Columbia Business School lost a vital member of its community on Tuesday, when Paul Calello ’87 passed away. He was 49.A member of the Board of Overseers since 2007, Calello was actively involved in the School, establishing a scholarship fund to provide need-based financial aid to MBA students, chairing the Annual Dinner, speaking at the Pan-Asian Reunion, and returning to campus to advise students as part of the Silfen Leadership Series.
Calello most recently served as chairman of the investment bank and a member of the executive board of Credit Suisse Group and Credit Suisse, where he was also CEO of the investment bank from 2007 to 2010. He navigated the company through difficult financial times while maintaining the strong support of his colleagues, who in October 2010 created the Paul Calello Professorship of Leadership and Ethics and the Paul Calello Fund for Research on Leadership and Ethics at Columbia Business School in his honor.
Calello was not only a pivotal leader at Credit Suisse, he also played an important role on a larger public stage, posing new ideas to better the banking industry, both financially and ethically. His latest proposal, coauthored with a Credit Suisse colleague, was to “bail-in” troubled banks with shareholders’ and creditors’ money, rather than turning to taxpayers.
In response to Calello’s passing, Dean Glenn Hubbard said:A true business leader, Paul was an inspiration to everyone around him, both at Columbia Business School and at Credit Suisse, demonstrating the immense value of thoughtful, ethical leadership throughout his distinguished career. Whether based in Asia or in the United States — and in both good economic times and bad — he had the vision and foresight to succeed under all conditions, as well as the ability to make the kinds of difficult decisions to ensure success. Moreover, he did so while engendering the trust and loyalty of his colleagues... Because of his willingness to lead by example and to give so generously of himself in all that he did, I am confident that Paul’s legacy will continue to inspire business students and experienced business practitioners alike.
Gifts to Columbia Business School in Calello’s memory can be made to the Paul Calello Scholarship Fund, established by Calello in 2007 to provide need-based financial aid to outstanding MBA Students. For more information, please contact Lisa Yeh at ly2019columbia.edu.
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