ThanksPat

Remembering Pat McGovern
Patrick J. McGovern, the visionary Chairman of IDG passed on March 19, 2014. Please share memories.
Paul Gillin
Leo Durocher said nice guys finish last. I always thought McGovern proved that wisdom wrong.
John Furrier
what was him management style? hands on or hands off
Paul Gillin
@furrier Strictly hands-off. He was brilliant at analyzing numbers and spotting problems, but he had others do the dirty work.
John Furrier
he also had considerable success with this VC arm with tech investments.
Rick Saia
- I think that's perfect. I felt the same way.
Kevin Normandeau
Pat fostered a great culture that became the foundation for much of our success. We were all fortunate to part of his 'worlds'
Dave Vellante
RayBoggsSMB
#ThanksPat "My 10th anniv dinner with Pat was particularly special, since it was all IDC attendees & we…" — Ray Boggs http://t.co/9jrk65VE5g
a day ago
Quoted By @dvellante
Dave Vellante
AnuragTechaisle
#ThanksPat When IDC moved me from HongKong to US to implement WW Quarterly Tracker Pat visited to wish me best of luck. Still very vivid.
a day ago
Quoted By @dvellante
Dave Vellante
Words to live by - the Ten Corporate Values of Patrick J. McGovern http://goo.gl/TS9Fhn #idg

Dave Vellante
One day Pat came into a meeting at IDC and started randomly picking people out of the audience asking them to recite the corporate values :-) it was genius - kept us on edge and years later people stillbrought "cheats sheets" to company meetings #idg
John Furrier
great corporate values and he built a business with no outside funding #techathlete for sure
Dave Vellante
Yes - Pat was very proud of the fact that he funded a multi-billion dollar empire internally - pretty impressive.
John Furrier
jcatcw
A memory of Patrick J McGovern from @jonnyevans_cw #ThanksPat http://t.co/iEEs222uNI via @computerworld blogs
a minute ago
Quoted By @furrier
John Furrier
kmingis
RT @jcatcw: A memory of Patrick J McGovern from @jonnyevans_cw #ThanksPat http://t.co/iEEs222uNI via @computerworld blogs
a few seconds ago
Quoted By @furrier
John Furrier
@IDGWorld you are quoted in my CrowdChat. Would like if you'd join. http://twitter.com/IDGWorld/status/446701933265682432 Dave Vellante always tells me amazing stories;@dvellante and others are very proud and influenced in very positive way by Pat McGovern
IDGWorld
Thank you to @dvellante for getting the #thankspat hashtag going! https://t.co/g7vJytWh6q
3 minutes ago
Quoted By @furrier
Frank Cutitta
And Pat always closed with his mantra "The best is yet to come !!"
Paul Gillin
In the middle of company presentations he would sometimes point at people at random and say, "What's corporate value number 8?" People lived in fear of being called on!
Paul Gillin
IDGers will remember that he made it a point to visit every US location of the holidays and spend time with every employee from the mailroom to the executive suite. I had the pleasure to accompany him several times. He was such a gracious man.
Dave Vellante
@gbeachcio has a great story about Pat, John Dix and John Cox - I hope he'll share it :-)
Frank Cutitta
Even better an additional personal touch by netting the taxes out in advance and putting hard cash in the card. Every card came with a personal story about the employees work or family.
Chris Shipley
One Decmeber, I found Pat McGovern alone in the lobby reviewing notes before his holiday rounds with our group. He stuffed the paper in his pocket, met every employee with a big grin and said something about each that even they didn't remember.
Shaw Lively
I agree--his Holiday visits were a big part of what made IDG special...and demonstrated the character ( and amazing memory) of the man. I am still in awe of his commitment to that practice.
Matt Sweeney
Name another billionaire that would do that...the money is one thing... the time to personally thank each employee was one set Pat apart.
John Furrier
Pat McGovern dancing with Chris Shipley @cshipley rare moment on video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9u2QqzUN720
Pat McGovern and Chris Shipley Dance
In the midst of Pat McGovern presenting Chris Shipley with an award on the DEMO Stage at her last DEMO, the dancing begins. September 2009.
John Gallant
Awww. That's so nice.
John Furrier
@JohnGallant1 Chris Shipley had a way with the demo gods
Chris Shipley
At that moment, on the DEMO stage, I really didn't think he'd dance. I should have known, having seen some worldwide managers meeting videos, that he was game for just about anything.
John Furrier
Chris whats fun about that video was the smiles all around..
PecosMike
Thanks for posting --- great clip to demonstrate his personality and his spirit of generosity
Dave Vellante
Pat would never shy away from a fun moment like that. Most of us would run and hide...but Pat would both enjoy and then connect it to a current trend (like Dancing with the Stars). He was truly one-of-a-kind. #IDG
Matt Sweeney
My favorite memories of Pat are when he, Walter, and Ted would tell stories about the early days. A few stories in particular...the house in Cambridge and the smoke from downstairs, the camel at the expo in Paris, and his first trip to China.
Mitch Betts
Agreed: The "funny smoke" during the Summer of Love in 1967. The camels that ran amok during the Computer Caravan tour.
John Furrier
please elaborate :-)
Frank Cutitta
Camel story is a classic. As I recall one was at an IDG roadshow in Paris at the George V hotel including a live caravan camel marching though the main hall. The story goes that the camel decided this would be the perfect place to leave a "souvenir".
John Gallant
Years ago, my wife and I sat next to Pat at a dinner and she told him a story about meeting, decades later, a man whom she had saved from choking when he was just a kid. Pat loved it. From then on, he would relate the tale to others whenever we were around
Frank Cutitta
So true...every time he saw Leslie (as recently at October Alumni party) he would bring up a softball game they played in at the summer outing back in 1985 !
Paul Gillin
He had an amazing memory. He would quote to me from articles I had written 15 years earlier.
Dave Vellante
Picture of Pat with his son - beautiful shot http://goo.gl/TLnsws #idg

Kelsey Mulcahy
definitely a special picture of father and son
Dave Vellante
What are some of the stories you remember most about Pat McGovern?
Frank Cutitta
I remember times when I got upgraded on an intl. flight and then saw Pat walk past the first class section to sit in the coach seat he booked. Had to ponder how to ask the flight attendant for a "downgrade".
Nancy Weil
A bunch of us at the News Service tried one year to talk him into buying the Red Sox when the team was being shopped around. The ensuing conversation was hilarious. I so hoped to become the third-base coach!
Damian Rinaldi
I can't thank Pat enough for my best friends, who I made in my 20s while working at IDC in Framingham. I'd interviewed with the CIA and decided that spying wasn't my thing -- then I landed a position at IDC doing industrial espionage. It was a blast!
Dave Vellante
We had some great days on the 4th floor Damian!
Catherine Marenghi
I think the most formative relationships of my career and life were incubated at IDG. As a young editor and writer at Computerworld, I met lifelong friends, colleagues, clients -- and even a husband.
Matt Sweeney
Pat'isms- "The largest room in any house is the room for improvement." "If you want something done give it to the busiest person on your team".
John Furrier
that is great quote Matt