The Legacy of Ken Olsen

Friends and former colleagues are encouraged to leave a memory about Olsen at Gordon College's website at www.gordon.edu/kenolsen

Widely recognized as one of the 20th century's leading computer industry pioneers, Mr. Kenneth H. Olsen, founder and former CEO of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), long time trustee at Gordon College in Wenham, Massachusetts, and alumnus of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), died Sunday, February 6, 2011. He would have been 85 years old on February 20.

In 1957, he co-founded DEC in a refurbished mill in Maynard just outside of Boston, a company that grew to over 125,000 employees in 86 countries. Countless CEOs, engineers and inventors recognize Olsen's technological innovations, leadership style and entrepreneurial philosophies as the foundation for today's information and computer networking industry.

Under Olsen's 35-year leadership tenure, DEC pioneered the concepts behind interactive computing. Creating one of the first digital computers for commercial use, DEC marketed the "mini-computer" and set records in size and affordability. The company also set industry standards in program languages, operating systems, networking architectures, applications software, computer peripherals, component and circuit technology, manufacturing processes and business practices.

Olsen had a particular fondness for Christian higher education. As an active member of Park Street Church in Boston, Olsen joined the board of Gordon College in 1961, along with fellow trustees Phillips and evangelist Billy Graham. Olsen admired Gordon's openness to scientific inquiry and commitment to the Christian faith, and provided both spiritual and business input for the next 50 years. He supported numerous capital and building projects in all areas of academics, athletics, music and the arts, and moved the College towards greater efficiency in technology by donating his time, expertise, and company equipment.

Through all of his accomplishments, Olsen's family and friends defined him by his humble commitment to loving God, loving excellence and loving others. His character in and out of the workplace reflected his life-long belief that values, business ethics, and scientific inquiry should coincide with faith in God.

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