Honoring Distinguished Citizen
Alan Schultz
Chairman of the Board, Retired, Valassis

Al Schultz was Chairman of the Board of Directors from 1997 through 2014 of Valassis (VCI, NYSE), a $2.2 billion global marketing services powerhouse. He sold the business to Ronald Perelman’s MacAndrews & Forbes Incorporated in February 2014. Under Schultz’ leadership as Chief Executive Officer from 1997 through 2011, Valassis nearly quadrupled its revenue and profits and was recognized as one of FORTUNE’s “100 Fastest-Growing Worldwide Public Companies. Schultz’ Leadership Team led the company’s successful diversification of its product portfolio and client base, transforming Valassis from a domestic, one-product, print-media provider to a diversified, global marketing services company serving 15,000 clients in a wide array of industries.

Valassis had 6,500 employees operating in 28 states and eight countries. Schultz built an award-winning culture at Valassis, combining accountability for results with a great-place-to-work culture for its employees. During his tenure, Valassis was selected by Fortune Magazine 9 times as one of the “100 Best Companies to Work for in America.” The company was recognized with multiple national and regional workplace culture-related awards, including Working Mother Magazine in 1999 and 2000 as ”Best Places for Working Mothers,” Crains Detroit Business “Best Places to Work” in 1999, 2001 and 2003 and in 2005 as “Cool Places to Work.”

In 2007 Schultz led Valassis through a transformational $1.2 billion acquisition of ADVO, Inc., the nation’s largest direct mail company. Schultz’s leadership team navigated the business through The Great Recession, with the company ranking #1 in 2009 operating income improvement among its public media company peers, including Google. Schultz also defended Valassis against illegal competitive behavior from Rupert Murdoch’s News America Marketing, successfully negotiating a $500 million plus settlement from News Corp. in 2010.

Schultz was named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year® in 2011. He served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Dex One and as a Board Member for North American Assemblies (a minority-owned business). He joined R.H. Donnelley’s Board of Directors in 2005, becoming Chairman before orchestrating a merger, creating Dex One where he remained Chairman through 2011. He previously served on the Boards for the American Advertising Federation as Treasurer, The Ad Council and Artistic Greetings Corp. Schultz is a contributing author to the book “Inside the Minds of Leading Advertisers.”

Schultz and his lovely wife of 44 years, Eva, have focused their resources on causes related to the health, education, safety and development of America’s youth. Under Schultz’s leadership, Valassis was a key contributor to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Al has been both chairman and a member of the Boy Scouts Investment Committee. He serves on the Advisory Board of the University of Michigan – Dearborn and was honored as the college’s 2011 Alumnus of the Year. He was a member of Business Leaders for Michigan, a non-profit group of 60 Michigan-based CEOs working to improve Michigan competitiveness. Al and Eva have supported Women of Tomorrow, Best Buddies, Autism Speaks, St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital, Shriners, Timothy Christian School, Plymouth Christian Academy and numerous other youth-related organizations, including Northville Concours d’Elegance, the only car concourse organized and judged by teenagers.

Schultz graduated with distinction in 1981 from the University of Michigan, earning his Bachelor of Business Administration degree in finance and accounting. He is a CPA who worked at Deloitte for three years to start his career. Schultz is an avid outdoorsman, enjoying hunting, fishing and hiking (summited Mount Kilimanjaro). He participates in golf, pickleball, farming and car racing. Al and Eva have an eclectic car collection ranging from a 1912 Pierce Arrow 48SS to modern sports cars. They love to travel and spend time with their six grandchildren. Al spends considerable time with his grandson who is on the autism spectrum on his working farm in Northville, MI. His grandson finds driving heavy equipment and farming very satisfying. He also acquired the sole-surviving NASCAR Fabulous Hudson Hornet because Doc Hudson was his grandson’s favorite character in the Disney Pixar movie “Cars.” The car was the subject of a recent documentary film called “The Fabulous Hudson Hornet.” They also spend considerable time at their home at Disney World. They have two sons and daughters-in-law, Alan & Precious and Eric & Alyssa.