Alan Box

Partner

Alan Box's career has spanned the broadcast, cellular and banking industries, involving everything from sales and operations to orchestrating industry-shaping transactions involving billions of dollars.

Alan began his career in Dallas, selling a variety of products such as production libraries, jingles and syndicated programming to radio and televisions stations at a time when these were cutting-edge industry practices. He then moved to the Washington, D.C., area and began a long career at radio broadcasting company EZ Communications, Inc., rising from salesman to Vice President of Sales to President & CEO as well as a member of the Board of Directors.

When the FCC revised its regulations on radio station ownership, Alan led the company through a series of acquisitions and a successful IPO. As the industry-wide buying frenzy continued, Alan decided that the best deal for shareholders would be to sell the company. When EZ Communications sold to American Radio Systems for $655 million, shares that had previously traded for about $19 brought a premium value of nearly $47 per share. Alan joined American Radio Systems as Executive Vice President/ Business Development and was member of the Board. Alan continued to lead an aggressive campaign of buying, swapping, and selling radio stations. Having grown to more than 100 stations, American Radio Systems was acquired by CBS in 1999 for $2.5 billion cash.

During Alan's radio career, he served for eight years on the National Association of Broadcasters Board. He was named the first Chairman of the NAB's Digital Audio Broadcasting Task Force, the industry's first effort to understand and manage the development of what is now known as HD Radio. In 1996, Radio Ink magazine included Alan as one of the "40 Most Powerful People in Radio," saying: "A visionary, especially with technology and new media, Box is a leader in sub-carrier and digital broadcasting. His clout with major companies like Microsoft gives Box the power to influence the industry..."

Identifying another growth opportunity, Alan formed a new company, American Tower Corporation. As Chief Operating Officer he was responsible for an aggressive program of tower acquisitions as well as internal growth. In less than two years, American Tower had become the largest tower company in the U.S., and completed a successful IPO and began trading on the New York Stock Exchange. The company continued to grow rapidly and is now the largest provider of cellular, PCS and broadcast tower services in the U.S., Mexico and Brazil.

Alan has also served also served on the Board of Directors of George Mason Bancshares, a publicly traded, Washington, D.C.-based regional bank.