Rodney H. Brady was born on January 31, 1933 the son of Kenneth A. and Jessie Madsen Brady. After graduation from Jordan high School, Brady entered the University of Utah in 1951. He interrupted his university studies to serve an LDS mission to Great Britain from 1953-1955. He returned to the University of Utah and simultaneously completed work for both a B.S. in Accounting and an MBA, each awarded with high honors in June, 1957. Brady pursued a doctoral studies at the Harvard graduate school of business from 1957-1959 prior to service in the United States Air Force from 1959-1962. He married Carolyn Ann (Mitzi) Hansen on October 25, 1960 and they are the parents of three sons. After finishing his stint in the military, Brady joined the Management Systems Corporation as Vice President (1962-1965) and later joined the Hughes Tool Company where he served as Vice President from 1966-1970. Brady returned to Harvard in 1965 to complete his Doctorate in business administration and his dissertation, "The Impact of Computers on Top Management Decision Making in the Aerospace and Defense Industry" was named the outstanding dissertation of the year by the school. From 1970-1972 he served in the Nixon administration as Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare. In 1972 he began a six-year career as Executive Vice President, Chairman of the Executive Committee and member of the Board of Directors of Bergen Brunswig Company.

On June 16, 1978 Brady was named by the Utah State Board of Regents to succeed outgoing President Joseph L. Bishop on July 1, 1978. From the beginning of his tenure as President, Brady emphasized the importance of making Weber State College a superior undergraduate college stressing teaching excellence. In addition to his business and educational service, Brady has been active in a variety of church, civic and service organizations. Most notably, he has been active in the Boy Scouts of America.

In March 1985 in a letter to the Utah State Board of Regents, Brady announced he would resign his post as president on July 1, 1985. In April 1985, the Weber State College Institutional Council awarded Brady the status of President Emeritus. On May 3, 1985 Brady was named President and Chief Executive Officer of Bonneville International Corporation. In 1996 Brady became the President of the Deseret Management Corporation, retiring from this position in March of 2009. Brady died on January 9, 2017 from autoimmune hemolytic anemia and Alzheimer’s disease.