John Hector McArthur (March 31, 1934 – August 20, 2019) was a Canadian-American organizational theorist. He served as Professor of Business Administration and the 7th Dean of the

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate school, graduate business school of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university. Located in Allston, Massachusetts, HBS owns Harvard Business Publishing, which p ...

(1980–1995).

Personal life

McArthur was born on March 31, 1934 in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, McArthur grew up in nearby

Burnaby, British Columbia Burnaby is a city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada. Located in the centre of the Burrard Peninsula, it neighbours the City of Vancouver to the west, the District of North Vancouver across the confluence of the Burrard ...

. His father was a government grain inspector and his mother was a nurse. He graduated from Burnaby South High School, attended the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

and earned a

Bachelor of Commerce A Bachelor of Commerce (BCom or B Com) is an undergraduate degree in commerce, accounting, mathematics, economics, and management-related subjects. The degree is mainly offered in Commonwealth nations. Structure Bachelor of Commerce The Bac ...

degree in

Forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests and woodlands for associated resources for human and Natural environment, environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and ...

in 1957. He earned MBA and doctorate (DBA) degrees from the Harvard Business School in 1959 and 1963, respectively. McArthur died on August 20, 2019, at the age of 85.

Professional career

McArthur started his academic career as faculty member of the Harvard Business School in 1962. In 1973 he became Professor of Financial Management, and in 1980 Professor of Business Administration. From 1980 through 1995 he served as seventh dean of the

. During his tenure, the Business School fundamentally redesigned its programs and campus which were highlighted in a ''

Business Week ''Bloomberg Businessweek'', previously known as ''BusinessWeek'' (and before that ''Business Week'' and ''The Business Week''), is an American monthly business magazine published 12 times a year. The magazine debuted in New York City in Septembe ...

'' cover story and ''

The Harvard Crimson ''The Harvard Crimson'' is the student newspaper at Harvard University, an Ivy League university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. The newspaper was founded in 1873, and is run entirely by Harvard College undergraduate students. His ...

''. According to a review of Thomas K. McCraw, Jeffrey L. Cruikshank's book ''The Intellectual Venture Capitalist: John H. McArthur and the Work of the Harvard Business School, 1980-1995'', McArthur's trademark was "his commitment to creating a collaborative community.". From 1995 to 2005 McArthur was also Senior Advisor to the President of The

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and Grant (money), grants to the governments of Least developed countries, low- and Developing country, middle-income countries for the purposes of economic development ...

. McArthur also served as the founding Co-Chair of

Partners HealthCare Mass General Brigham (MGB) (formerly Partners HealthCare) is a not-for-profit, integrated health care system that engages in medical research, teaching, and patient care. It is the largest hospital-based research enterprise in the United States, ...

after his successful effort to unite two prominent Harvard University Teaching Hospitals: Brigham and Women's and

Massachusetts General Hospital Massachusetts General Hospital (Mass General or MGH) is a teaching hospital located in the West End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. It is the original and largest clinical education and research facility of Harvard Medical School/Harvar ...

. McArthur had previously served as Chair of the Board for the Brigham and Women's Hospital. He had served on numerous boards and as Chair of the

Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada The Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada (APF Canada), created by an Act of Parliament in 1984, is an independent, not-for-profit think-tank on Canada's relations with Asia. Based in Vancouver, with a secondary office in Toronto, APF Canada funct ...

, based in

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

. He also served as a key member on the Canadian Advisory Board for the Harvard Business School since it was founded in the early 1990s.John H. McArthur Harvard Business School biography
, accessed April 24, 2011 McArthur was Co-Chair of the Venly Institute.John McArthur Venly biography
accessed May 27, 2016

Recognition and awards

In 2015, McArthur was named Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

" r his accomplishments as a leader in business education and for his ongoing engagement as an advisor in Canada’s public and private sectors". In 2016, he received The Harvard Medal for distinguished service to the university.Former HBS Dean John McArthur to Receive Harvard Medal
accessed May 27, 2016 Th
John H. McArthur Canadian Fellowship
was established in 1998 at the

. The Fellowship is named in honor of the former dean, who is a British Columbia native, and is funded by the generous support of Canadian alumni.

Publications

Books: * 1969. ''Industrial Planning in France''. With Bruce R. Scott. Boston: Harvard Business School, Division of Research,

References

External links

John H. McArthur, George Fisher Baker Professor of Administration, Emeritus
{{DEFAULTSORT:McArthur, John H. American business theorists Business school deans People from Burnaby Writers from Vancouver Harvard Business School alumni Harvard Business School faculty University of British Columbia alumni 1934 births 2019 deaths Weston, Massachusetts Canadian emigrants to the United States Canadian business theorists Officers of the Order of Canada American university and college faculty deans Canadian university and college faculty deans