John Alexander, who served ten years as president of the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL) in Greensboro before his retirement in March, has been named the Isabella Cannon Distinguished Visiting Professor of Leadership at Elon University. Details...
“We are extremely pleased that John Alexander has accepted theuniversity’s invitation to serve as the Isabella Cannon DistinguishedVisiting Professor of Leadership,” said Leary Davis, dean of ElonUniversity School of Law. “John is uniquely positioned to help usadvance a distinctive approach to legal education through his work inleadership development. He will be an outstanding resource for ouradministrators, faculty and students.”
Alexander led a period of unprecedented growth at CCL during histenure as president from 1997 to 2007. CCL increased its annualoperating revenues by more than 55 percent to $79 million in 2006. Thecenter also significantly expanded its operations in Europe and Asia,where it opened a campus in Singapore in 2003. CCL also expanded itscustomized programs and strengthened its focus on organizationalleadership development.
The Center for Creative Leadership has been ranked three times asthe world’s leading provider of leadership education in BusinessWeek’sbiennial executive education survey. In 2006, Financial Times rated CCLamong the world’s top 5 providers of executive education.
Alexander has published widely and been quoted frequently in themedia on topics related to leadership, executive development andgovernance. He is co-author of recent book chapters on executivecoaching, leadership development in Asia and integrity and leadership.He has been a speaker and panelist at numerous conferences, includingthe World Economic Forum.
Alexander joined CCL in 1990 as assistant vice president and waslater named vice president for communications, media relations andfundraising. He previously spent 18 years as an award-winningjournalist at Time magazine and newspapers in Charlotte and Greensboro.
Alexander will be the fifth Isabella Cannon Distinguished VisitingProfessor of Leadership, which is funded by the estate of the lateIsabella Cannon, a 1924 alumnus and former mayor of Raleigh, N.C. Thevisiting professor teaches leadership classes and works directly withstudents in the Isabella Cannon Leadership Program. Former presidentialadviser and journalist David Gergen was the first visiting professor inJanuary 2004 and former EPA administrator Christine Todd Whitman servedas the second visiting professor in March 2005. Ben Bradlee, vicepresident and executive editor of The Washington Post during theWatergate scandal, was the third visiting professor in February 2006.Most recently, Bill George, former CEO and chairman of Medtronic, Inc.,served as the fourth visiting professor in March 2007.