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Phil
Adler |
Known for his incredible memory, Phil Adler has been
able to maintain long-term relationships with many of
the students he taught during his nearly 40-year career
at the College of
Management. Though he retired in 2000, the professor
emeritus of strategic management continues to serve
as a much-valued mentor to many of these alumni.
A group of graduates has returned the favor by completing
a successful fundraising initiative to name the fourth-floor
north wing of the Management building the “Donna
L. and Dr. Philip Adler Jr. Faculty Excellence Wing.”
The space is home to faculty offices, which is only
appropriate, says Mack Reese, the alumnus who led the
fundraising effort.
“His teaching ability and interest in and compassion
for students are something that all Georgia Tech professors
should aspire to,” explains Reese. “He’s
always been available for me after I graduated, and
he continues to be to this day. I’ve gone to him
for advice on ideas and challenges I’ve faced
in my own business. He’s a friend in every respect
of the word.”
Adler, a retired U.S. Air Force Reserve colonel, concurrently
served as clinical associate professor of rehabilitation
medicine at Emory University School of Medicine during
his years at Georgia Tech.
Much sought after for his expertise, Adler served as
an organizational advisor to the White House Press Office
and the Office of Management and Budget during the Carter
Administration. In addition to organizational structure,
his academic specialties include management theory,
personnel management and high-tech program management.
Alumni do not remember Adler fondly because he was
an easy professor, however. As the Hal and John Smith
Chair of Small Business and Entrepreneurship, he taught
by the Socratic Method, constantly putting students
on the spot in class. “If you didn’t come
to his class prepared, you paid for it,” Reese
remembers.
In a 2001 interview, Adler echoed this point, saying,
“They learned or else. You don’t tell the
students the answer. You lead them to it and get them
to develop their ability to think quickly and accurately
under pressure, like the real world.”
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