Ira A. Lipman
Guardsmark, Chairman and President
|  | The Memphis business community has benefited from the leadership of Ira A. Lipman for many years. His entrepreneurial spirit led him in 1963 to found Guardsmark, a privately held security firm headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee. With 2008 revenues at just over $563 million, Guardsmark currently employs approximately 19,500 people in more than 155 offices in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, France and Singapore. Ira Lipman serves as chairman and president, and his leadership and innovative concepts have driven the organization’s success, leading Time magazine to cite Guardsmark as the company “ . . . which many security experts consider the best national firm in the business.”
Despite the demands of his rapidly expanding company, Ira Lipman has served in leadership positions in many organizations and has chaired numerous dinners. He has served as campaign chairman of United Way of Memphis, Memphis Metro Chairman of the National Alliance of Businessmen and on the Board of Directors of the Memphis Area Chamber of Commerce. He currently serves as a member of more than 20 international, national and local boards, including the Board of Governors and Trustees of Junior Achievement of Greater Memphis.
Ira Lipman was the recipient of the Junior Achievement Master of Free Enterprise Award in 1987 and was named Entrepreneurial Fellow at Memphis State University in 1976. Beyond founding Guardsmark, he also served as Founding Chairman of the Memphis Shelby Crime Commission in 1997, and he founded the Alexis de Tocqueville Chapter of United Way of Memphis in 1984 and the Memphis Young Republicans Club in 1960. His achievements have been featured in 44 books, and he is listed in Who’s Who in America, Who’s Who in World Jewry, Who’s Who in the World and in Contemporary Authors.
In addition to business savvy, Ira has demonstrated a great deal of dedication to civic involvements. Nationally, he is very active in a number of business, political, religious and human relations endeavors. He is Honorary Chairman and Chairman Emeritus of the National Council on Crime and Delinquency, as well as Honorary Chairman for Life of the National Conference of Christians and Jews. A member of the Board of Overseers of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania since 1991, Ira has also served as the first Chairman of the Ethics Committee of the Board of Governors of United Way of America. He is currently a member of the Executive Committee and a Trustee of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, the international human rights organization.
Ira Lipman is also an accomplished author of several publications, including the book How to Protect Yourself from Crime, published by Reader’s Digest and now in its fourth edition, and The Lipman Report, a specialized monthly management newsletter.
Description of Business:
With Fiscal Year 2008 revenues in excess of $563,000,000, privately owned Guardsmark is one of the world's largest providers of security services. The company has about 19,500 employees in more than 155 offices serving customers in over 400 cities throughout the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, France and Singapore. Guardsmark employs more former FBI agents than any other company in the world. Year Business Founded:
1963 Year Inducted:
2002 Thoughts on Entrepreneurship: "'"One of the greatest opportunities for entrepreneurs comes from the privilege of living in the United States of America, which is the greatest form of democracy yet devised. Although many nations have produced successful entrepreneurs, no other country reflects the entrepreneurial spirit more than America, which has epitomized entrepreneurship since its founding. No other nation has America's unparalleled political and social freedom, which has created a unique testing ground, in which innovative thinkers translate their talents and ideas into new products and businesses. The title "entrepreneur" should not be restricted to those creative, resourceful individuals who brainstorm new products or run small, medium or large companies; it should encompass everybody in America who responds to the free-thinking atmosphere of the American spirit by creating anything."" For More Information: http://www.guardsmark.com
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