Biography

David Auchterlonie is the author of Running Out of Time—Wildfires and Our Imperiled Forests. He is a tireless advocate for an active forest stewardship policy that uses available best scientific practices and technological resources while promoting an immediate initial response to first put out the fire.

Mr. Auchterlonie’s background includes over 57 years of corporate management know-how. He leveraged 18 years of public company financial expertise (as a financial officer with three publicly traded firms and as a senior manager/auditor at Price Waterhouse & Co.) to found and manage a successful boutique corporate turnaround management firm. 

Over the span of 27 years, his firm helped more than 200 clients in crisis or facing survival/viability issues.  In every case, through a hands-on operating focus, typically as CEO of the troubled firm, he developed and implemented a turnaround plan, creating value for the stakeholders and preserving over 25,000 employee jobs. The expensive and inefficient bankruptcy process for restructuring debt was successfully avoided 98% of the time. His turnaround expertise was recognized by the world’s leading trade organization (Turnaround Management Association), which elected him to serve as its Chairman and President from 1998 to 2000. Mr. Auchterlonie was inducted into TMA’s Hall of Fame in 2008. 

Mr. Auchterlonie currently serves on the Board of Directors of a private, family-owned company, a former client dating back to 1995. In the past, he has served on numerous boards, both for-profit and not-for-profit. He also served as an Advisory Board member at the School of Business and Economics at California State University, Northridge, and in similar positions at the University of Southern California and a local community college. 

He received his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from California State University, Northridge, in 1969. He is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and a Certified Turnaround Professional (CTP). Mr. Auchterlonie has been a frequent speaker at seminars on corporate renewal and turnaround management and has authored several award-winning articles on the subject.

He lives with his wife Barbara, a retired attorney and retired college professor, in Corona del Mar, CA. He is a father of three grown sons and a proud grandfather to seven grandchildren. His outside interests include reading, golf, travel, hiking, skiing, and Big 10 sports. He is a member of the Sons of the American Revolution and served honorably in the United States Army Reserve.