Equipment Leasing and Finance Association - Investing Forward

John was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on Sept. 2, 1932. He received his education from the University of Georgia and Georgia Tech, and is a graduate of the Advanced Management Program at Harvard.

John worked for the Associated Press for three years and then served four years in the U.S. Air Force. Upon completion of military duty in 1955, he joined CIT Corporation, specializing in industrial finance.

In 1964, following nine years with CIT, John joined U.S. Leasing Corporation as Regional Operations Manager in Atlanta. He was appointed Treasurer in 1967, Senior Vice President of Finance in 1969, Chief Operating Officer in 1969 and Chief Executive Officer in 1976, and was elected to the Board of Directors of its parent company, U.S. Leasing International. In 1978, he assumed responsibility as Group Executive Vice President with operating responsibility for four subsidiaries with aggregate revenues in excess of $250 million. John continued in this capacity until January 1986, when he elected to discontinue this affiliation and engage in private consulting.  

U.S. Leasing International was one of the largest and most successful independent equipment leasing companies in the United States, with interests worldwide through investments in 13 countries. The company was listed on the New York Stock Exchange. It was acquired by Ford Motor Credit in 1987.

John was a founding principal of The Alta Group, established in 1992, generally recognized as the leading consulting firm specializing in the equipment leasing and financing industry. He retired from active participation in 2002. During this period, he managed consulting assignments for a number of the top equipment leasing companies and served as senior advisor to several boards.

He also was very active with the Equipment Leasing Association, now known as the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association. In 1971, a group of individuals had the vision to make the association into more of a professional trade association. John was the brains and energy behind getting the professional trade association we know today up and running. He served as a Director and Vice Chairman for over 12 years and as the association’s Chairman from 1983-1985.