Cultivating leaders with entrepreneurial vision

(Cover story, Capitol Chronicle, Winter 2006)

Before becoming Capitol College graduates, Richard Zuschlag and Harold Stinger were much like any number of their fellow classmates. Zuschlag enrolled shortly after high school, looking for a way to transform his penchant for electrical gadgets into a lifelong career. Stinger came to Capitol following years of service in the Air Force, working with ground and air traffic radio control.

But it’s after their graduation that the two men set off on a path much different than many of their fellow graduates.

Zuschlag is now CEO of a private ambulance service in Louisiana that saved thousands of lives when Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast. Stinger is president of an aerospace-services company that NASA named recipient of its prestigious award for contractor excellence; only four companies in the nation received the honor.

They are two of a small number of Capitol graduates who have taken their engineering education, added their own innovative spirit and started and now operate multimillion-dollar businesses. And with a new institute at Capitol College, President Michael Wood envisions cultivating many, many more graduates just like them – leaders who commit their ingenuity to corporate and social good.

Shortly after starting his presidency in 2004, Wood began talking about how the college would meld technology and business education to develop leaders with technical savvy. Nearly three years later, beginning in early 2007, the college will launch its new Institute for Innovation and Leadership, a center that will accomplish just that.

“The institute is a way to blend the two fields and go beyond our roots in engineering and technology. We position ourselves as a college that prepares future leaders, especially in the technical fields,” Wood said.

Since its founding nearly 80 years ago, Capitol has trained and educated thousands of students in diverse fields: radio engineering, optoelectronics, electrical engineering, computer programming, telecommunications management, to name a few. But times have changed since 1927. The industry expects and demands more from today’s engineers and technologists. Companies want employees who can speak and write, as well as understand the business behind the process. Knowing the importance of budgets and schedules improves efficiency and competitiveness in the marketplace.

Engineers and technologists, Wood says, need to be able to see the bigger picture, influence other people, take risks, command a following, see new solutions and organize efforts.

The first institute offerings will be more of the professional services nature – training designed for the mid-level technologist who wants to further develop his skills or advance his career. Initially, the institute will focus on the needs of students already with bachelor’s degrees or working at the graduate level and who are interested in professional certificates. Eventually, Wood said, he wants to create institute offerings appropriate for undergraduate-level students.

While structured education is one aspect, the institute will offer more than just courses. Plans include conducting practical applied research and publishing white papers and case studies to share best practices for government and private industry.

Wood wants to establish a mentoring program. Local business and government leaders would be matched up with students to help guide and advise them as they develop their careers and talents. He also wants to start a Leader-in-Residence program. Each semester or year an accomplished leader would be on campus to teach courses and serve as a general resource to students and faculty. While one major goal is developing the future leaders and innovators of tomorrow, the institute will also serve as a community resource, perhaps as a technology business incubator.

“We want to develop leaders who can take an idea from concept to marketing, and who then know how to spin off an idea into a new organization,” Wood says.

Capitol is not the first or only higher education institution to offer programs that marry the technology and business fields. But Wood believes that because of Capitol’s niche in the applied sciences and its reputation for practical, high-quality education, as well as its prime location in the Baltimore/DC region, it’s best suited to meet the needs of many local agencies and businesses.

“We have built and continue to develop partnerships with business and government for higher education,” Wood said. “Through these partnerships, Capitol students have a rare opportunity to blend theory and academic studies with practical, hands-on experience. With our niche focus, the new institute won’t get buried in a school, college or department of a larger university.”

A panel of industry advisors agree that Capitol is the ideal place for this new venture. Professionals from companies such as Booz Allen Hamilton and Motorola helped guide the development of the institute.

The students attracted to Capitol have a strong technical background and appreciate the college’s legacy and specialty within that area of study, said Steve Newhouse, vice president of business development for Atlantic Builders in Baltimore, who served on the institute’s advisory panel.

“The kind of students who come to Capitol are often very focused on the technical aspects of a project,” Newhouse said. “And I think they understand to be successful, they need to get the business skills to manage others and be able to lead.”

Newhouse said the demand for business acumen is necessary even in his industry – construction. Construction engineers often have the experience of designing, building and working on the sites. But they often lack the insight of managers who are tied to budgets and schedules. The business-experienced managers, Newhouse said, often lack the on-site experience and understanding of working in the trenches. Newhouse’s career has aptly moved between the technical and business arenas.

“Most of what I’ve done for 26 years is developing relationships with my clients,” Newhouse said. “Having the technical and business knowledge helps me sell construction projects. I have a high empathy for clients about the needs for their space.”

That understanding helps many leaders build and expand their businesses. For ambulance company owner Zuschlag, that understanding allowed him to take confident risks during the devastating hurricane. There were numerous times in the ensuing days of chaos that he told his medics and other employees to do whatever it takes to get the job done, even if it meant bending the rules as dictated by FEMA and other governing agencies.

But first and foremost, Zuschlag understood the technical demands of his business.

“Part of the success of our evacuation of the hospitals was because of my communications background and my determination to have back up systems in place,” Zuschlag said. “There is no question that some of the engineering courses I took at Capitol helped me in our communications. I believe that our communication system was the only one still working after the storm passed through.”

Zuschlag took a risk, and according to Wood, that’s the spirit the institute needs to cultivate to help society advance.

“Young adults will develop social and technical skills,” he said. “Working adults will acquire expertise to succeed in business leadership careers. The college will build a cadre of alumni with the integrity and knowledge to inspire the future of America’s technology enterprise.”