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Ichak AdizesAmerican and Macedonian writer
Date of Birth: 22.10.1937
Country:  Israel |
Content:
- Isaac Adizes: A Visionary Leader in Organizational Change
- Holocaust Survival and Spanish Citizenship
- Education and Military Service
- Academic and Business Ventures
- Global Impact as a Management Consultant
- Academic Career and Publications
- Recognition and Legacy
Isaac Adizes: A Visionary Leader in Organizational Change
Early Life and Family HistoryIsaac Calderon Adizes, born on October 22, 1937, is an American and Macedonian writer and business expert renowned for his transformative leadership in organizational change and government efficiency. His Sephardic family, descendants of Jews expelled from Spain during the Inquisition in 1492, settled in Verona, Italy, adopting the surname "Adizes" after the local river Adige. In the early 16th century, they relocated to Macedonia.
Holocaust Survival and Spanish Citizenship
In March 1943, the Jewish community in Macedonia, including the Adizes family, was sent to concentration camps and later almost entirely exterminated in Treblinka. The Adizes were among only twelve families who survived thanks to the efforts of the Spanish consul, who recognized their ancestry and facilitated Spanish citizenship. As Spain allied with Nazi Germany, the Adizes were released from the camp.
Education and Military Service
Adizes served as a sergeant and instructor in the Israel Defense Forces from 1959 to 1961. After his service, he worked for the Research Department of the Bank of Israel and later earned a bachelor's degree in economics and political science from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 1963. He went on to obtain a master's degree from Columbia University in the United States in 1967.
Academic and Business Ventures
From 1965 to 1967, Adizes worked at Columbia University and pursued music professionally. In 1967, he founded a consulting business, and in 1968, he received his Ph.D. from Columbia University.
Global Impact as a Management Consultant
For over 35 years, Dr. Adizes has advised numerous global businesses and served as a political consultant to leaders of countries such as Israel, Sweden, Greece, Brazil, Ghana, Iceland, Mexico, and Macedonia. He is the founder and CEO of the Adizes Institute, a change management organization with branches in the United States and 14 other countries.
Academic Career and Publications
Adizes has been a resident faculty member at the UCLA Anderson School of Management for over thirty years and a visiting professor at Stanford and Columbia Universities, as well as the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv University. He is the author of seven books translated into 22 languages. His book "Corporate Lifecycles: How Organizations Grow and Die and What to Do About It" is considered a classic in management theory and was chosen as one of the 10 best business books by "Library Journal."
Recognition and Legacy
Adizes is ranked 28th in "Executive Excellence's" 2008-2009 "Top 100 Thought Leaders in Trustworthy Leadership." He is renowned for his theory of organizational lifecycles and his approach to leadership typology. According to Adizes, there is no such thing as a perfect leader, a "super-boss" who can do everything. This is because such an "ideal" person would need to possess qualities that are, in Adizes's view, mutually exclusive.
