Harvey B. Mackay

Outstanding Achievement Award Recipient

Alumni Association, October 2, 2008

Harvey B. Mackay, founder and CEO of Mackay Envelope Company, received a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Minnesota in 1954 and is a 1968 graduate of the Stanford Business School Advanced Management Program. He is the author of six best-selling business books, including Swim with Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive, which was on the New York Times #1 Bestseller List for 54 weeks. In 1988, it was named the Number One Business Book in America. He is a nationally syndicated columnist for United Feature Syndicate with weekly articles appearing in 52 newspapers around the country. He was selected by Toastmasters International as one of the top five speakers in the world. He has been a guest lecturer at Harvard, Stanford, Michigan, Cornell, Wharton, Penn State and the University of Minnesota. His volunteer contributions to the University of Minnesota and the community are described as "enormous." He was a board member and officer of the UMAA and served as national president in 1986-87. He co-chaired "Save Gopher Sports" in 2002 and serves on the Carlson School's Board of Overseers. He is the past president of the Greater Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce, the Young President's Organization, the Twin Cities Communications Council, the Guthrie Theatre Season Ticket Drive, the American Cancer Society, and the Minnesota Trade Delegation to the People's Republic of China, to name a few. He is the recipient of several honors and recognitions including, the Ellis Island Medal of Honors, the Horatio Alger Award in the Supreme Court Chambers, and the Minnesota Entrepreneur of the Year Award.

Biographies are as-of time of award presentation.