James R. Barker (businessman)

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James R. Barker
Nationality (legal)American
Alma materColumbia University (BA)
Harvard Business School (MBA)
Occupation(s)Chairman of Interlake Steamship Company and SeaStreak
Known forCo-founder of Temple, Barker & Sloane
CEO of Moore-McCormack

James R. Barker is an American shipping businessman who is the chairman of the Interlake Steamship Company and SeaStreak.[1] He was also a management consultant who co-founded Temple, Barker & Sloane, which formed the global consulting firm Oliver Wyman.[2] He is the namesake of the bulk container MV James R. Barker.[3]

Biography[edit]

Barker grew up spending summers with his uncle, a boat captain in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, and worked on ships doing the Great Lakes trade.[4] Barker graduated from Columbia College in 1957 and became a coast guard officer. He then graduated from Harvard Business School, and worked for Pickands Mather & Co., a raw materials production and shipping company.[4]

Barker later joined Harbridge House, a consulting firm as a transportation scientist. In January 1970, he formed shipping consultancy Temple, Barker & Sloane with Carl Sloane and Peter Temple and was hired by Moore-McCormack to tackle its business problems.[5] In 1971, he became chairman and CEO of Moore-McCormack, becoming then the youngest CEO of a major American corporation at 35 years old.[6][7] In 1973, he led the purchase of the Pickands Mather Group.[8] Barker served in his chief executive role until 1988, when he acquired the company's cargo shipping operations.[9]

He has served as chairman of the Interlake Steamship Company since he acquired the subsidiary from McCormack in 1987.[10][9] He served as a director of Verizon and its predecessor, GTE from 1976 to 2007.[1][11] He was also a former Chairman of the National Maritime Council and a director of the American Bureau of Shipping.[12][13]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Our Team". www.interlake-steamship.com. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  2. ^ Wyman, Oliver. "A history of forward thinking and innovation". www.oliverwyman.com. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  3. ^ "Self-unloading Ore Carrier James R. Barker". Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  4. ^ a b Smith, William D. (1973-09-02). "A Cure for Mooremack - Rubbing Buddha's Belly Seems to Pay Off". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  5. ^ Fisheries, United States Congress House Committee on Merchant Marine and (1971). Hearings.
  6. ^ "Seastreak Commodore - Professional Mariner". 2018-11-05. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  7. ^ "Executive Changes". The New York Times. 1971-03-11. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  8. ^ "Maritime Reporter Magazine January 15, 1973, 22 page". magazines.marinelink.com. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  9. ^ a b "MOOREMACK JUMPS SHIP CHAIRMAN TO BUY OCEAN CARGO OPERATIONS | JOC.com". www.joc.com. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  10. ^ "M o o r e M c C o r m a c k Resources Transfers O w n e r s h i". magazines.marinelink.com. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  11. ^ "Verizon Shareholders Elect Directors, Ratify Auditor and Consider Other Proposals at Annual Meeting". www.verizon.com. 2001-04-25. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  12. ^ "National Maritime Council Elects Barker Chairman". magazines.marinelink.com. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  13. ^ "ABS Elects Eleven New Members —Five New Managers". magazines.marinelink.com. Retrieved 2022-02-05.