Northwood University recently honored Robert Forbes, Vice President of Forbes, Inc. and President of ForbesLife as one of eight nationally known business men and women at its 33rd Annual Outstanding Business Leader (OBL) Awards Gala at The Breakers, Palm Beach, Florida on Friday, January 25th.
As Vice President of Forbes and President of ForbesLife magazine, Robert L. Forbes exemplifies the success of many intrapreneurs, as he constantly employs internal systems and processes which ensure that ForbesLife achieves its mission of celebrating the rewards of success with flair and style.
And it’s the ability to promote innovation within the internal organization which has propelled ForbesLife to unparalleled success. Launched in 1990, the magazine is the dedicated lifestyle supplement that is sent to all Forbes subscribers and is devoted to the pursuit of civilized pleasures. It is designed for well-heeled business leaders who play as hard as they work.
Inspired by his father Malcolm Forbes to embrace a love for life and for business, Mr. Forbes is also an author who will publish the third in a collection of rhymed and metered poetry books this February.
Aimed at children but also fun for adults, each is brilliantly illustrated by the late master caricaturist, Ronald Searle. BEASTLY FEASTS! A Mischievous Menagerie in Rhyme arrived to acclaim in 2007, and a second volume followed in 2010, LET’S HAVE A BITE! A Beastly Banquet in Rhyme. Next will be BEAST FRIENDS FOREVER! Animal Lovers in Rhyme, a compilation that will be geared to older kids and the adult gift market.
Mr. Forbes also took the photographs for his wife’s popular book, A YEAR OF DANCING DANGEROUSLY, about her first year of competitive ballroom dancing, and has authored numerous articles on food and travel. In addition, he produced a number of documentary films for Forbes, and co-authored Toy Boats 1870-1955: A Pictorial History, published by Scribner's in 1979.
Mr. Forbes has served on the boards for St. Mark's School, Southborough, Massachusetts, the American School of Tangier in Morocco, and the Brooklyn Academy of Music, Brooklyn, New York. With his wife, Lydia, Mr. Forbes is a member of the Rockefeller University Council in New York City and The Four Arts Society of Palm Beach, Florida. He is also a member of the board of the SS United States Conservancy, serves on the advisory board of the Empire State Center for the Book, and is a Friend of the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.
In addition to business leadership and creative writing, his interests include wine collecting, American and European photography, and the works of French post-impressionist painter Henri Le Sidaner.
Robert L. Forbes was born in 1949 and received his Bachelor of Arts in Italian from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1971, which included a year of study at the University per Stranieri in Perugia, Italy. He and his wife reside in Florida.
Northwood University annually recognizes a select group of men and women for their business achievements and for their support and exemplary leadership of the communities in which they live and work. These individuals serve as role models for Northwood University students, all of whom are engaged in the study of business management and who aspire to successful careers. In the 33 years since the program’s founding, more than 300 business leaders from more than 30 states and several countries, representing dozens of industries and fields of business expertise, have received the Outstanding Business Leader Award.
On Friday, January 25th, the day of the gala presentations, Northwood University students asked questions of the OBL Class of 2013, as well as past honorees, at an afternoon forum held at Northwood University Florida. The forum provided the opportunity for honorees to share anecdotes relating to the obstacles and challenges they encountered while on their personal road to business success, as well as remedies relating to how they overcame them. For high resolution photos, biographies, and individual press releases, please visit the: Outstanding Business Leader Online Newsroom.
Northwood University is committed to the most personal attention to prepare students for success in their careers and in their communities; it promotes critical thinking skills, personal effectiveness, and the importance of ethics, individual freedom and responsibility.
Private, nonprofit, and accredited, Northwood University specializes in managerial and entrepreneurial education at three full-service, residential campuses located in southern Florida, mid-Michigan and northern Texas. Adult Degree Programs are available in eight states with many course delivery options including an online option. The DeVos Graduate School offers day, evening and weekend programming in Michigan, Texas, Florida and Switzerland. The Alden B. Dow Center for Creativity and Enterprise provides system-wide expertise in family enterprise, entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation, and new business development. International education is offered through study abroad and in Program Centers in Switzerland, China, Malaysia and Sri Lanka.
