Remembering Joe Rich
A good listener. Kind. Humble. Brilliant. Dry witted.
That's how many describe Joe Rich.
The 2008-2009 Workplace Colloquium Series is dedicated to the memory of the ILR graduate. Chairman of Pearl Meyer & Partners, a Boston-based compensation consulting practice, Rich was known throughout his industry and ILR as a successful leader, a thoughtful friend, and a gifted listener.
"He connected with people. Joe had a lifetime love of learning and was always interested in hearing what others had to say about almost any topic.," said Beth Florin, Rich's wife and business partner. "He enjoyed participating in the Workplace Colloquium series as the topics covered are both diverse and interesting." Rich died Dec. 28, 2007, at age 49.
The Joseph R. Rich Lectures continue Dec. 11 at the Cornell Club in Manhattan. "Crafting & Implementing: A New Labor Policy" will be presented by Harry Katz, ILR's Kenneth F. Kahn Dean and Jack Sheinkman Professsor of Collective Bargaining, and Thomas Kochan, professor of management at MIT's Sloan School.
Florin, who met Rich when they were completing masters' degrees at ILR, said her husband's "genuine interest in others" set him apart.
"Everyone said the same thing … he was a very genuine and empathetic person in a very low-key, quiet way. He would always listen. He really did value other people’s perspectives," Florin said in an interview this month.
Rich's love for Florin and their children, Alex and Zoe, was another defining element of his personality. "Nothing in the world," wrote a contributor to his memory book, "was more important than his family."
In the lecture series named for Rich and sponsored by ILR's Institute for Workplace Studies, diverse social issues are examined. Topics include "The Working Poor in Today's Globalized World," Jan. 29; "Tuition Rising: Can the Cost of Higher Education be Contained?" Feb. 12; "The Future of U.S. Health Care," April 23, and "Social Commitments in a Depersonalized World," May 14. "Illegal Immigration: a Problem for the U.S.?" was held in October. Details about the series are available at www.ilr.cornell.edu/iws.
Rich gave in many ways to ILR, from which he received an undergraduate degree in 1980 and a graduate degree in 1986. He served on the ILR Alumni Association Board of Directors and on the ILR Dean’s Advisory Council. He spoke in classes to students. He and Florin established an endowment at the ILR School.
"He loved Cornell," Florin said. "He felt Cornell had given him the foundation for his future success and he wanted to contribute to the school, the faculty, and the students. Whenever there was a need, he was ready to step up," she said.
Still, friends say, Rich didn't take himself too seriously, as evidenced by his trademark closing: "That's my story and I'm stickin' to it."