Foundation Exodus Intensifies, with Two Key Departures

Since Mary 2006 at least other six PFF executives and fellows have resigned. Lenard replaced Dan Caprio, who left after about six months as president. Most other resignations came after August 2006, when Ray Gifford gave up the presidency to spend more time with his family. He had worked for PFF from the Denver area. Now a lawyer in private practice, he said in an interview that PFF is enduring a “difficult” time. “They're trying to hold it together,” he said. “You have people pursuing what interests them, and it hopefully will give PFF some breathing space to get back on its feet and get its mojo back.” As evidence that despite the exodus the foundation remains strong, he cited its August annual meeting in Aspen, which drew more than 200 people.

McCoy said he is leaving PFF in good shape. “I did what I could to ensure it’s in good hands,” he said. “But now I've got to move on.” He agreed to stay on the job to help with the transition after Caprio and to plan the Aspen meeting. In their next positions, he and McCoy will push for the use of new technology in developing countries, said McCoy. He said iGrowth will support efforts by David Gross, State Department coordinator of international communications and information policy. AT&T, Cisco, Verizon and Yahoo are financing the group, which started in the spring, he said.

PFF is looking for a president, it said. “Our ability to further expand both our activities and our impact will best be served by bringing in a new team at the top,” Chairman Jay Keyworth said in a written statement. PFF hopes to pick a president “in a matter of weeks,” he said. The statement’s wording, which implied that Lenard and McCoy were asked to leave, puzzled some PFF alumni, since both had sought for some time to focus on international development.

Repeated personnel change at PFF has telecom and media industry officials concerned that its influence may be waning. The budget is unlikely to rise much in 2007 from last year, Lenard and Gifford said in August. This year’s outlays may shrink; vacancies mean less to spend on salaries. Before the departures, revenue was on track to be “on par” with 2006, said Lenard. The budget almost doubled during Gifford’s tenure as president. It’s hard to say how the latest departures will affect fundraising, Gifford said Monday. Annual spending has been $2 million to $3 million, said another former staffer.

PFF may have been hurt by several fellows’ harsh words for policies of FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, said former staffers and industry officials. Adam Thierer’s criticism of the idea of selling cable channels on an individual basis, a Martin priority, apparently displeased the chairman. PFF didn’t change its research to suit Martin, and its funding wasn’t hurt, Lenard said. “We call them as we see them,” he said. The firm stand against a la carte even may have increased the group’s credibility, at least outside the FCC, he said. “PFF, I think, has stood by its principles,” Gifford said.

PFF has a hard time filling vacancies, since it pays less than law firms and requires expertise in highly specialized areas, former staffers said. Organizations that offer fellowships, as PFF does, must compete intensely: There’s a limited supply of experts in its bailiwick of intellectual property, media and telecommunications regulation and antitrust law. Former staffers also noted that many existing staffers were seizing unique opportunities. Vice President Patrick Ross left in May to become the first head of the Copyright Alliance. James DeLong resigned in May to help start the Convergence Law Institute. “There were reasons for people to go” unrelated to PFF, DeLong said in August. “To a large extent it was chance” that so many left in such a short time, he said.

“Think tanks are somewhat fragile places because people who are there usually have more lucrative opportunities,” said Gifford last month. Hiring can be slowed by the limited number of candidates and the need to match personalities to the culture, he said. “You do need to be very sensitive to the ecology of the place,” he added. “You need to make sure the chemistry works.” The group has replaced several departed employees. Scott Wallsten filled former fellow Kyle Dixon’s shoes, Dixon said. “The challenges for any think tank really are the competition for talented people,” he said. “Whether they are lawyers or economists, they could be making a lot more money in the private sector. So I think that ends up being the ongoing challenge.”