Ian Irving Mitroff

Ian Mitroff, an internationally recognized author and theorist who is regarded as the founder of the discipline of crisis management, died on June 17, 2024, at the age of 86, from a rare form of blood cancer.

An interdisciplinary thinker, prolific writer, and intellectual maverick, Mitroff’s work challenged conventional wisdom and pushed boundaries. He leaves behind a legacy of profound scholarly contributions to the fields of organizational behavior, strategic planning, and crisis management and leadership. Known for his thinking and writing on a wide range of business and societal issues, Mitroff authored 43 books, over 350 papers, and dozens of Op-Ed pieces on a wide range of topics, from the societal impact of technology to spirituality in the workplace.

His ties to Berkeley were deep and enduring. Mitroff earned his B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in Engineering Science from UC Berkeley. After leaving the Bay Area in the late 1960s to pursue an academic career, he returned with his wife, Donna, in 2007, becoming an Adjunct Professor in the UC Berkeley College of Environmental Design and a Senior Research Associate at the UC Berkeley Center for Catastrophic Risk Management. He cherished being close to family, especially his beloved grandson, Jonah, and enjoying life in Berkeley, including meals at Saul’s Deli and music at Freight & Salvage.

Born in San Francisco in 1938 to Russian Jewish immigrant parents, he was the eldest of three boys. His father, a DeSoto Taxi driver, once picked up famous San Francisco Chronicle columnist Herb Caen. Caen mentioned the ride in his column, praising the kind cabbie who spoke proudly of his son studying at Cal.

To afford Berkeley tuition, which was $84 per year in 1956, Mitroff worked part-time selling butter and eggs for his uncle at Swan’s Market in Oakland. He joined the Cal Work Study program to help finance his education and often spoke about the opportunities afforded to him by the University of California educational system.

During his doctoral studies at Cal, he completed the first engineering minor in the Philosophy of Social Systems Science under the mentorship of Professor C. West Churchman. It was also during this time that he met the love of his life, Donna (Drevenak) Mitroff, while walking past the former Tolman Hall on the north side of campus. They married at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Berkeley in 1964 and welcomed their daughter in 1969.

After graduating from Berkeley, Mitroff joined the business school faculty at the University of Pittsburgh and later at the University of Southern California. His first book, The Subjective Side of Science (1974), showcased his commitment to groundbreaking research. Other notable works include Managing Crises Before They Happen (with Gus Anagnos), A Spiritual Audit of Corporate America (with Liz Denton), and Fables and the Art of Leadership: Applying the Wisdom of Mister Rogers to the Workplace (co-authored with wife Donna Mitroff, Ph.D.).

Mitroff received numerous prestigious awards, including an honorary doctorate from the University of Stockholm in 2000 and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Management, Spirituality, and Religion Division of the Academy of Management in 2020. He was a fellow of the American Psychological Association, the Academy of Management, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and served as president of the International Society for the Systems Sciences.

In 2019, the Mitroffs established the Ian & Donna Mitroff Scholarship at UC Berkeley to support undergraduate students pursuing interdisciplinary programs of study combining engineering with the humanities and social sciences. They believed that engineers with a grounding in these areas are better equipped to solve societal problems.

Beyond academia, he was also known for his off-beat sense of humor, intense personality, gluten-free diet, passion for Scrabble and playing harmonica, and habit of scribbling math formulas on napkins wherever he went.

He is survived by his wife of 59 years, Donna Mitroff; daughter Dana Mitroff Silvers; son-in-law Jonathan Silvers; grandson Jonah Silvers; brother and sister-in-law Norman Mitroff and Patti Antonaccio; and many beloved cousins, nephews, nieces, friends, colleagues, and former students.

Ian Mitroff’s profound intellectual contributions and lasting impact on crisis management will be remembered by many. In the words of his former students, he inspired people to “challenge conventional wisdom and push boundaries.”

The family requests that memorial gifts be made to The Ian and Donna Mitroff Scholarship at UC Berkeley by calling Gift Services at (510) 643-9789 or sending a check made payable to the “UC Berkeley Foundation” to University of California, Berkeley, Donor and Gift Services, Attn: The Ian and Donna Mitroff Scholarship, 1995 University Avenue, Suite 400, Berkeley, CA 94704-1070.