Richard D. Parsons.

• Author: Porter, Martin
• Position: Joins the board of the Estee Lauder Cos.

A seat on the Estee Lauder board is the latest in a series of 'happy accidents' for Time Warner's president.

It WAS A Friday afternoon in June when DIRECTORS & BOARDS visited Time Warner Inc. President Richard D. Parsons in his 29th-floor Rockefeller Center office, adorned with heavy bronze figures alongside several large, stuffed Warner Bros. cartoon characters. Casually dressed, Parsons was excited that he would soon be calling it quits for the day and off to Madison Square Garden to attend the NBA championship game between the New York Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs. Given the team's injury list and past performance in the series, Parsons wasn't optimistic about a Knicks victory, but was in no way going to miss being at the sold-out stadium to root for his home team. (The Knicks did indeed lose to the Spurs that night.)

This was one of the few occasions that allowed Parsons to settle back from his demanding schedule. In addition to his responsibilities at Time Warner, Parsons works actively on major New York City projects and serves on several prestigious nonprofit boards. He is also a corporate director at three multibillion-dollar international companies -- Citigroup Inc., Philip Morris Cos., and most recently, Estee Lauder Cos., which he joined in April 1999.

What is particularly striking about Parsons is his unassuming style, a trait few would expect from the president of one of the world's most dynamic media companies. Speaking in a cool, collected, hushed tone, Parsons, who grew up in the middle-class sections of Brooklyn and Queens, characterizes his career as a "series of happy accidents," and humbly attributes his success to "80% luck." One of those fortunate breaks was when he landed a job as assistant counsel to New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller upon graduating in 1971 from Albany Law School, where he was class valedictorian.

"Through Rockefeller I had a wonderful career in government, both at the state and federal levels," he says. "I was able to parlay that experience and support into an interesting career." He was only in his early 30s when he was representing many of Rockefeller's vastly diverse legal affairs. Many of the powerful and influential clients he later represented were because of his work with Rockefeller. He says, "People must have thought that if I was good enough to be Rockefeller's lawyer, I was good enough to be their lawyer." That connection would influence not only his list of clients, but also many...