Pacific Biosciences
Mr. Martin joined Pacific Biosciences in 2004 as a seasoned executive with a 25-year track record managing leading edge technologies, new ventures, and high growth businesses. Previously, Mr. Martin was Chairman, President and CEO of ONI Systems?a high-speed optical telecommunications company he founded in 1998 and took public in 2000. Named the Fastest Growing Company in Silicon Valley in 2001, ONI was sold to Ciena in 2002. After its sale, Mr. Martin served as a consultant to Ciena, a CEO in residence at the venture capital firm of Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers, and was a Director at Cloudshield Technologies.
Prior to ONI, Mr. Martin was President and Director of 3DO?an interactive gaming company. His earlier experience includes running desktop engineering for Apple Computer and founding Ridge Computers?designer of the world's first commercial reduced instruction set computing (RISC) minicomputer.
Mr. Martin received a BS in Electrical Engineering at Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey. Mr. Martin currently serves on the Board of Directors of Pacific Biosciences and Infinera.
Related Links: http://www.pacificbiosciences.com
Last Updated: Wed, Jan 14, 2009
| Category | Title | Author/Speaker | Organization | Length | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Podcast | 13 Mistakes and 13 Brilliant Strokes | Hugh Martin | Pacific Biosciences | 54:30 | 01/2009 |
| Video | Don't Prolong Your Exit | Hugh Martin | Pacific Biosciences | 01:06 | 01/2009 |
| Video | Believe in the Value of Investors | Hugh Martin | Pacific Biosciences | 01:07 | 01/2009 |
| Video | The Impact of a CEO | Hugh Martin | Pacific Biosciences | 01:18 | 01/2009 |
| Video | Hiring the Best in Human Resources | Hugh Martin | Pacific Biosciences | 02:42 | 01/2009 |
| Video | The Benefits of Stockpiling Cash | Hugh Martin | Pacific Biosciences | 02:29 | 01/2009 |
| Video | Bravely Take On the Big Players | Hugh Martin | Pacific Biosciences | 01:07 | 01/2009 |
| Video | Building Resistance to Acquisition | Hugh Martin | Pacific Biosciences | 06:03 | 01/2009 |
| Video | People are Everything in the Start-Up | Hugh Martin | Pacific Biosciences | 01:12 | 01/2009 |
| Video | Overcommunicate Frequently | Hugh Martin | Pacific Biosciences | 01:21 | 01/2009 |
Hugh Martin, Chairman and CEO of Pacific Biosciences, looks back on the evolution of his career - from building computers to creating the future of medicine. Martin charts the lessons he learned working for large technology firms, as a leader in several successful start-ups, and while being courted by the VC community to launch a new wave in bioscience.
If you've decided to leave a large company in pursuit of other ventures, make it a clean break, advises Hugh Martin, Chairman and CEO of Pacific Biosciences. He cites a personal anecdote of one company who tried to reverse his decision through a laborious series of meetings with the executive team, and the disastrous results that ensued. If you plan to leave an organization, do so quickly and painlessly.
Hugh Martin, Chairman and CEO of Pacific Biosciences, advises entrepreneurs to avoid a common pitfall when it comes to the entrepreneur/VC relationship: Instead of viewing your board as an obstacle to be managed, think of them as a valuable resource and catalyst for opportunity. If you pick the right venture capitalists, they can easily be the greatest asset that your growing business can have.
John Sculley, historic CEO of Apple, and Bill Gates, CEO of Microsoft, both demonstrate the impact that effective leadership can have on business and technology. Both of these large companies missed the ground-floor opportunities of the Internet, says Hugh Martin, Chairman and CEO of Pacific Biosciences. But there is a lesson to be learned in how each CEO responded. Apple mostly ignored the Internet boom, says Martin, and faced years of weak financial footing as a result. But Microsoft turned the company around to establish a deeply-rooted Internet presence - particularly its web browser Internet Explorer - in just three days. Martin uses this anecdote to demonstrate how essential leadership can be in corporate success.
Chairman and CEO of Pacific Biosciences Hugh Martin was quick to hire a top-notch VP of Human Resources - despite the strong objection of his board and his investors. Martin stands behind his unusual decision, and largely credits it with the company's success. PacBio's need to hire and integrate a highly-skilled workforce in a short period of time mandated the resources, says Martin, who hired over 1200 people in three years - many of whom were lured from the field's largest competitors.
Hugh Martin, Chairman and CEO of Pacific Biosciences, is proud to point out that his previous enterprise, ONI Systems, was the first to be taken IPO after the dot-com crash of 2000 - and that they raised over a billion dollars in just a few short months. Maximizing the cash value of the company was a huge benefit to its longevity, says Martin, and being conservative with their holdings was an inexhaustible asset.
The more dominant a single brand is in the marketplace, the easier it is for an innovator to compete with them. So says Hugh Martin, Chairman and CEO of Pacific Biosciences, who headed the start-up that once competed with dominant telecoms like Nortel, Lucent, and Alcatel. His reasoning? Monolithic entities in a sector get lazy, lose touch with their customers, and become overly confident with their price point, creating tremendous opportunities for competition. Upstart entrepreneurs should never be afraid to slay a giant.
To build an enterprise that can surely go the distance, Pacific Biosciences' Chairman and CEO Hugh Martin suggests a short list of strategies. Among them, the board must have confidence in a strong management team uniquely qualified to make the decision to sell. In addition, don't staff your board with young VC's, as they are self-centeredly building a reputation and seeking quick and profitable hits. Also, the enterprise should strive to take money from funds that are stable and flush, else the firm backing them will be more likely to sell. This combination, advises Martin, will make a board less likely to cave.
More important than market, technology, or timing, Hugh Martin, Chairman and CEO of Pacific Biosciences, insists that any groundbreaking company is only as good as its team. Interview aggressively and make your staff want to stay there by offering respect, a hospitable culture, and great rewards.
Chairman and CEO of Pacific Biosciences Hugh Martin says that his employees deeply enjoy the company-wide weekly meeting where he personally addresses all employees and shares information about transparency, strategies, and other big-picture thinking. This open, frank, and consistent communication, says Martin, is essential to give employees context and to make them feel like critical stakeholders at every turn.