Wharton mourns death of long-time prof

Edward Bowman, 73, joined Wharton's faculty as one of the school's first senior professors in 1983. Longtime Management Professor Edward Bowman, a well-known expert in his field, died Wednesday at Bryn Mawr Hospital due to complications following heart surgery in July. He was 73. Bowman, better known as "Ned," was recalled by colleagues as easygoing and well-liked. A professor of corporate management and operations and information management at the Wharton School since 1983, he had served as the school's acting deputy dean for academic affairs from 1989 to 1991. Bowman, one of the first senior professors hired by then-Wharton Dean Russell Palmer, helped to establish and co-direct one of the best research centers in the country, the Reginald H. Jones Center for Management Policy, Strategy and Organization. "Many faculty will remember and view him as a mentor," Wharton Deputy Dean Janice Bellace said. "He really stood out in his willingness to spend time with junior faculty, helping them find their research direction and discussing what they were working on." Bowman had been slated to teach a class this fall, but had remained hospitalized since his surgery. "He had this drive for excellence both personally and for others," Bellace added. "He was the kind of person that you put on every committee, every task force." Susan McMullen, a consultant at the Jones Center, said Bowman "really had a strong sense of service to the school community." "He devoted his life to academics." added McMullen, who worked with Bowman for the past 15 years. Before coming to Penn, Bowman taught for 34 years at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he received his bachelor's degree in 1946. Bowman earned his MBA from Wharton and his doctorate from Ohio State University, where he later served as dean of its College of Business. In 1967, he was awarded an honorary master's degree by Yale University, where he worked as a controller for five years. "The affection and esteem in which Ned is held by so many faculty here is really amazing at a big university," Bellace said. Works of the late professor include the book Redesigning the Firm and numerous journal articles. "He was one of those old fashion men -- a man of great integrity and strong morals," McMullen recalled. Bowman was born in 1925 in Watertown, Mass., and resided in Gladwyne, Pa., at the time of his death. Bowman is survived by his wife of 50 years, Ann, and two children: John, of Manila, the Philippines, and Susan, of Hoboken, N.J. A memorial service will be held on campus at a date not yet determined.