Barry R. Elson
C Suite Executive
Loving Father
Cancer Survivor
Proud VN Era Veteran
Atlanta, GA
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Barry Elson, born in Newark, New Jersey, grew up in Cedar Grove with his Brother, Lee and his parents Lois and Russell Elson, just 15 minutes west of New York City. A precocious young athlete (leading hitter in Little League), Barry had the honor of going to Yankee Stadium and meeting rookie Micky Mantle and Boston Red Sox star, Ted Williams, in the early 1950s.
Barry attended Bloomfield High School where he was an All-State Baseball and Basketball player and the youngest member of the Bengals’ famous 64 straight-game winning team.
Barry now lives in Atlanta, Georgia with his wife Karen, rescue dogs Cash and Max, and two wonderful children: Blake, who recently graduated Summa Cum Laude from Southern Methodist University, and Sabrina, a multi-talented junior at the University of Pennsylvania. Barry’s older children Kristen, Dean and Craig, are all married, very successful, and have produced six terrific grandchildren scattered between Colorado and California.
In earlier days, Barry collected fine wine, antique maps, and Persian carpets. Today, he serves as a mentor and advocate to cancer patients with varying types of cancer all over the country (91 and counting). Barry enjoys working on his landscaping, continues to travel and enjoy fine dining, and continues to build his extensive network of friends and family.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Acting CEO/ Director 2006-2007
Bally Total Fitness Holding Corp. - Chicago, IL
Barry moved to wind down Bally Fitness' contract mode, reduced bad debt, reduced 'churn' ,implemented new pricing and benefits, emphasized customer care, identified analytically unprofitable clubs, and led Wall Street 's quarterly analyst calls. Unfortunately, the restructuring effort was ultimately unsuccessful and the almost 400 clubs were sold to several entities .
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Acting CEO, Director, Chairman
2003-2006
TELEWEST GLOBAL - London,UK
Barry was brought in during UK's longest restructuring/refinancing process by 5 major fund shareholders. He turned around the UK $2.6B video, voice, high speed data, and content business in 22 months. He improved margins, EBITDA, customer penetration, and free cash in a competitive market and then merged Telewest
with the UK's other large communications firms creating $2.8B in increased shareholder value.
Consultant
2001-2003
PILOT ASSOCIATES - Atlanta, GA
Consultant for Wall Street firms Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley.
Chief Operating Officer
2000-2001
URBAN MEDIA - Atlanta, GA / Palo Alto, CA
12 month Silicon Valley VC backed CLEC with a facilities-based network in 10 cities when the VCs pulled the plug.
Executive Vice President
President, Conectiv Enterprises
1997 - 2000
CONECTIV - Wilmington, DE
P&L for growing five start-up businesses for this deregulating $4.4B new style energy company as well as running the traditional electric and gas markets as well. Barry created new marketing category concept, "Vital Services," to add coherency and visibility to startups and oversaw the creation of two related web-based businesses. He was a member of a three-person investment committee, evaluating investments in high tech start-ups through Entertech - Safeguard Scientific venture fund.
Executive Vice President - Operations
Cox Communications 1983 - 1997
COX ENTERPRISES / COX COMMUNICATIONS INC. - Atlanta, GA
Barry was promoted three times as his P&L responsibility grew to encompass the entire privately owned communications company. He increased cash flow and operating income for 11 straight years as he created awarded-winning "best in industry" field management teams in an initial turnaround situation. He crafted the industry's best customer care record in the burgeoning video, voice, and high speed data industry. In 1992 Elson set forth what is likely the first broadly articulated vision for the future of the cable television industry when he wrote to all his General Managers and said : " all our efforts should be directed toward moving us toward
entertainment, information and communication services anywhere, anytime"
Vice President - Corporate Development
1980 - 1983
UNITED CABLE - Denver, CO
(now United Artists/TCI/AT&T/Comcast)
Barry added $1B in new equity value to this then 29-year-old classic cable television firm in only 24 months. He was responsible for new market/new business development and licensed the first true interactive video system. His franchising teams won 16 of 31 very competitive, high pressure political franchise battles to win the rights to wire-up Americas cities and towns thus increasing homes passed and later subscribers.
Founder, Consultant
1978 - 1980
ELSON ASSOCIATES - Denver, CO
Barry founded this management consulting firm specializing in marketing, strategic planning, and mergers and acquisitions. National clients included Johnson Wax, Hill & Knowlton, Six Flags, and a very experienced west coast private investor group.
Executive Vice President
Chief Operating Officer
1977 - 1978
COLORADO ROCKIES - Denver, CO
Responsible for turning around this recently moved NHL franchise; increased revenues by 51% with new major season ticket sales program coupled with aggressive game promotions.
Vice President
1977 - 1978
NEW YORK ISLANDERS / NEW YORK NETS - Carle Place, NY
Barry increased box office receipts for the newly merged NBA team the N.Y. Nets, introduced market research and other professional management techniques to a previously undisciplined environment.
Vice President
1973 - 1978
THE COMMONWEALTH GROUP - Stamford, CT
Barry was part of a team restructuring the $1.5B women's fashion business in the early 1970s at J.C. Penny over a three-year period for this new style, "hands on" management consulting firm; he personally wrote the first JCP women's fashion marketing plan. He revamped the approach to athletic footwear market that integrated production and marketing for division of Uniroyal; identified new factoring market and strategy for Citibank division, and developed an integrated marketing-production interface for X-Acto hobby division of CBS. Barry also altered the total business approach for the business equipment division of SCM, including generating over two dozen profit improvement programs saving $2.2MM.
General Manager
1968 - 1973
OWENS-CORNING FIBERGLAS - Toledo, OH
Barry ran the company's most profitable, although small at $8M, business in reinforced plastics for the Aerospace & Defense Division as the youngest General Manager for this $4B industry leader. Notably, he researched, did the financial projections, worked with laboratory scientists, and brought to the world market the first ever glass fiber optics - selling the first feet to General Motors in 1971 for use in the Cadillac car. As a newly minted MBA, he helped create a new sophisticated variable corporate cost accounting system with McKinsey & Co., installed the company's first strategic planning system from S.R.I, and led negotiating teams that landed series of very profitable $1MM+ aerospace and defense contracts.
EDUCATION
Cornell University
1966 - 1968
MBA
Graduated 6th in class "with distinction" from Johnson Graduate School at Cornell University where he co-developed a management simulation game, "Workshop," for the government's VRA to train the directors of sheltered workshops.
Dartmouth College
1959 - 1963
BA Degree
Graduated Cum Laude in the top 10% of his class, was an unprecedented leader of 5 major campus organizations: Basketball Captain, Phi Delta Alpha President, Inter-fraternity Council President, Sphinx Senior Honorary Society Leader, and Army ROTC Cadet Colonel. He was also a member of the Green Key society and Paleopitus (the all college governing body).
Bloomfield High School
1955 - 1959
Diploma
Only player on his Bloomfield, NJ high school basketball team to play all 3 years (before freshman could play) and in 64 straight winning games, still a New Jersey public school record to this day. He was elected to Bloomfield HS Hall of Fame in 1989 as the only athlete from hometown Cedar Grove, NJ to be so honored.
Army War College
1989
Rising field grade officers interact with senior level civilians in special interactive program to achieve more cooperation in approaching the nation's joint problems.
HEALTHCARE
GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES
DIRECTOR & BOARD MEMBER, 2021
One of the largest agencies in Georgia state government, with a budget of $1.8 billion and 9,000 employees. Delivers a very wide range of human services, all designed to make Georgia families stronger.
C-SPAN, CABLE INDUSTRY NON-PARTISAN
PUBLIC AFFAIRS PROGRAMMING
BOARD MEMBER, 1986/1987
COX COMMUNICATIONS & TIME WARNER CABLE JOINT VENTURE
BOARD MEMBER, late 1980s
Co-venture to build and manage what turned out to be one of the most profitable cable systems before its build out was completed. Located in Staten Island, New York.
telwest global, a large private equity owned restructuring in the uk
acting CEO & director, early 2000s
Broad-base telecommunications company
encompassing video, voice, data, and several entertainment content cable channels in the United Kingdom. A the time, this was the largest and longest restructuring in UK business history, with major investment firms.
Bally total fitness
acting CEO & director, mid 2000s
Brought in to help restructure the largest fitness club company in the country, which had significant financial troubles for several years. With multiple equity and debit owners, the restructuring was ultimately unsuccessful, and the clubs were sold off over time to various new owners.
Barry is a two-time head & neck cancer survivor.
Through his own experience with cancer three times, Barry devotes much of his time to improving the patient experience both interpersonally and by mentoring over 90 individual patients nation-wide and through his investments in 4 southeastern health care clinics. When he started his 2nd head & neck cancer bout at MDA, famed Duke basketball Coach Mike Krzyzewski, a 56 year friend now from West Point dedicated the Duke-UNC Greensboro game during the 2011-2012 season to Barry
He published prob bono papers on the subject.
He wrote pro-bono papers on how to think about improving the patient experience which were read by senior Doctors and Administrators at M.D. Anderson in Houston, Emory's Winship Cancer Institute in Atlanta, Moore's Cancer Center in San Diego, Scripps Cancer Center in Lajolla, the Jimmy V Cancer Foundation in North Carolina, Memorial Sloan Kettering in NYC, and Duke's Cancer Center and Fuqua business school in North Carolina as well as being presented to the President of the AMA , Dr. Jim Madera
His healthcare support included:
helping to fund four significant cancer research projects : two through Jimmy V Cancer Foundation at Atlanta’s Winship Cancer Institute together with Georgia Tech and at the University of Arizona, both emphasizing bio-marker early detection of head & neck cancer; and two others at M.D. Anderson teasing out the cost / benefits of newer IMPT proton radiation treatment vs the older IMRT therapy and for a research effort identifying more bio-markers in ovarian cancer to increase the accurate detection rate from 80% up to 90%.
MILITARY SERVICE
2nd Lieutenant, USA, Signal Corps in SE Asia very early in the war in 1964-65
Awarded Army Commendation Medal in Southeast Asia for "leadership, initiative, and personal drive"
At West Point: Barry was the assistant to the AD, Plebe Baseball Coach and famed Coach Bob Knight's first Assistant basketball Coach, with the winningest Division I basketball Coach in history, Duke's Mike Krzyzewski, serving as Plebe Captain
OIC of world's first mobile satellite station a Hughes Mark IV X in SEA in 1965
Later stationed at West Point as only 2nd Lt. (later 1st Lt.) on base; currently on Board of JCVA Johns Creek Veterans Asso. which includes the Veteran's Memorial Walk and the largest replica Viet Nam Wall in the country
AWARDS
JIMMY V CANCER FOUNDATION DIRECTORS CLUB AWARD, 2014
Awarded for generous leadership and support for cancer research since 2007.
CABLE TV PIONEER AWARD, 2019
CABLE TELEVISION & MARKETING INDUSTRY'S
"ONE OF A KIND" AWARD, 2014
WOMEN IN CABLE (WIC) PRESIDENT'S AWARD, 1986
Awarded for creation and leadership with colleague Professor Ron Rizzuto of their first Educational Conference.
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