Fulton County Tax Commissioner

Arthur E. Ferdinand, Ph.D.

After leaving IBM in 1993, Dr. Ferdinand founded Productivity and Quality Incorporated, a consulting and research firm for subjects relating to organization behavior, quality, productivity, and software engineering. A book entitledThe Economics & Science of Contemporary Managementis to be published.Dr. Arthur E. Ferdinand is a former IBM executive with 25 years experience in advanced technology, product development, and business operations. He earned a B.Sc. degree in Mathematics with First Class Honors and a Ph.D. in Mathematical Physics from London University, England. Post-Doctoral study was done at Cornell University. As a Presidential Interchange Executive to the Federal Government in the Department of Transportation, Dr. Ferdinand worked on long-term strategic transportation issues. He has published numerous scientific papers in leading scientific journals. In 1993, Van Nostrand Reinhold published his groundbreaking book entitledSystems, Software, and Quality Engineering: Applying Defect Behavior Theory to Programming.

On January 1, 1997, Dr. Ferdinand was appointed Tax Commissioner of Fulton County, and subsequently elected and re-elected to the position. As the Fulton County Tax Commissioner, he collects taxes for Fulton County, the cities of Atlanta, Mountain Park, Sandy Springs, Johns Creek, Chattahoochee Hills, and the school boards of Fulton County and the City of Atlanta. The Tax Commissioner administers motor vehicle ad valorem taxes, tags, and titles.

Today most aspects of collecting and reporting of taxes are automated. Technology and employee education have been his focal points since taking office. Since his appointment as Tax Commissioner of Fulton County in 1997, Dr. Ferdinand has increased the collection rate for property taxes from 90 percent to 99 percent, with total annual revenue collections approaching one and three quarter billion dollars.

Dr. Ferdinand is the past President of the Georgia Association of Tax Officials of Metropolitan Atlanta, and past Chairman of the Tax Commissioners Technology Development Council of Georgia.