Charles R. Conn
Charles R. Conn | |
---|---|
Warden of Rhodes House, Oxford | |
Assumed office 2013 | |
Preceded by | Andrew Graham |
Senior Advisor to the Gordon & Betty Moore Foundation | |
In office 2001–2013 | |
CEO & Chairman, Ticketmaster Online-Citysearch | |
In office 1998–2001 | |
Co-Founder & CEO, Citysearch | |
In office 1995–1998 | |
Personal details | |
Born | 22 August 1961 |
Charles R. Conn (born 22 August 1961) is Warden of Rhodes House, Oxford,[1] the global CEO of the Rhodes Trust and the Rhodes Scholarships. His career has also spanned time in Silicon Valley as a technology entrepreneur and working as an environmental foundation manager and grantmaker. He sits on the boards or advisory committees of Patagonia, the Arcadia Foundation, the Oxford Internet Institute [2] and the Atlantic Salmon Foundation.
Biography
Conn studied at Boston University's University Professors Program before reading Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Balliol College, Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar from Massachusetts. Conn worked at the Boston Consulting Group, gained an MBA at Harvard Business School and was a Partner at McKinsey & Company, where he focused on growth strategies and energy.[3] He was a co-author of 'Staircases to growth' in McKinsey Quarterly [4] and 'Revolution in Upstream Oil & Gas' in the same publication.[5] He co-founded Citysearch in 1995,[6] and in 1997 the California Software Industry Council named him Entrepreneur of the Year.[7] Conn oversaw the merger with Ticketmaster, acquisition of Match.com and the company’s public share offering. He became Chairman of Ticketmaster Online-Citysearch in 2001.[8]
Conn subsequently worked for more than a decade as Senior Advisor to the Gordon & Betty Moore Foundation where his conservation projects included the preservation of wild salmon ecosystems[9] and the Palmyra Atoll research station. He published articles on conservation and conservation biology,[10] including in the 25th anniversary edition (December 2011) of the journal Conservation Biology, and on the advantages of Foundations adopting a long-term perspective.[11]
He is a Henry Crown Fellow of the Aspen Institute.[12] Mr Conn also sits on several company and non-profit boards or advisory committees, including Patagonia, the Arcadia Foundation, and the Atlantic Salmon Foundation. He acts as an adviser and investor in start-up technology companies that focus on clean energy solutions and related areas.
Conn became Warden of Rhodes House in June 2013.[13] He is the second Rhodes Scholar, the first American and first former McKinsey & Company consultant to hold this position, and the first Warden of Rhodes House not to have served on the University of Oxford faculty.[14]
Since moving to Oxford, Mr Conn has become an Advisory Board Member of the Oxford Internet Institute.[15] In January 2014, he became a Professorial Fellow of Balliol College, Oxford University.[16]
In September 2013, as part of the 110th anniversary celebrations of the Rhodes Scholarships, the Rhodes Trust announced a donation of £75 million from John McCall MacBain and Marcy McCall MacBain and the McCall MacBain Foundation to support the Scholarships. Mr. McCall MacBain, a Canadian Rhodes Scholar from 1980, had served as a Rhodes Trustee from 2010,[17] and as Chair of the Rhodes 110th anniversary celebrations.[18] Mr. McCall MacBain was named "Second Century Founder" of the Rhodes Scholarships in recognition of this culminating gift.[19]
Personal life
Conn was married to Beverley Robertson.[20] With Ms. Robertson, he has three children named Alexander, Cameron and Hannah.
His partner is Ms. Camilla Borg,[21] who is a member of the staff of Rhodes House as Director of Special Projects.[22]
List of Wardens of Rhodes House, Oxford
- Sir Francis Wylie 1903–1931
- Professor Sir Carleton Allen 1931–1952
- Brigadier Sir Edgar Williams 1952–1980
- Dr Robin Fletcher 1980–1989
- Sir Anthony Kenny 1989–1999
- Dr John Rowett 1999–2004
- Sir Colin Lucas 2004–2009
- Professor Don Markwell 2009–2012
- Dr Andrew Graham Acting Warden 2012-2013
- Charles R. Conn 2013–Present
References
- ↑ E. Anthony Abrahams (1940-2011). "The Rhodes Scholarships". Rhodeshouse.ox.ac.uk. Retrieved 2013-10-23.
- ↑ Advisory Board Member. "Oxford Internet Institute - People - Mr Charles Conn". Oii.ox.ac.uk. Retrieved 2014-02-23.
- ↑ The Strategy Process: Concepts, Contexts, Cases - Google Books. Books.google.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-02-23.
- ↑ "Staircases to growth | McKinsey & Company". Mckinsey.com. 2013-11-04. Retrieved 2014-02-23.
- ↑ McKinsey & Company "Revolution in Upstream Oil & Gas" Check
|url=
value (help). Mckinsey.com. Retrieved 2014-03-31. - ↑ Charles Conn III (2000-05-10). "Charles Conn: Executive Profile & Biography - Businessweek". Investing.businessweek.com. Retrieved 2014-02-23.
- ↑ Charles Conn III (2000-05-10). "Charles Conn: Executive Profile & Biography - Businessweek". Investing.businessweek.com. Retrieved 2013-10-23.
- ↑ "Ticketmaster Names Conn as Chairman - Los Angeles Times". Articles.latimes.com. 2000-05-11. Retrieved 2013-10-23.
- ↑ "Conservation biology through the lens of a career in salmon conservation". Moore.org. 2011-11-09. Retrieved 2014-02-23.
- ↑ Conn, Charles (2011-11-09). "Conservation Biology through the Lens of a Career in Salmon Conservation - CONN - 2011 - Conservation Biology - Wiley Online Library". Conservation Biology. Onlinelibrary.wiley.com. 25 (6): 1075–9. doi:10.1111/j.1523-1739.2011.01762.x. PMID 22070254.
- ↑ Charles Conn. "Robbing the Grandchildren : Center for Social Innovation (CSI)". Csi.gsb.stanford.edu. Retrieved 2013-10-23.
- ↑ "2001 High Five Class". The Aspen Institute. Retrieved 2013-10-23.
- ↑ "Charles Conn starts as Warden and Andrew Graham becomes Rhodes Trustee - The Rhodes Scholarships". Rhodeshouse.ox.ac.uk. 2013-06-24. Retrieved 2013-10-23.
- ↑ "The Warden of Rhodes House". The Rhodes Scholarships.
- ↑ "Mr Charles Conn". Oxford Internet Institute.
- ↑ "Charles Conn". ox.ac.uk.
- ↑ "The Rhodes Trust and Trustees". The Rhodes Scholarships.
- ↑ "Gift of $117 million announced for famous Rhodes Scholar program at Oxford". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2014-02-23.
- ↑ "Second Century Founder". The Rhodes Scholarships.
- ↑ "Caltech 1983". misosoup.com.
- ↑ "Charles Conn starts as Warden and Andrew Graham becomes Rhodes Trustee". The Rhodes Scholarships.
- ↑ "Staff of Rhodes House". The Rhodes Scholarships.