When a door opens

Not every success story is the result of careful planning and execution. In Mark Suwyn's case his rise to the top of corporate America came because of his natural curiosity: "When I saw a door open, I walked through it." Most of the time everything worked out, except for when it didn't. And in those cases there were lessons to learn about why people behave the way they do, how far merit can take you, and where it can't, and how persistence, mixed with luck, pays off in the end.

Mark Suwyn grew up in Denver, Colorado in the 1940s and 50s. He worked jobs to get out of farm chores at home and soon found the freedom that comes with making your own money and taking on responsibility. He joined Junior Achievement in High School, which led to a fascination with how business - and the people in them - work. "When a Door Opens" chronicles Suwyn's youth, his college years and his rise within DuPont and International Paper and his time as CEO of Louisiana-Pacific and NewPage. But not every success story is the result of careful planning and execution. In Suwyn's case his rise to the top of corporate America came from his natural curiosity: "When I saw a door open, I walked through it." Most of the time everything worked out, except for when it didn't. And in those cases there were lessons to learn about why people behave the way they do, how far merit can take you, and where it can't, and how persistence, mixed with luck, pays off in the end.

From a Colorado dirt farm to the higher echelons of corporate America, Mark Suwyn takes the reader on a journey filled with risks, good luck and hard work. His motto, "When a door opens, go through it," led him to the cutting edge of inclusive management, the founding of Junior Achievement International, and recognition by his community as Citizen of the Year. Suwyn was a senior vice president at DuPont, and then International Paper, CEO of Louisiana-Pacific, CEO of NewPage and is now an active investor.