Whisler, Thomas L. 1920–2006

(Thomas Lee Whisler)

OBITUARY NOTICE—See index for CA sketch: Born February 12, 1920, in Dayton, OH; died of congestive heart failure, February 6, 2006, in Highland Park, IL. Educator and author. A retired professor at the University of Chicago's Graduate School of Business, Whisler was known for his foresight in examining issues such as the effects of computers on business and the problems of corporate governance. Also a talented musician who played guitar, banjo, piano, and the clarinet, he earned a B.S. from Miami University of Ohio in 1941. He then attended graduate school at the University of Chicago, completing an M.B.A. in 1947 and a Ph.D. in 1953. His first five years in academia were spent teaching at the University of Missouri. Joining the University of Chicago faculty in 1953, he stayed there for the rest of his career. Whisler became a professor of industrial relations in 1963 and a professor of business policy in 1975. As a business scholar, Whisler was interested in many different areas, including the governance of corporations and nonprofit organizations and how performance-appraisal systems were employed in businesses. He was best known, however, for addressing the issues of computerization in the business place as far back as the 1960s. On this topic, he coedited the book Management Organization and the Computer (1960) and was the author of The Impact of Computers on Organizations (1970) and Information Technology and Organizational Change (1970). Among his other publications was Rules of the Game: Inside the Corporate Boardroom (1983).

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PERIODICALS

Chicago Tribune, February 10, 2006, section 3, p. 7.