Passings: Donald W. Griesinger, Innovative Management Professor
Donald W. Griesinger, a professor of management at the Peter F. Drucker and Masatoshi Ito School of Management from 1982 to 1999, passed away on September 2. He was 92.
Griesinger’s research and teaching were in the areas of organizational behavior, organization and management theory, organizational design and development, and management processes. He was chair of the faculty in management from 1983 to 1986 and the director of the Drucker School doctoral program in management. He also served on the faculties of CGU’s psychology and information science programs. In 1985, he was instrumental in securing a competitive $2 million planning grant from IBM that accelerated the creation of the Center for Information Systems and Technology.
Griesinger was a lieutenant in the Navy from 1954 to1958, serving as the electrical division officer aboard the Aircraft Carrier Oriskany. He was selected for the Armed Forces Special Weapons Project, which included nuclear school training, and was subsequently chosen for a doctoral fellowship sponsored by the University of Pittsburgh, Westinghouse Bettis Atomic Power Laboratory, and the Atomic Energy Commission. During this time, he obtained several patents related to improving reactor core fuel burning efficiency. His research was presented directly to the chief scientist of the Navy’s vaunted Nuclear Propulsion Program under Admiral Hyman Rickover. When the Chernobyl nuclear disaster occurred in 1986, he became The Claremont Colleges’ media point person because of his expertise with that generation of nuclear reactors.
After pursuing a PhD in a groundbreaking physics program at UC San Diego, Griesinger took a job with General Electric’s Technical Military Planning Operation in Santa Barbara, where he managed many top-secret defense projects during the Cold War. Several of those projects involved both the physical sciences and the social and behavioral sciences. As a result, he completed his PhD in psychology at UC Santa Barbara. His dissertation, “Force and Energy in Psychology,” applies the Schrödinger equation, which is fundamental to quantum-mechanics, to the behavior of people in groups. A copy is available at the Honnold/Mudd Library.
Upon completion of his graduate studies, he was recruited by Union College in Schenectady, New York, to lead an innovative interdisciplinary doctoral degree program that applied systems methods from the physical sciences to social science questions.
Griesinger’s interdisciplinary academic journey made him an excellent fit for the Drucker School. His was a journey that moved from elementary particles to game theory to behavioral science to organizational theory to management. At CGU, he worked closely with his colleagues and influenced many ambitious and accomplished students to become better leaders and people.
In retirement, he spent his summers in Mammoth Lakes writing, hiking, and honing his photography skills, always looking for the perfect shot. His last scholarly publication was The Theology of Work and the Work of Christian Scholars.
He is survived by his wife, Emily Griesinger; his former spouse and mother of his children, Judith Griesinger; his daughter, Kathryn Joy Griesinger (husband Lino); his son, John Griesinger (wife Susan); and his grandson, Jaewon Griesinger.
A memorial service will be held at Glenkirk Presbyterian Church in Glendora on Saturday, September 21, at 10:00 am.