Alexander N. Rossolimo

Alexander N. Rossolimo
Born	Paris, France
Occupation(s)	Executive, entrepreneur, corporate board member
Years active	1970s–present
Known for	Chair of the Center for Security and Social Progress; co-founder of Intellect Exchange Inc.

Alexander N. Rossolimo is a prominent American executive in the think tank sector, entrepreneur, and corporate board member.

Early life and education

Rossolimo was born in Paris to Nicolas Rossolimo, a chess International Grandmaster, and Véra (née Boudakovitch). His maternal grandfather, Anatole Pavlovich Boudakovitch, held the title of Russian-Polish count and served as a colonel in the Imperial Russian Army; he was posthumously honored with the Cross of St. George in 1917. Additionally, Rossolimo’s great-grandfather, General Nikolay Bornovolokov, lost his life during World War I. At twelve years old, he relocated with his family to the United States, settling in New York City, where he attended both Stuyvesant High School and the Lycée Français de New York.

He obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from the City College of New York, where he earned distinctions such as the Belden gold medal for mathematics and was inducted into the Tau Beta Pi and Eta Kappa Nu honor societies. Supported by a National Science Foundation Graduate Fellowship, Rossolimo pursued graduate education at Harvard University, achieving an M.A. in applied mathematics and a Ph.D. in applied physics under the mentorship of Professor David Turnbull in 1973. That same year, he completed an M.B.A. at the MIT Sloan School of Management. From 1991 to 1993, he served as a Visiting Fellow in Slavic Languages and Literatures at Harvard.

Career

Rossolimo’s professional journey began as a financial analyst at Pechiney SA in Paris before transitioning to brand management roles at the Clorox Company in Oakland. He subsequently joined the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) as a management consultant and project leader, earning recognition as one of 62 distinguished BCG alumni worldwide. He later held the position of director of planning and financial analysis at United Brands Company, working across Boston, New York, and Chicago. In 1980, he became part of Digital Equipment Corporation in Maynard, Massachusetts, contributing to management research, business strategy development, corporate venturing initiatives, and security operations under founder Ken Olsen.

In 1999, Rossolimo co-established Intellect Exchange Inc., a technology startup focused on knowledge management, where he acted as Chief Executive Officer. By 2006, he assumed the role of regional director at a strategic consulting firm specializing in conducting due diligence for private equity and venture capital entities.

Fluent in several languages, Rossolimo has delivered presentations at international forums held in cities such as London, Paris, Moscow, and Casablanca. He has served as president and chairman of the Boston Chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG), an influential network for corporate growth and mergers and acquisitions professionals. In 1995, he secured first place in the ACG Dealmaker Challenge. His governance experience includes membership on ACG Global’s board and advisory roles with Radia Technologies Corporation. Rossolimo is affiliated with organizations like the Boston Security Analysts Society, the System Dynamics Society, and the New England chapter of the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD). He also held leadership positions including President of the Harvard Club of Cape Cod (2015) and director for Southeastern New England within the Harvard Alumni Association (2014–17).

Currently, Rossolimo chairs the Center for Security and Social Progress Inc (CSSP), a think tank dedicated to advancing policy analysis on global security issues, sustainable economic development, and social advancement. He co-founded CSSP alongside author Robin Moore. His writings have been published in leading outlets such as The New York Times, Boston Business Journal, The Wall Street Journal Europe, among others, addressing subjects like nuclear threats and terrorism’s influence on business environments. CSSP’s advisory board has featured notable figures including former US Secretary of State Alexander Haig, Goldman Sachs chairman John C. Whitehead, technology innovator David Packard, actor-diplomat Douglas Fairbanks Jr., and philanthropist Albert Hamilton Gordon. Nobel Prize winner Paul A. Samuelson commended Rossolimo’s contributions to CSSP as notably "prescient."