His mother died from complications related to childbirth and his father subsequently married June Fowler Allen.
He then attended Brigham Young University where he graduated with a major in Communications—Television Production and a minor in Advertising and Public Relations.
Prior to his call as a mission president, Allen was the director of Media and Public Programs in the church's Missionary Department.
He was responsible for the production and distribution of radio, television, and print media directed to nonmembers as well as the church's pageants, visitors' centers, and historic sites.
[6] Following his service as a mission president in Arizona, Allen served as managing director of the church's Missionary Department for 18 years until he retired in February 2017.