Stories
Stories
Thomas S. Murphy (MBA 1949)
Thomas Murphy (MBA 1949)
A cold call during Thomas Murphy’s first year convinced him to make the most of his Harvard Business School experience. When a professor called on a few students, including Murphy, with a question about the case, none had an answer. The professor chastised them; they wouldn’t learn anything if they didn’t study. The professor’s words stuck.
Murphy returned to his room and labored over the next case. He received the next opening cold call, and the professor stayed with him for the entire 80-minute class. “At the end, the professor said that he had taught the case many times, and I had given the finest presentation he had ever heard,” recalls Murphy. “That cold call—and HBS—set me on a path to building my self-confidence and developing the skills to succeed in business.”
After graduating as a Baker Scholar, Murphy worked in advertising until a family friend approached him. “He said that he was going into a little crapshoot in Albany and needed someone to run a television station,” recalls Murphy. “That’s how in 1954 I became Capital Cities first employee.” Just ten years later, he was named president.
Murphy led Capital Cities during a time of incredible growth, highlighted by the purchase of ABC, which included ESPN, in 1985. Under his leadership, Capital Cities grew from one small broadcasting station housed in a former convent to a multibillion dollar telecommunications conglomerate. Ultimately he sold Capital Cities/ABC to the Walt Disney Company for $19-billion. “Building a company with a great culture and doing it with integrity is something that I look back on with satisfaction,” says Murphy.
While known for his business acumen, Murphy is equally recognized for his public service. He is active with many charities, including NYU Medical Center, Save the Children, and the Madison Square Boys & Girls Clubs. A former member of the HBS Board of Dean’s Advisors, Murphy has been a steadfast supporter of the School and named it as a beneficiary of his will.
“HBS was the best thing that ever happened to me. And, when you feel like I do, that the education you received from HBS was very important to you and your career, you want to give back.”
Learn how can create your own legacy by remembering HBS in your will.
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