(Photo by Don Kadair)
Name: Byron C. Clayton
Position: President & CEO, Research Park Corp.
Age: 58
Hometown: Aurora, Ohio
Education: Doctor of Management, Case Western Reserve University
Reveling in the high-tech, the complex and the innovative, Byron Clayton is no ordinary problem solver. As the president and CEO of the Research Park Corp., Clayton is using his past career experience integrating technology into new processes, managing cross-functional teams and working with different, sometimes adversarial organizations on joint efforts to help connect the dots for Louisiana’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. Clayton has witnessed how regions across the country are building high-performing entrepreneurial ecosystems to better compete for jobs, investors and talent, and he says Louisiana must “follow suit or risk falling behind in the ever-intensifying competition to drive regional economic growth.”
What was your first job, and what did you learn from it?
I worked at a General Motors Terex plant for two years while still in high school. I learned that high-tech was very cool and that I had a knack for solving problems using technology.
Please describe for our readers in a few sentences how you got to where you are today. What previous experience prepared you for the position of CEO?
My career path is a direct result of my ability and willingness to solve difficult problems. I started my career integrating state-of-the-art robotics, software and sensor technology to automate difficult and hazardous processes in manufacturing, nuclear and space applications. I spent the middle part of my career managing cross-functional teams to develop new high-tech systems and software. For the past several years, I’ve focused on helping multiple organizations work together to solve problems or pursue opportunities. Working with different and sometimes adversarial organizations on joint projects is what has best prepared me for the position of CEO at Research Park Corporation.
What traits or skills are important to have when being part of developing technology companies and driving innovation?
While there are many traits and skills important to innovation, I believe that only one is essential … resilience. Successful innovators learn from adversity, bounce back from failure and find ways to achieve their goals. In my opinion, resilience is the most common characteristic of highly successful innovators.
What is up next for the Research Park Corporation?
Starting in 2016, Research Park Corporation will re-brand as NexusLA (pronounced Nexus Louisiana) and will become a center of engagement for entrepreneurial ecosystems located in the Baton Rouge area. As a center of engagement, we will simplify how entrepreneurs and innovators access the information, resources and business opportunities needed to accelerate their success, across organizational and regional boundaries. NexusLA will also connect Baton Rouge ecosystems to complementary ecosystems across Louisiana to improve our ability to compete against other regions, states and countries for jobs, investors and talent. Over time, NexusLA will become a nationally recognized model and resource for accelerating the success of entrepreneurial ecosystems in small to midsize regions.
Please describe the motivation and strategy behind RPC’s new brand and role.
Regions from around the U.S. are continuing to build high-performing entrepreneurial ecosystems to better compete for jobs, investors and talent. Many have developed multiple centers of engagement, connected across organizational and regional boundaries, each focused on specific business or technology sectors. Regions across Louisiana must follow suit or risk falling behind in the ever-intensifying competition to drive regional economic growth.
How does the technology startup environment in Baton Rouge compare to other markets you’ve worked in? Where (or in what sectors) do you see potential for growth in the Baton Rouge market?
Our startup environment is mediocre at best. Our public and private organizations must work together to make it easier for entrepreneurs and innovators to access the help they need across organizational and regional silos. There are a number of high-potential sectors here including digital technologies, water management, education technology and innovation, food and agribusiness, petrochemical/chemical and bioscience.
Why Baton Rouge?
Our region is large enough to already have many of the assets needed to develop several thriving entrepreneurial ecosystems. Yet we are small enough to implement change fairly quickly. If we work together, the roadmap to success is clear.
What has been the most fulfilling moment in your career to date?
I had an idea for a new software division, sold my vision to the board, then started and ran the division for seven years. During that time, we developed and commercialized 36 new products. The new division became profitable in its first full year of operation and within three years became the corporation’s most profitable division.
What is one thing about your job people don’t expect or know about and hear about?
For people in our entrepreneurial ecosystems, their success is my success.
What is a great piece of advice you have personally received? Did you have occasion to put it to use?
The road to success is never a straight line. I have this posted on my bulletin board with a squiggly line showing what success really looks like. I rarely get through a day without referring to it.
How many employees do you have? How would you describe your workplace culture?
Research Park Corporation has seven employees including me. Five of the seven primarily focus on the operations and services of our technology incubator, the Louisiana Technology Park. Our workplace culture prioritizes respect for others, accountability and personal growth.
What are some of your best practices you’d like to implement or have already implemented at RPC?
We are implementing tools and processes to measure organizational and ecosystem success.
What did you learn the hard way?
Be careful who you trust.
What is the next challenge you have planned?
I’ve decided to try AGAIN to conquer golf. It’s the only sport that I consistently get worse at.
What gets your workday off to a good start?
Working out to P90X3.
What is your favorite way to spend your time?
Learning about anything that can’t be explained or fully understood.
Is there an app that gets you through the day? If so, what is it?
No.
What is the greatest personal or professional obstacle you’ve overcome?
Completing my doctorate degree from a globally recognized practitioner-scholar program while running a company during the Great Recession.
What do you do to unwind?
Meditate.
If you had to be a teacher of something, what would you teach?
I enjoy teaching organizational change and innovation, but if I could choose anything, I would teach a series of courses on “the unexplained.”
