Printable Biography of Ed Ruggero

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Ed Ruggero, after graduating from West Point in 1980, was commissioned in the United States Army and served as an infantry officer in a variety of positions around the world. Awarded a Master's Degree in English from the University of North Carolina in 1987, Ed joined the faculty at West Point, where he taught writing and literature.

 

In 1990, he was selected for promotion and further schooling; that same year also saw the publication of his first book, "38 North Yankee", a novel about a modern Korean War.

Ed left the service in 1991 to pursue a career as a writer, public speaker and trainer. His writings on leadership, his story-telling talents and the success of his first five novels, "The Common Defense" (1992), "Firefall" (1994), "Breaking Ranks" (1995) and "The Academy" (1997), brought him to the attention of the Pentagon.

 

Early in 1998, Ed co-authored the newly revised manual, Army Leadership, which is used throughout the service to teach the subject at all levels.

 

In 2001, HarperCollins published Ed's first non-fiction book, "Duty First: West Point And The Making of American Leaders" (2001), a study of leader development at the United States Military Academy. And, in November 2003, "Combat Jump: The Young Men Who Led The Assault On Fortress Europe, July 1943" was published. This book, based on interviews with veterans, tells the story of American's first large scale use of paratroopers to lead an invasion.

 

Also in 2003, Ed co-authored "The Leader's Compass: Set Your Course For Leadership Success" - a fictional story of how one leader developed his "leadership philosophy".

 

Ed's latest book, "The First Men in: U.S. Paratroopers and the Fight to Save D-day" (2006) follows "The Corporate Compass: Providing Focus and Alignment to Stay the Course (setting Course to Focus People's Energy" (2005).