Former CEO of Circuit City Stores Inc., Alan Wurtzel led Circuit City to be one of the nation’s largest retailers of brand-name consumer electronics and major appliances, as well as personal computers and music software. His father, Samuel S. Wurtzel, founded the retail company in 1,200 square feet of rented space in a Richmond, Va. tire store in 1949. Samuel called the business, Wards – an acronym for the names of his family members: Wurtzel, Alan, Ruth, David and Sam. Alan joined the company in 1966 as vice president for legal affairs. The company was renamed Circuit City in the late 1970s. He served as CEO from 1972 to 1986 and chairman of the board from 1984 to 1994. From Delaplane, Va., Wurtzel served as vice-chairman of the board from 1994 to 2001. Circuit City was profiled as one of 11 companies in the best selling business book "Good to Great" written by Jim Collins. The book asked the question, "Can a good company become a great company and if so, how?" The book examined “rare and truly great companies with a corporate culture that rigorously found and promoted disciplined people to think and act in a disciplined manner.” He was a member of the Virginia State Board of Education from 1991 to 1995, a trustee of Oberlin College and Virginia Commonwealth University, and president of Operation Independence, a nonprofit organization that supports Israel’s economic independence effort.