Speaker encourages networking, exposure
Having a bachelors in horticulture from USU and a doctorate in economics from Cornell, John Wilkerson said he has found that this rare combination has given him an advantage in his job.
Wilkerson spoke Wednesday at the David B. Haight Alumni Center, sponsored by the College of Business as part of Founders Day week. Ross Peterson, vice president for University Advancement, met with Wilkerson during the public roll out of the University’s Comprehensive Campaign, and Peterson invited Wilkerson and his wife Barbara to come back to USU, Wilkerson said.
After being involved with numerous other companies, Wilkerson said he decided to start his own with a partner. The company, Galen, is named after Galen, a physician to the gladiators, which Wilkerson said captures the spirit of his company. Using his combination of degrees in horticulture and economics, Wilkerson said he invests in pharmaceutical companies in the areas of prevention, diagnosis, technology and treatment. “Collaborative capital,” is the slogan for Galen, and Wilkerson said this lets those companies they invest in know they will be there through the good and the bad times. Wilkerson said he has hit some rough spots in his career, but they will stick with a company, even if it takes 10-plus years to get it running on its own. In the last six months, Wilkerson said the company has been investing in companies who are a little farther along, and Wilkerson compared them to puppies.
“We’re investing in puppies so we can get them to leave the kennel,” Wilkerson said.
This is a warm and fuzzy way to think about what we do, Wilkerson said. He also said the main thing his company does is try to buy dollars for quarters. When they do this, the company has a little more leeway if everything doesn’t do exactly as they planned it, as opposed to the Galen buying dollars for dollars, Wilkerson said. This can be the hard part of his job, Wilkerson said, as they are basically trying to predict the future and look around corners.
“When was the last time you saw in the morning paper’s headline ‘Psychic wins lottery’?” Wilkerson said.
The company has to find products and ideas they believe will be successful and then invest money into them, Wilkerson said. Often the companies they invest in have test backing to show their companies will be successful, but even times may still get hard or the product might not be as successful as planned. Wilkerson also said Galen likes to invest in companies that have proven CEO’s, as they usually have a lower risk level.
“Over the period of time I’ve been doing this, it’s become a different place,” Wilkerson said.
There is more competition for the companies and a different level of investing, Wilkerson said. Yet he has taken the advice he would give students and applied it in his life. Never give up, Wilkerson said. A lot of doors may be closed and you may hit rough spots, but you have to keep going, Wilkerson said. He also encouraged students to network as much as possible because you can never get all the exposure you need on your own.
-alison.baugh@aggiemail.usu.edu