A Personal Salutation to a Dear Friend,Robert F. Lusch

Bob Lusch’s contributions and achievements during his academic career are well known and appreciated within the marketing discipline. His scholarship in channels of distribution, marketing theory and related research are highly recognized as evidenced by the citations associated with his body of work and those with his co-authors and other scholars. Many of those citations are included in other articles published in this section memorializing the impact Bob Lusch has had on the discipline of Marketing. His service to our discipline is also evidenced by the offices he held, the leadership he brought to those offices and his commitment to service. With regard to his leadership, his academic positions, and his colleagues acceptance of his leadership at these institutions speak volumes about the credibility, loyalty, respect and appreciation extended by colleagues and administrators, alike. This tribute does not add to these accolades; rather, this tribute is dedicated to Robert Lusch: the man, husband, father, and particularly, the dearest of friends. The objective of this piece is to articulate, hopefully, the personal side of a forty year plus friendship and in so doing, highlighting the personal characteristics that made Prof. Robert Lusch so impactful on everyone he came in contact with.

I first met Bob Lusch in the early 1970s when I joined the PhD program in Marketing at the University of Wisconsin. My cohort of students there included Gene Laczniak (Marquette), George Moschis (Georgia State), Bob Smith (Indiana) and Jacob Naor (Maine). All of them went on to have fine, successful academic careers. (I noted their eventual academic affiliation in parentheses). However, in short order, it was clear that Robert F. Lusch was truly something special. This was an interesting, dynamic time for Marketing academia. The model of doctoral education was rapidly shifting from a concentration on teaching and consulting to an emphasis upon producing social science research. The University of Wisconsin was blessed to have an old guard that was deeply involved in the marketing architecture of various corporations as well as a young group of bright, committed scholars who were on the cutting edge of marketing theory and research. This combination of perspectives provided a world-class education in Marketing. Bob, whose father Frank, owned a wholesale tire company, came into the program thinking it would hone his operational and consulting skills (It did!); but Bob quickly perceived that marketing academics could have their greatest impact by advancing knowledge. Of our cohort, Bob Lusch most easily moved between the two camps, always contributing thoughtful, helpful observations to both faculty and fellow PhD students. And when putting together his dissertation committee, Bob chose wisely selecting Prof. Shelby Hunt to chair his dissertation and Prof. Gilbert Churchill to mentor his methodological approach. Obviously, Bob’s academic career was off to a great start.

While Bob was super-focused, he absolutely surprised me on several occasions. He had an adventurous streak which may have explained his great intellectual curiosity. Early in the spring semester before his graduation, Bob approached me and asked if he could join my skiing group. This surprised me because, while I had met Bob, I really did not know him socially. Franz Fisher, a Real Estate Ph.D. student and I were skiing Tuesday nights. We had tried to keep this quiet because it might suggest we lacked a seriousness of purpose, but word had gotten out. Bob was a novice skier but wanted to learn. He did and was pretty good on the slopes in a very short while – without lessons. During this period, I promised Bob that I would take him for a weekend to my family’s home in Northern Wisconsin. Shortly thereafter, Franz told me he had a pilot’s license and access to a single engine plane. He would fly us north if we rented the plane and bought the gas. Bob agreed to join us. Little did I know this trip would be Franz’s first flight since receiving his pilot’s license. But, we piled into the plane with Bob in the back seat. We took off, climbed to a reasonable altitude and Franz began to trim the plane’s single engine. The sputtering engine brought Bob out of his seat wanting to know what was wrong. We explained the trim and he settled down to enjoy the rest of the flight. Flying in a single engine plane was a new experience for him. Finally, before Bob graduated, he needed a place to stay for a couple of months. A fellow Ph.D. student and I were caretakers of a house. There was room. The catch was, we entertained a lot—sometimes conversation, sometimes parties—and I knew Bob appreciated quiet time. I also knew he had a special lady friend in Tucson. I explained he was welcome, but quiet was not the norm. We became housemates and all ended well.

Bill Darden, a marketing scholar and mutual friend of Bob’s, called to invite me on a fishing trip to up-state New York—recent Winter Olympics Country. There was a famous trout stream for us to fish. The catch (no pun intended) was I had to provide a paper for review/acceptance to the Lusch/Darden 1981 Workshop on Retail Patronage. A paper (Lill and Michie 1981) was accepted for publication. Our free time would be spent fishing. Being from Arizona, Bob had never fished much, particularly for trout. True to Bill’s word, we did go fishing. It turned out, the stream’s bottom was full of big rocks, the fly rod was a mystery to Bob and hip boots don’t work well when sitting in 2-3 feet of water. Bob spent most of his time on the river’s bank. Darden and I didn’t have a single bite. However, we enjoyed harassing Bob about his fishing acumen.

Before I move on from Bob’s love of adventure, I once mentioned to him that I was taking a trip with my wife to Chihuahua, Mexico. Being raised in Tucson with a family business operating in Southeastern Arizona, Bob was quite familiar with the Arizona-Sonora International Border; especially, it’s cross border communities of Douglas-Agua Prieta and Nogales-Nogales. Bob decided (I am sure with approval) he and Virginia would join us. Part of the trip involved an eight hour train ride to Mexico’s Copper Canyon. The Barrancas Hotel was located on the edge of an 800 foot cliff that was a lookout into the canyon. The hotel was nice, but primitive: a generator shut off at 8:00 pm, no lights, no central heating, no running water – but each room had a fireplace. Nighttime temperatures dropped into the low 30’s. There was nothing to do after eight PM – except go to bed! Don’t sleepwalk! Bob and Virginia’s room was located less than fifteen feet from the cliff’s edge. Beautiful overlook, but the canyon’s protective railing wouldn’t hold a bird. We had a great time walking the canyon’s rim, riding horses and taking the train.

We were back from the trip about six weeks when I received a note from Virginia. She was pregnant, and kiddingly said I was responsible for putting them in that situation at Copper Canyon. She expected child support payments annually – for twins!! For the next several years, I enclosed in our Christmas Greetings, a $1,000 check stating there was only so much support I could afford. Virginia needed to stretch that rubber check as far as possible. The bantering helped initiate a bond that brought the families together on various occasions. Again, these were the types of interactions that characterized Bob, and from that point forward, Virginia.

Some years later, Bob and Virginia decided they wanted a get-away second home where they could relax. Because I knew the state of New Mexico well, he asked if I could help them find a suitable property. He and I looked at several cabins, haciendas and ranches. He particularly liked a home that was located in a very isolated canyon in Western New Mexico. The property was beautiful. However, the narrow and deep canyon was located at the foot of a 13,000 foot mountain. I suggested there were three problems: reliable water supply, electricity and washout floods. Further, if they sought a get-away, Western New Mexico was a four to five hour drive from Tucson. I suggested he look south of Tucson, in the Patagonia area. It was high desert with beautiful views. The drive from Tucson could be two hours or less. Their final choice was to build a beautiful hacienda in that area. This was the setting for a few of the nonacademic lifetime activities we shared, activities that often included Monica and Gene Laczniak.

I often thought about where Bob got his inquisitive nature for things that were intriguing. Then, I met Frank, his dad. If ever there was a character -- Frank had an “insatiable” quest for life. Bob was not Frank, but a lot of Frank was in Bob. If something was new and different: a sporting challenge, single engine plane, technology, new social science theory, society, it drew Bob’s interest. Bob and Virginia made a great team. They shared that zest for life.

Throughout our careers, Bob and I were supportive of each other’s endeavors. As a Ph.D. student, Bob invited me to Norman, Oklahoma to discuss with him the research design for my dissertation, the role of power in the administration of product warranty programs. While there, he introduced me to Bert McCammon. An acclaimed scholar, Dr. McCammon tracked and reported the financial performances of various industries. He welcomed my interest in his work and provided me with his latest reports. That introduction helped inform Michie (1977). As an aside, Bob and I enjoyed dinner at Bob’s favorite Mexican restaurant, an old converted 50 foot mobile trailer, located in Pink, Oklahoma – the food was great! The next night we ate at Dr. McCammon’s favorite steakhouse. Oklahoma, being “bring your own beverage,” we tapped Dr. M.’s ever present cache. Great discussion! Great dining! I don’t think Bob knew how to cook!

Our interaction regarding distribution research continued as we discussed our approaches to the roles for cooperation, conflict, relational competition, opportunism, satisfaction, trust, etc. Our discussions were sometimes pretty intense but clearly certain thoughts translated into an approach-in-common to research and managerial issues. For example, at one time, conflict was considered a managerial alternative to cooperation for the administration of channels of distribution. Conceptually, Bob and I agreed that conflict could not be an alternative managerial strategy to cooperation, because conflict was an outcome, the result associated with competition between channel members. Conflict management, functional and dysfunctional, existed to minimize the negative effects of its presence. Our discussions contributed to an article by Eliashberg and Michie (1984) “Mutiple business Goals Sets as Determinants of Marketing Channel Conflict.” In that study, the relationship between perceived conflict and the role of business goals as a determinant of conflict was investigated. My discussions with Bob were the genesis of that research.

And then there was the Michie and Sibley (1979) paper, “Channel Conflict, Coopetition and Cooperation” in which we argued the managerial roles for conflict, cooperation and competition were misunderstood; it was accepted in the Lusch and Zinszer (1979), Contemporary Issues in Marketing Channels. We challenged the role of cooperation by suggesting cooperation and competition were alternative relational behaviors used for the management of the supply chain. I believe Bob came to accept that argument as being consistent with his and Vargo’s Service Logic Theory of Marketing (See Barua, Mukhopadhyay and Michie 2020).

As further evidence of his support to seeing theory develop over time, Bob also served on Ph.D. student Maria Barua’s dissertation committee at The University of Texas, El Paso. Why? Ms. Barua’s (2013) dissertation was based on an empirical study testing the Relational Cooperation/Relational Competition Managerial Continuum in the global automotive supply chain. Bob’s support not only included his committee role, but he hosted Ms. Barua twice in Tucson and participated at a presentation of her research at a Winter Conference held in Clearwater, Florida (Barua and Michie 2012). Further, Bob’s insights into Transaction Cost analysis and the role of opportunism are being integrated into Ms. Barua’s forthcoming study of opportunism, its role within the management of a major global supply chain. Ms. Barua's discussions with Bob also led to a conference paper and presentation being submitted to the Society of Marketing Advances Conference (Barua and Michie 2014). This specific example is representative of many such gestures over the years that Bob made for PhD students at institutions outside his own.

Throughout our careers, Bob and I interacted to support each other. On several occasions, we collaborated to identify suitable employment opportunities for Ph.D. students or to relocate junior faculty who sought jobs at other institutions. If Bob had arranged special speakers addressing students or faculty, I often received an invite. He and Virginia visited our Ph.D. program, spending time with students discussing research and special topics. Most important, he interacted with students discussing issues that were important to them, often and always.

One cannot say enough about his role as husband and father. Virginia and Bob were a team: sometimes co-researchers and authors. From the beginning of their relationship, Virginia was most supportive of Bob’s career. As parents, they were most supportive of their children, Heather, and the twins, Mark and Steve. Their support was rewarded. Heather and Mark have their careers and families. Steve is on the faculty at Texas Christian University. Obviously, the years of support received via my previously noted “rubber” checks, contributed significantly to the family’s success.

Bob had many friends. I don’t think my friendship with him was much different than others who knew him well. If you knew Bob, you knew the same inquisitive, loyal and caring guy I did. It was never dull! He once called and asked me to come to Tucson for a business meeting. When I arrived, he said, “His partners wanted to buy an island in Mexico!” I said, “You remember the 1917 Mexican Revolution? Check with the Philippines. They have a thousand islands.” Like I said, he had a lot of Frank in him!

Bob called to tell me about his health situation. He was very open about its nature, prognosis and treatment. I drove to Tucson and we continued on to Virginia and Bob’s Hacienda. During the trip he discussed the symptoms and other related details. Sometime later, I met Virginia and Bob in Scottsdale for dinner just prior to one of his last Mayo Clinic visits. I was moved by the closeness, the sharing between them. Both were very optimistic about a positive report they expected the next day regarding his treatment outcome. After that visit, Bob and I communicated by phone and e-mail. My last telephone conversation with him was very emotional. Neither of us was handling it well. My last words spoken to him were “Love ya, Bob.”