George Schussel
Encyclopedia
George Schussel was born in 1941 in occupied France during World War II
. In 1942, Schussel’s father brought the family out of German-occupied territory into Spain
, and subsequently into the United States
. Educated at UCLA on the west coast and at Harvard
on the east coast, Schussel became best known as the founder and chairman of Digital Consulting Institute
(DCI). By 1998 DCI had become one of the most significant American conference and expo companies in the field of technology. Schussel's expertise on database, computing architectures, the internet and information management issues also inspired him to travel to many countries presenting lectures that gave his views on the latest computer technologies and probable directions for the future of computer technology. As of 2004, Schussel had given over 1,000 seminars for other technology professionals in countries such as France, UK, Belgium, Venezuela, Canada, Mexico, South Africa, Japan, and Australia.
Schussel has authored the 1985 book Data Management: Past, present and future (Critical technology report), as well as co-authored the 1994 book Rightsizing Information Systems (Professional Reference). He has also authored or co-authored over 100 articles or columns in leading computer industry journals such as Computerworld
, Datamation
, Client Server Today and Data Based Advisor.
During his time at DCI, Schussel was credited as having consulted major clients such as Cullinet
, Computer Associates, Revelation Technologies, Hewlett Packard, Sybase
, AT&T/NCR, DEC
, Sequent Computer Systems
, Borland
and IBM
.
In 1998, Schussel was a recipient of the IEEE Computer Society
's Computer Entrepreneur award for his important contributions to the computing industry and profession as an entrepreneurial leader, advisor, and member. Other recipients of the Computer Entrepreneur award that year were Bill Gates
, Paul Allen
, Steve Jobs
, and Steve Wozniak
. Schussel was also the recipient of the Outstanding Industrial Engineer of the Year award from the Institute of Industrial Engineers
.
Additionally, Schussel was a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science
, and had CDP certification from the Data Processing Management Association
.
in physics and mathematics in 1961. Afterwards, he was accepted into Harvard University
, and there received his master's degree in applied mathematics and computer science in 1962. In 1966 he received his doctorate from Harvard Business School
in marketing and computer science. After graduation, he spent time lecturing and held a faculty appointment at the University of Southern California
, Harvard, MIT, and the University of Alabama
.
Prior to founding DCI in 1983, Schussel was Vice President and CIO at the American Mutual Group of insurance companies in Wakefield, Massachusetts
. There he was the senior manager for the administration of a multi-million dollar computer budget and 200 full-time personnel handling all data processing for the American Mutual Group.
, home.
As of 1998, DCI was the largest American-owned information systems conference and trade show company, holding small to large seminars across the world intended for professional audiences. As Chairman, Schussel forecasted industry trends as well as identified new fields of opportunity for DCI trade shows. His input was crucial in the company's compounded growth rate of 30% per year through the 1990s. DCI's revenue was generated from ticket sales to participants who attended their seminars, trade shows, and other events, as well as from the contracting and selling of booth space to vendors participating in their shows. DCI also ran trade show events for other companies such as Sybase, IBM and Microsoft.
alumni magazine for his philanthropic contributions towards MIT. in 1998 Schussel donated $2 million to MIT Sloan for the endowment of a Professorship of Management Science chair.
Although Schussel was not an alumnus of MIT, while a graduate student at Harvard, the classes he took at MIT gave him an early foundation in computer storage and retrieval techniques, which later proved valuable as he became expert in database technology. In addition, Schussel’s family members held six degrees from the school, while one of his daughters met her husband there.
with conspiracy and tax evasion
. Schussel was accused of spearheading a scheme in which he diverted millions of unreported income generated by his DCI company, to an off-shore account in Bermuda
to avoid paying taxes. It was alleged that in order to prevent exposure, he obstructed an audit
by the IRS in March 1998, and filed false and fraudulent corporate and individual income tax returns in 1995, by failing to report to the IRS accurate DCI revenues and income which he and his wife received. Schussel was 63 at the time, living in Lynnfield, Massachusetts, with other residences located in Meredith, New Hampshire
and Key West, Florida
. On January 25, 2007, a federal trial jury convicted Schussel of tax fraud conspiracy and tax evasion after a fourteen-day trial. He received a sentence of up to 5 years and returned to his home in Lynnfield in January 2011 after serving a total of 38½ months.
Convinced of the importance of helping the families of the ever-growing American prison population, Schussel is currently working toward a goal of writing books and creating Internet-based resources that bring hope to people involved in the American system of criminal justice.
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. In 1942, Schussel’s father brought the family out of German-occupied territory into Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, and subsequently into the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Educated at UCLA on the west coast and at Harvard
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
on the east coast, Schussel became best known as the founder and chairman of Digital Consulting Institute
Digital Consulting Institute
Digital Consulting Institute was a seminar company launched in 1982 by George Schussel and his wife Sandi from their home in Massachusetts...
(DCI). By 1998 DCI had become one of the most significant American conference and expo companies in the field of technology. Schussel's expertise on database, computing architectures, the internet and information management issues also inspired him to travel to many countries presenting lectures that gave his views on the latest computer technologies and probable directions for the future of computer technology. As of 2004, Schussel had given over 1,000 seminars for other technology professionals in countries such as France, UK, Belgium, Venezuela, Canada, Mexico, South Africa, Japan, and Australia.
Accomplishments
George Schussel has been the inventor and chairperson of computer industry trade shows such as Database World, Client/Server World, and Creating the Real Time Enterprise. His lectures have scored 9 on a 10 point scale and were noted for underlining and explaining technical issues, while focusing on the business benefits and uses of technology.Schussel has authored the 1985 book Data Management: Past, present and future (Critical technology report), as well as co-authored the 1994 book Rightsizing Information Systems (Professional Reference). He has also authored or co-authored over 100 articles or columns in leading computer industry journals such as Computerworld
Computerworld
Computerworld is an IT magazine that provides information for senior IT leaders. It is published in many countries around the world under the same or similar names. Its publisher is International Data Group. Computerworld serves the needs of IT management via print and online...
, Datamation
Datamation
Datamation was a print computer magazine published in the United States between 1957 and 1998. When first published it wasn't clear there would be a significant market for a computer magazine given how few computers there were...
, Client Server Today and Data Based Advisor.
During his time at DCI, Schussel was credited as having consulted major clients such as Cullinet
Cullinet
Cullinet was a software company whose products included the database management system IDMS and the integrated software package Goldengate. In 1989, the company was bought by Computer Associates...
, Computer Associates, Revelation Technologies, Hewlett Packard, Sybase
Sybase
Sybase, an SAP company, is an enterprise software and services company offering software to manage, analyze, and mobilize information, using relational databases, analytics and data warehousing solutions and mobile applications development platforms....
, AT&T/NCR, DEC
Digital Equipment Corporation
Digital Equipment Corporation was a major American company in the computer industry and a leading vendor of computer systems, software and peripherals from the 1960s to the 1990s...
, Sequent Computer Systems
Sequent Computer Systems
Sequent Computer Systems, or Sequent, was a computer company that designed and manufactured multiprocessing computer systems. They were among the pioneers in high-performance symmetric multiprocessing open systems, innovating in both hardware and software Sequent Computer Systems, or Sequent, was...
, Borland
Borland
Borland Software Corporation is a software company first headquartered in Scotts Valley, California, Cupertino, California and finally Austin, Texas. It is now a Micro Focus subsidiary. It was founded in 1983 by Niels Jensen, Ole Henriksen, Mogens Glad and Philippe Kahn.-The 1980s:...
and IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
.
In 1998, Schussel was a recipient of the IEEE Computer Society
IEEE Computer Society
The IEEE Computer Society is a professional society of IEEE. Its purpose and scope is “to advance the theory, practice, and application of computer and information processing science and technology” and the “professional standing of its members.” The CS is the largest of 38 technical societies...
's Computer Entrepreneur award for his important contributions to the computing industry and profession as an entrepreneurial leader, advisor, and member. Other recipients of the Computer Entrepreneur award that year were Bill Gates
Bill Gates
William Henry "Bill" Gates III is an American business magnate, investor, philanthropist, and author. Gates is the former CEO and current chairman of Microsoft, the software company he founded with Paul Allen...
, Paul Allen
Paul Allen
Paul Gardner Allen is an American business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. Allen co-founded Microsoft with Bill Gates...
, Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs
Steven Paul Jobs was an American businessman and inventor widely recognized as a charismatic pioneer of the personal computer revolution. He was co-founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of Apple Inc...
, and Steve Wozniak
Steve Wozniak
Stephen Gary "Woz" Wozniak is an American computer engineer and programmer who founded Apple Computer, Co. with Steve Jobs and Ronald Wayne...
. Schussel was also the recipient of the Outstanding Industrial Engineer of the Year award from the Institute of Industrial Engineers
Institute of Industrial Engineers
The Institute of Industrial Engineers is a professional society dedicated solely to the support of the industrial engineering profession and individuals involved with improving quality and productivity...
.
Additionally, Schussel was a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science
American Association for the Advancement of Science
The American Association for the Advancement of Science is an international non-profit organization with the stated goals of promoting cooperation among scientists, defending scientific freedom, encouraging scientific responsibility, and supporting scientific education and science outreach for the...
, and had CDP certification from the Data Processing Management Association
Association of Information Technology Professionals
The Association of Information Technology Professionals is a professional association that focuses on information technology education. The group is a non-profit national group, but its activities are performed by about 200 local chapters organized on a geographic basis, and a similar number of...
.
Background/education
Schussel received his bachelor's degree from the University of CaliforniaUniversity of California
The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
in physics and mathematics in 1961. Afterwards, he was accepted into Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, and there received his master's degree in applied mathematics and computer science in 1962. In 1966 he received his doctorate from Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School is the graduate business school of Harvard University in Boston, Massachusetts, United States and is widely recognized as one of the top business schools in the world. The school offers the world's largest full-time MBA program, doctoral programs, and many executive...
in marketing and computer science. After graduation, he spent time lecturing and held a faculty appointment at the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
, Harvard, MIT, and the University of Alabama
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
.
Prior to founding DCI in 1983, Schussel was Vice President and CIO at the American Mutual Group of insurance companies in Wakefield, Massachusetts
Wakefield, Massachusetts
-History:-Geography:The diagram above shows what is to the east, west, north, south, and other directions of the center of Wakefield. Towns with population above 25,000 are in bold italics.-Demographics:-Notable residents:...
. There he was the senior manager for the administration of a multi-million dollar computer budget and 200 full-time personnel handling all data processing for the American Mutual Group.
DCI
George Schussel was the founder, as well as the chairman of Digital Consulting Institute (DCI), which was started in 1982 in his Lynnfield, MassachusettsLynnfield, Massachusetts
Lynnfield is a wealthy town in Essex County, Massachusetts, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 11,542.- History :...
, home.
As of 1998, DCI was the largest American-owned information systems conference and trade show company, holding small to large seminars across the world intended for professional audiences. As Chairman, Schussel forecasted industry trends as well as identified new fields of opportunity for DCI trade shows. His input was crucial in the company's compounded growth rate of 30% per year through the 1990s. DCI's revenue was generated from ticket sales to participants who attended their seminars, trade shows, and other events, as well as from the contracting and selling of booth space to vendors participating in their shows. DCI also ran trade show events for other companies such as Sybase, IBM and Microsoft.
Charity
In March 2000, Schussel was recognized in the MIT Sloan School of ManagementMIT Sloan School of Management
The MIT Sloan School of Management is the business school of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in Cambridge, Massachusetts....
alumni magazine for his philanthropic contributions towards MIT. in 1998 Schussel donated $2 million to MIT Sloan for the endowment of a Professorship of Management Science chair.
Although Schussel was not an alumnus of MIT, while a graduate student at Harvard, the classes he took at MIT gave him an early foundation in computer storage and retrieval techniques, which later proved valuable as he became expert in database technology. In addition, Schussel’s family members held six degrees from the school, while one of his daughters met her husband there.
Tax evasion
In 2004, George Schussel was charged by the United States District Court for the District of MassachusettsUnited States District Court for the District of Massachusetts
The United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts is the federal district court whose jurisdiction is the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, USA. The first court session was held in Boston in 1789. The second term was held in Salem in 1790 and until 1813 court session locations...
with conspiracy and tax evasion
Tax evasion
Tax evasion is the general term for efforts by individuals, corporations, trusts and other entities to evade taxes by illegal means. Tax evasion usually entails taxpayers deliberately misrepresenting or concealing the true state of their affairs to the tax authorities to reduce their tax liability,...
. Schussel was accused of spearheading a scheme in which he diverted millions of unreported income generated by his DCI company, to an off-shore account in Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
to avoid paying taxes. It was alleged that in order to prevent exposure, he obstructed an audit
Audit
The general definition of an audit is an evaluation of a person, organization, system, process, enterprise, project or product. The term most commonly refers to audits in accounting, but similar concepts also exist in project management, quality management, and energy conservation.- Accounting...
by the IRS in March 1998, and filed false and fraudulent corporate and individual income tax returns in 1995, by failing to report to the IRS accurate DCI revenues and income which he and his wife received. Schussel was 63 at the time, living in Lynnfield, Massachusetts, with other residences located in Meredith, New Hampshire
Meredith, New Hampshire
Meredith is a town in Belknap County, New Hampshire, USA. The population was 6,241 at the 2010 census. Meredith is situated beside Lake Winnipesaukee. It is home to Stonedam Island Natural Area and the Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad...
and Key West, Florida
Key West, Florida
Key West is a city in Monroe County, Florida, United States. The city encompasses the island of Key West, the part of Stock Island north of U.S. 1 , Sigsbee Park , Fleming Key , and Sunset Key...
. On January 25, 2007, a federal trial jury convicted Schussel of tax fraud conspiracy and tax evasion after a fourteen-day trial. He received a sentence of up to 5 years and returned to his home in Lynnfield in January 2011 after serving a total of 38½ months.
Convinced of the importance of helping the families of the ever-growing American prison population, Schussel is currently working toward a goal of writing books and creating Internet-based resources that bring hope to people involved in the American system of criminal justice.