. Kennedy, and he was rumored to have
resigned his post in protest to an ill-conceived
international-trade restriction initiated by the President.
He took service very seriously
since he initiated the Executive Service Corps – which
provided volunteers from among retired business executives to
advise private entrepreneurs in developing countries, the MBA
Enterprise Corps whose MBA graduates from the top 50 graduate
business schools advised former state enterprises in Central
Europe and other developing parts of the world, and the Fund
for Multinational Management Education. With John
Fayerweather, Richard Robinson and John Dunning, among others,
he belonged to an age of dedicated servants to economy,
society and education.
The attached obituary, below, will give you more information
about this good man – informed, curious, concerned and not
afraid to fight for good causes.
Masaaki Kotabe
The President of the AIB
***
Obituary – Dr. Jack Newton Behrman of Chapel
Hill
Dr. Jack N. Behrman was born March 5, 1922 in
Waco, Texas, son of Marguerite and Mayes Behrman. Behrman was married over
70 years to the love of his life, Louise Sims (dec). Together,
they shared an amazing life journey and created a loving,
contributing family. Jack Behrman was father of four children:
Doug, Gayle (dec.), Paul (dec.), and Andrea; grand-father of
Kyle Jaster, Emma Jaster, Wyatt Jaster, Brett Behrman, Todd
Behrman, Madi Bateman, and Callie Bateman Bradshaw, and
great-grandfather of Ellis Pearson, Owen Bradshaw, and Nash
Bradshaw. He passed away at 94 years of age on August 19, 2016
at Carol Woods Retirement Community in Chapel Hill, N.C. He
was preceded in death by his siblings: Mayes, Paul, and
Barbara.
Dr. Behrman served the UNC Business School
over 27 years as Professor of International Business, Director
of the MBA Program, Associate Dean of the Faculty, and Luther
Hodges Distinguished Professor of Ethics.
After graduation from Davidson College in
1943 with Honors in Economics, he received an MA in Economics
from UNC and an MA and PhD from Princeton; later an honorary
LLD from Davidson. He taught at Davidson, Princeton,
Washington and Lee, George Washington, and the University of
Delaware. Prior to joining UNC, he served as Assistant
Secretary for Domestic and International Business in the U.S.
Department of Commerce under Secretary Luther Hodges in the
Kennedy and Johnson Administrations; his portfolio included
international trade and investment policies and programs and
preparation for wartime mobilization of the economy.
After returning to academia in 1964, he
continued as an advisor to the Departments of State, Commerce,
and Treasury, the National Academy of Science, and National
Academy of Engineering --- and in New York to the United
Nations, Committee for Economic Development, American
Management Association, Council on Foreign Relations, Council
of the Americas, and the Fund for Multinational Management
Education.
He was a pioneer in the fields of comparative
management, foreign licensing of technology, international
business and government relations, and the role of
multinational enterprises – subjects on which he published
over 40 books and monographs and more than 150 professional
articles, including two books on the role of ethics in
business and the professions. While in the government, he
initiated and helped form the International Executive Service
Corps, which provided volunteers from among retired executives
to advise private enterprises in developing countries. In
1990, he initiated the formation of the MBA Enterprise Corps,
supported by the U.S. Agency for International Development and
private corporations and foundations; it sent volunteers from
MBA Programs of a Consortium of the top 50 graduate business
schools to formerly state-owned enterprises in Central Europe,
Southeast Asia, Central Asia, Latin America, and Africa for
tours of a year or more. He remained its Chairman and CEO for
15 years.
Dr. Behrman’s career in international
economics and business began in 1945 with a position in the
International Labor Office in Montreal, Canada, working on
post-World War II plans for a new international economic
order, preparing full employment policies. He was continually
involved in that prospect over his lifetime, interviewing and
speaking to numerous groups of executives and government
officials in 70 countries on the relations between
international business and governments, changes in the world
economy, and foreign economic policies of the U.S. and other
governments. His bio is included in Who’s Who in America,
Who’s Who in Finance and Industry, Who’s Who in
Science and Engineering, and Who’s Who in the World.
He was a co-founder of the Academy of
International Business, later its President and member of its
Fellows. He was also a member of the Board of Directors of
several corporate enterprises and non-government
organizations.
His service included leadership roles in the
Boy Scouts of America, membership on the Board of Directors of
the Ethics Resource Center (Washington); Walco National Co.
(NY); Troxler Electronics (Raleigh); Elder of the University
Presbyterian Church; co-General Partner of the West Franklin
Preservation Partners (Chapel Hill); and directorships in
several other North Carolina organizations, including the NC
World Trade Association, the NC/Japan Center, the District
Export Council, and the Research Triangle World Trade Center.
Whether you knew him as ‘Dr. Behrman’,
‘Jack’, ‘Dad’, ‘Pops’, ‘Grand-Dad’, or ‘Poppee’, we were all
truly fortunate to have this man of great character and ideas
in our lives. He was mentor, friend, and inspiration to all.
There will be a private family burial in Chapel Hill. Donations in memory of Dr. Behrman may be made to The Davidson Trust, P.O Box 7170, Davidson College, Davidson, N.C. 28035.
-- Masaaki "Mike" Kotabe The Washburn Chair Professor of International Business and Marketing President, Academy of International Business; Editor, Journal of International Management Temple University The Fox School of Business 1801 Liacouras Walk 559 Alter Hall (006-14) Philadelphia, PA 19122-6083 U.S.A. Ph. 215-204-7704 Fax. 215-204-8029