Ray is retired after a varied career as management consultant, government official, author, and corporate officer. He earned degrees from MIT in Chemical Engineering and Humanities and from Harvard in Law. He served a number of companies as a management consultant based in Arthur D. Little’s Boston, London, and Brussels offices.
Ray joined the White House staff in 1970 advising President Nixon on domestic policies and moved to the State Department when Kissinger became Secretary of State. He returned to the White House Staff for President Ford’s presidency to draft an executive order reorganizing the intelligence community. During the Carter years he returned to consulting and legal work, writing several books about policy and international economic affairs. He rejoined government as Assistant Secretary of Commerce for International Economic Policy in President Reagan’s administration.
After leaving government, in 1985 he moved to Seattle to join The Boeing Company as Director of Government Affairs, retiring from the company in 2000 as Vice President for International Affairs. During his tenure at Boeing he joined the Discovery Institute Board of Directors shortly after its founding. After leaving Boeing, he joined the faculty of the University of Washington School of Business, teaching courses in international trade and marketing.
In 2005, Ray moved to a telecom start-up AuBeta as a Director, Legal Counsel and CFO. During his working career he published seven books and numerous articles on international economic subjects. He finally retired in 2010 to enjoy with his wife Mary sailing, travel, tennis, visiting children and grandchildren, and serving on boards including two times as condominium board president.