Alex J. Mandl


Alex J. Mandl is a notable Austrian-American businessman, and currently Executive Chairman of smart card giant Gemalto. He has been named "One of America's Most Powerful Businessmen" by Forbes magazine.

Early life

In the 1950s Mandl moved to the United States with his father Otto after his parents divorced. Alex attended Happy Valley School where his father was the headmaster in the town of Ojai, California. After high school he attended Willamette University in Salem, Oregon where his father took a teaching position. Alex Mandl received a degree in economics at the small liberal arts school. He then enrolled at the University of California, Berkeley where he earned a Masters in Business Administration in the late 1960s.

Career

Mandl began working for Boise Cascade Corporation after college, remaining there for 11 years. He followed that by working at CSX Corporation and Sea-Land Services, Inc. in the 1980s. Mandl began working at AT&T in August 1991 as chief financial officer. In that position, Joseph Nacchio was one of his top subordinates. Mandl was a key player in AT&T's purchase of a stake in McCaw Cellular in 1992.

Positions held