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steady growth, but I had a firm grasp on the engineering is- sues underlying its products. I found it enormously rewarding to help take this small company and its unique technologies to the global stage.”
While he was gratified to see the company’s global leadership affirmed when Respironics was acquired by Royal Philips Electronics, Fulton also recog- nized that this was an important milestone in his career.
“The most rewarding aspect of my work at Respironics was supporting its exciting growth curve, as it became a world leader in respiratory therapy,” says Fulton. “When the company reached the stage where it was acquired, I knew it was time to move on to other challenges.”
Creating Next-Generation Success Stories Based on his years spent fostering the growth of Respiron- ics, Fulton knew exactly what he wanted to do next: Help bring other start-ups to that same level of success. As an investor and mentor, he is currently working with a
number of small technology businesses to help bring their in- novations to market. Whether they are developing new ways to monitor blood levels in laboratory mice or new automated ways to deliver medications to ventilated patients, these start-ups are focused on emerging technologies—and they value Fulton’s engineering perspective, as well as his legal counsel.
“In working with these young entrepreneurs, I can press them not only on practical business issues, but also on foun- dational technology questions,” says Fulton. “My rigorous thought process and my desire to ask questions continues to serve me well, 30 years after leaving the College of Engineering. It’s rewarding to apply these skills to bring a new generation of technology entrepreneurs to the next level of success.” Today, Fulton and his wife of 23 years, Carol, also find it gratifying to watch their two sons grow into young men who are weighing their own career choices. Kevin is exploring a number of programs as a freshman in the College of Engineering at Carnegie Mellon, and Brad is a junior at Penn Trafford High School who is beginning to look toward college himself. “While my dual major at Carnegie Mellon was a relatively new idea in the late 1970s, today’s universities have really embraced the idea of an interdisciplinary education,” says Fulton. “Students now have many more options available to them.”
With an even broader array of choices to consider, what
career advice does this successful attorney and investor offer to his own sons?
“I would advise any student to pursue a career that they personally enjoy—and one that challenges them intellectual- ly,” says Fulton. “If either condition is not met, they are likely to find themselves unfulfilled at some point down the road. I would also advise them to take educated risks in order to find or develop a job that meets these two conditions.”•
CARNEGIE MECH
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