Technology EON Center » university of technology

From Technology Boom to Technology-Based Life:Pat Murphy, COO of The University Funds Offers Key Advice

admin — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 03:01:36 +0000

Pat received his B.S. in Agricultural Economics in 1982 from Washington State University and obtained a job as a loan officer, only to decide that he was unhappy with his career. His true calling sprang from a conversation of less than two-dozen words with the man he considers his role model, Bill Correll. Bill was the CEO of a small medical-software start-up when Pat graduated with his MBA in 1984; after he had interviewed with several prestigious companies, Bill asked him, “Why would you want a desk job when software is the future?” Pat then inquired, “Well, how much money can I make at that?” and Bill answered, “As much as you can!” The next day, Pat joined the team as employee number seven, Sales Manager.

At the time, software conveyed a limited understanding even to the people creating it. Pat freely admits, “We had no idea what we were doing or how much ongoing development was going to be needed.” Its finances couldn’t be properly explained to investors who didn’t understand why so much money was needed for ongoing research and development. In technology companies especially, R&D is highly correlated with success given such quick expansion, but with software then being new, this was not generally understood. Pat reveals that when beginning his career, he was extremely naïve about how much risk needed to be taken and the amount of required funding. Entrepreneurs and professors alike continually stress that to ensure that a business will succeed; it must double projected expenses and cut expected revenues in half; only if the business still has a chance should they proceed. Even with investors reluctant to fund ongoing research, Pat was still well paid and his leap of faith earned him double what he would have made working for the established companies with which he interviewed. Though money was what initially steered him in the direction of his career, his passion for building new and unique companies has driven him ever since.

In Pat’s 25 years of experience, he recalls several key learning incidents. “Human nature is a reality check,” he notes firmly, explaining that expecting partners, customers, suppliers or really anyone to do what they say is not a good idea. ‘Actions speak louder than words’ is a common phrase not to be forgotten in the world of business; Pat recalls his biggest professional mistake with guilt, reminded of a time when he didn’t do proper due diligence on a prospective employee for an Internet content-filtering company, N2H2. As a result, the company itself and people who worked there suffered; it became the reason Pat and others left the company. A poorly chosen management team can do more than make people miserable; it can damage the entire company.

Throughout Pat’s career, there are more positive memories than not. He has been involved in groundbreaking software and emerging industries, and consistently helped companies grow from start-up phase to substantial revenue-generating enterprises that merged, were bought or went public. “Even failure is success,” he expresses with optimism. Everything that happens can be learned from and provides forward-looking perspective. He admits that when he was younger and still in school, he would never have seen it that way. His views on success changed once he decided to start a family in 1994, as he started to focus on building long-term wealth beyond a corporate job and pay check by refocusing his efforts on building companies rather than working for a large organization. Success now means taking care of his family, which includes his kids Quinn, 12 and Samantha, 14.

Certain innate characteristics he has maintained have helped him succeed. He enjoys meeting a variety of people and has dealt with large and small businesses, non-profits and everything in between. He commits to understanding the extensive range of perspectives that people have, together with which products and companies are best suited for target markets. “Opportunity often presents itself through friendship,” he observes, and reflects that only one of the businesses with which he has been involved were planned and calculated from the beginning. “Entrepreneurs are people prepared to seize presented opportunities, even though it is always easier to say no.”

Since 2008, Pat has been involved in launching the University Funds, a business that combines venture capital with a business incubator. His official title is Chief Operating Officer for The University Funds, but he calls himself an entrepreneurial venture capitalist. His company works to turn research-based concepts from labs into viable companies in the marketplace. Since his start in entrepreneurship when home and business computer use began to explode, he has maintained that, “A part of success is timing and luck combined with a lot of hard work and surrounding yourself with highly capable people.”

Pat’s final advice to entrepreneurs? “Keep the rose-colored glasses in the case.”

Go Ahead to Study in World’s Avant-grade Universities

admin — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 08:02:58 +0000

London has one of the largest networks of universities in the UK. In total there are 28 recognized universities and colleges in London. With a student population of well over 250,000(approx), some famous universities and colleges are London School of Economics, University College London, Imperial College King’s College London, University of East London are the best universities in London. These universities are the acumen in cultural and technological field. Their researchers that are engaged in work of national and international importance across a wide range of disciplines. Business and research departments in the colleges and universities of London are always over-flooded with applications from students all across the globe.

Scotland is also one of the major countries known for its quality education and facilities. There are some famous universities like The University of St Andrews, The University of Glasgow, The University of Aberdeen, The University of Edinburgh.PhD graduates from Scottish universities that are really booming in abroad.. Research in Scottish higher education is successful at securing government funding in competitive bidding.

Australian colleges and universities are well represented in Sydney, with students having a number of choices of different types of learning institutions. Sydney Universities provide a quality and variety of education for all levels and areas of study. Some of the best universities are; University of Western Sydney, Macquarie University, University of Sydney, University of Technology Sydney. University of Western Sydney With over 32,000 students, the University of Western Sydney is one of the largest of the universities Australia has to offer. Over 3000 international students from 60 different countries choose to study at UWS each year.

Deakin University Melbourne is one of Australia’s most progressive and research oriented university. It provides a superior, multicultural, diverse quality and student-centered education.

Online Degrees College University Programs Let you Create your Future

admin — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 08:22:46 +0000

The success of distance learning for earning degrees has grown rapidly in the last few years and is having a significant impact on how people are advancing their educational goals and their careers at the same time. Earning online degrees college university level is becoming not only more common but is also becoming more accepted by many employers and by society in general.

There was a time when online degrees college university programs were considered “second rate” or were only for those who had some sort of problem that kept them from earning a degree the “normal way.” However, things have changed. Today, online degrees college distance learning programs are considered to a smart and savvy way to gain an education in a world that is overly busy and crammed to the brim with things to divert attention and challenge the achievement of lofty goals.

Online degrees college university programs have now come to the forefront of educational options. Large employers now consider distance learning programs as viable and desirable ways for their employees to advance their careers by studying related courses and earning graduate degrees online. There is almost no limit to the types of online accredited degrees that a person can choose to pursue via online degree programs from a multitude of colleges and universities.

As technology continues in improve while lifestyles continue to be more filled with multiple stresses and pressures, there is no doubt that this trend is going to continue strongly. While there was a time that there seemed to be a cap on how far one could go with online degrees of college and university level, people are no longer limited to earning online bachelor degrees via distance learning programs. Indeed, there are now many online degrees colleges and universities that offer which will result in being able to acquire accredited online Masters degrees and even accredited online doctorate degrees.

Current online technology allows for effective distance learning that is personalized and student-centered, as opposed to the more traditional models of education that were very fixed and centered on the institution’s or instructors agenda. While there are still many benchmarks that a student must achieve to assure their studies are accredited and proper credits are earned, the online student is not constrained by a plodding classroom pace or distracted by other students agendas.

Students best suited for online degrees college university programs are those who are strongly self-motivate, who are self-disciplined, who are able to effectively juggle their work and family responsibilities with their studies and exams. Prospective students who lack any of those qualities should considered opting for the more traditional approach of campus-based learning until they can develop these important characteristics that are essential to distance learning success.