David Michael Ahlers

DAVID MICHAEL AHLERS, age 78, of Hanshaw Road, Ithaca, NY passed away Monday, March 28, 2016 in Ithaca after an extended illness. A resident of Ithaca for 44 years, Dr. Ahlers, was as renowned locally as the captain of Ockham's Razor as for his professional success- first as a professor at the Cornell Johnson School of Business, owner/operator of the BEST school of business management, and finally as chairman and founding partner of the Cayuga Venture fund. Whether at the helm of his sailboat, in front of a classroom, an auditorium, a boardroom or the dinner table, Dr. Ahlers was first and foremost a teacher. The recipient of national teaching awards, elected for excellence in teaching by students, speaker at national and international conferences, Dr. Ahlers, dedicated his life and his career to educating others and supporting the success of their established businesses, start-up ventures and personal careers. He was a master at making the complicated simple and connecting the world of new technology and inventions to the pragmatic aspects of business development. His ability to thrive in both the world of academia and business made him innovative thinker, an inspiring teacher, and a successful mentor to countless new and established businesses. His wise counsel and dedication to the success of others has had a profound impact on generations of young entrepreneurs and business leaders around the world.
Born in New Jersey in 1937 Dr. Ahlers grew up in Eaton, Ohio, where in 1949 he was awarded the Cox Newspaper full scholarship to attend Phillips Exeter Academy. He received a BS in physics from The Ohio State University in 1958. Introduced to the fledgling field of computer science during his time in the Army reserves, he took a job working with IBM from 1959-1962 and earned a MA in Operations Research from the University of Washington in 1964. Awarded a Ford fellowship, he moved to Carnegie Mellon where he earned a PhD in the combined disciplines of management and computer science.
Dr. Ahlers moved to Wall St where he worked in strategic planning at Banker's Trust for five years, before taking a leave of absence to teach at Cornell Johnson School of Business. At Cornell, Dr. Ahlers found a way to combine his talents, skills and passions for integrating the tools of computer science to the fields of operations and strategic planning and teaching. When awarded his PhD in 1974, his thesis titled "An Evaluation of Alternative Investment Decision Making Systems" received one of eight national awards given by Management Science magazine for contributions to practical applications in the field. In 1979 he published a book titled "A New Look at Portfolio Management" based on his thesis research.
Dr. Ahlers developed an interest in entrepreneurship and in 1980 joined the Cornell Research foundation (responsible for marketing and developing commercial products generated by Cornell research). He also worked with the Cornell Student Agencies, supporting the entrepreneurial spirit in undergraduate as well as graduate students.
Dr. Ahlers received national recognition for his excellence in teaching including a Cornell Excellence in Teaching award as voted by MBA students (in 1974, his second year as a visiting professor at the Johnson School), a national Touche Ross New Perspective Awards in recognition of "bringing real life experience into the classroom" (1979) and in 1984 he was elected by the trustees to the Berens Chair of Entrepreneurial Management. Throughout his career at Cornell, he remained dedicated to connecting the theory taught in the classroom to the reality of the business world.
Leaving academia but not teaching, in 1985 Dr. Ahlers chose to pursue full time his own consulting business, DMA associates and the BEST school. From teaching seminars, to boardroom strategy sessions and conference engagements, Dr. Ahlers taught thousands of students and influenced the strategic thinking of CEO's.
In 1996 after winding down his consulting business, Dr. Ahlers joined a group starting up the Cayuga Venture Fund, a venture capital fund dedicated to investing in upstate New York startups. Eventually through two rounds of funding, Cayuga Venture Partners was responsible for the direct investment of over 60 million dollars in regional high tech businesses. During this period, Dr. Ahlers was a director of Pathlight Technologies, Silicon Video and Viral Therapeutics. In 2006, the Finger Lakes Entrepreneurs Forum presented him with the R. Davis Cutting Award, presented to individuals who made significant contributions to assisting entrepreneurs in the Central New York region. By Governor Pataki's appointment, Dr. Ahlers served as a board member of the New York State Project Finance Agency.
Preceding his career in business and academia, Dr. Ahlers was a dedicated boat lover. From his homemade speed boat (circa 1952) to captaining Ockham's Razor to numerous IYC championships, Dr. Ahlers loved everything about the water. From the competitive challenge of the race to the mechanics of the engine and the physics of trimming the sails, sailing was his first and longest passion. Often pondering his "path not taken", as a boat architect, he fulfilled a lifelong dream and obtained his Captain's License in the winter of 2002.
After a 20 year marriage to Clare Earle Ahlers, who passed away in 1982, David found the perfect partner to share his life in Nancy Ahlers. Married in 1986, Nancy joined David in building and expanding the BEST schools. Together they created a thriving and highly respected consulting business, educating hundreds of students around the world. They worked and traveled, sailed and enjoyed time with their combined families and mutual friends. Together they built a life of shared work, mutual interests and personal passions.
Dr. Ahlers is survived by his spouse, Nancy Ahlers; his children, Laura (Michael) Larson and their children Karl, Clare and Hannah; David M. (Laurie) Ahlers Jr., Happy McClurg and her children Colden, Wesley and Ferguson, Beaver (Wendy) Blomfield Brown and their daughter Ella, Christopher (Geraldine) Blomfield Brown, Reggie (Mary) Blomfield Brown; a nephew, Rob Ahlers. He was predeceased by his brother, Robert Ahlers. To the end he was surrounded by the friends and family he loved and who so dearly loved him in return.
A celebration of his life to be held at the Ithaca Yacht Club will be announced at a later date. Those wishing to remember David are asked to consider a memorial to: Weill Cornell Medical College Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disor ders Institute, 428 East 77nd Street, Suite 400, New York, NY 10021. Perkins Funeral Home assisted the family. www.perkinsfuneralhome.com