LGPatten

Larry G. Patten’s professional career includes over forty years in leadership, administration, and management in a broad range of fields including technology, education, government, commercial and public broadcasting.

He has also started several companies and has provided consulting programs and services for both profit and not-for-profit organizations.

His career began in high school when, at the age of sixteen, he started a custom audio recording company. When he began, this was a “cutting edge business” based on what was at that time, a new emerging technology of audio recorders and condenser microphones. In the sixties, he had built the company to be the largest custom phonograph record company in Iowa and obtained a franchise with Century Records.

In 1968, he joined Kirkwood Community College as an instructor. He taught electronics, English and business practices. Later, he accepted his first administrative position at Kirkwood heading up the development of some of the world’s first individualized instruction and distant learning programs.

In 1981, he became CEO of Iowa Public Television and served on the Governor’s Cabinet.  During his time there, he began a capital campaign to build a new Iowa Public Television facility.  The campaign was successful and the building is the proud home of Iowa Public Television today.

He served as Vice President of Digital Network Services of Teleconnect Company.  During this time, Mr. Patten developed some of the first long line fiber optic communications systems in the country.  He also had responsibility for establishing the marketing and sales for the division.

In 1987, he was asked by the General Assembly of the State of Iowa to design and develop the technical concept as well as prepare and shepherd the passage of legislation for the Iowa Communications Network.  They law was passed, funds appropriate and the network has been serving Iowan’s for over thirty years. 

Mr. Patten has served as president of a commercial broadcasting company. He has held various administrative positions in colleges and universities.  He also served as president of a for-profit college. In his last position, he served as the Chancellor of a University.  He retired from this position in 2009.

Mr. Patten has served as a consultant to agencies of both state and federal governments as well as many for-profit and not-for-profit organizations. He was a major contributor to Linking for Learning: A New Course for Education, a project for the Congressional Office of Technical Assessment. Mr. Patten, at the request of the Soviet Union Government, prepared and presented a paper on the use of technology in education and its effect on the social order.  The paper was presented to the Soviet officials in Moscow in 1989.

Along with helping organizations with their performance improvement and development around the concepts contained in his book Strategic Organizational Development, Mr. Patten also provides numerous seminars.

Mr. Patten received both his Bachelors Degree in Business Administration and his Masters Degree in Educational Administration from the University of Iowa.  He earned a Doctorate in Practical Theology in 2015. He was also privileged to attend the Summer Writers Workshop held at the University of Iowa.