Updated: May 8, 2026
Name: David Olson Ulrich
Date of Birth: 1953 (age 73 years)
Origin: Ely, Nevada, United States
Gender: Male
Religion: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Nationality: American
Occupation: Professor, Author, Management Consultant, Speaker
Genres: Human Resources, Leadership, Organizational Development, Business Management
Marital Status: Married
Wife: Wendy Ulrich
Net Worth: $10 million (estimated)
Biography & Career:
Dave Ulrich is a renowned American author, speaker, management consultant, and academic widely regarded as the father of modern HR. Born David Olson Ulrich in 1953 in Ely, Nevada, he earned a degree at Brigham Young University and a doctorate in business at UCLA. The career of this professor Dave Ulrich has spanned more than four decades and reshaped how companies around the world think about human capability.
As the Rensis Likert Professor at the Ross School of Business, University of Michigan, Dave Ulrich has taught generations of business leaders and co-founded The RBL Group, a consulting firm focused on talent, leadership, and organizational capability. The signature model of HR roles — outlining HR as strategic partner, change agent, employee champion, and administrative expert — fundamentally redefined the modern HR function.
The Dave Ulrich best books include classics such as Human Resource Champions, HR from the Outside In, The HR Value Proposition, and The Why of Work. Together, more than 30 publications have shaped both academic theory and corporate practice. The author has been ranked the #1 Management Educator by BusinessWeek and inducted into the Thinkers50 Hall of Fame.
Practitioners worldwide can engage with the work through workshops and a popular Dave Ulrich course offered through The RBL Group and academic partners, covering HR competencies and organizational design. The Dave Ulrich age continues to draw curiosity, as does the consultant's prolific output across keynote speeches in over 90 countries.
The wife is Wendy Ulrich, a psychologist and author who founded the Sixteen Stones Center for Growth. Together they have three children and several grandchildren. On the question of religion, he is a devout member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and presided over the Canada Montreal Mission from 2002 to 2005.
Dave Ulrich Books:
Human Resource Champions
HR from the Outside In
The HR Value Proposition
HR Transformation
Leadership Code
The Why of Work
Results-Based Leadership
The HR Scorecard
Organizational Capability
The Boundaryless Organization
Reinventing the Organization
Victory Through Organization
Leadership Capital Index
The Rise of HR
HR Competencies
