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CEO Mitch Tyson talks about the challenges of serving on the John Adams Innovation Institute Governing Board and its Executive Committee

Tyson began his career as a legislative assistant to Sen. Paul Tsongas in Washington, D.C., after receiving his undergraduate and graduate degrees at MIT. He then returned to the private sector in Massachusetts, successfully growing PRI, a small company in the high-tech field from 45 employees to more than 1,800, before it was acquired.

Tyson believes that the John Adams Innovation Institute is the focal point on issues involving technology-based economic development in Massachusetts.

CONVERGENCE: How do you see the role of John Adams Innovation Institute in growing the Commonwealth’s Innovation Economy?

TYSON: The John Adams Innovation Institute is the locus of dialogue on how to encourage, improve and support the technology-based economy.

I believe the state government can play an important role in stimulating the innovation economy and figuring out the ways in which it can work with the private and non-profit sectors. But the intervention has to be just right: to encourage, not stifle, to coordinate and not substitute. The issue is leverage.

I think Massachusetts has largely ignored the high-tech sector and taken it for granted. But as competitive advantage goes global Massachusetts needs to focus on its strengths and its role as a source of innovation. We need to understand how the sectors in our state create economic value through innovation and find ways to amplify that process in order to assure our state’s economic well-being. That is what the Innovation Institute is doing. The Innovation Institute is breaking new ground. There hasn’t been an initiative like this before in Massachusetts.

My role on the Governing Board and the Executive Committee is to contribute to the debate, raise questions, clarify objectives, and ensure that there are metrics in place to monitor and measure the Institute’s activities. As we address problems, we need to learn something from it, and build a body of knowledge that the state can use in the future.

CONVERGENCE: What excites you about the work?

TYSON:

What the Institute is trying to do is very important. I believe in the cause, because it’s so vital to the economy of Massachusetts. I live in Massachusetts, this is my home, I want to see the quality of life improve and make this a good place for my kids to live and work. The technology-based economy is vital to that.

The Innovation Institute is breaking new ground in crafting a program to leverage a relatively small amount of state dollars to stimulate the innovation economy in the state. We need to apply the money carefully and wisely but also take some risks and do some experimentation to see what activities best address the gaps in our state’s innovation process.

I love working together [on the Governing Board] with some of the smartest people in our state representing the relevant institutions and constituencies. We’re trying to figure out how to solve a very complex problem and how to leverage effectively the numerous resources that the state has, such as our great universities and powerful venture capital community.

And lastly, I have to say that Don Dubendorf’s leadership and Mitch Adams’ support have been exemplary and critical. I am also very impressed with the staff, their dedication and expertise. They’ve been so diligent in crafting and implementing this program.

CONVERGENCE: What are the challenges the John Adams Innovation Institute faces as a pioneer?

TYSON: The Innovation Institute is an experiment of government intervention in the marketplace. It’s breaking new ground by investing resources in the Massachusetts knowledge- and technology-based economy, using the limited dollars that the Legislature has allocated to date.

I think it’s a very worthwhile effort. But it is a work in progress. Not every grant will pay off. It will take another couple of years to evaluate its success in creating and retaining high-tech jobs in Massachusetts. It’s still too early to tell. But I think the variety of mechanisms that we are exploring and the tremendous participation of our state’s educational and research institutions is very encouraging. I think, at a minimum, we have gotten the research sector in the state to think about how they can create economic activity and jobs beyond just conducting research.

The Institute has also created a forum for ideas. Many new concepts have been proposed to the Institute from grant applicants. The Governing Board and the Executive Committee have had some great discussions and many creative approaches have surfaced. Most importantly, the Institute has been a catalyst in getting a dialogue established between the critical sectors in the state. The right people are at the table—although there is always room for more!

CONVERGENCE: You recently were recruited to become a CEO of a new Massachusetts company, Advanced Electron Beams? What can you share about the company’s activities?

TYSON: I became CEO of Advanced Electron Beams in early October 2005. The company is an early stage venture with a remarkable technology that very efficiently creates an electron beam plasma that can substitute for many thermal- and chemical- based industrial processes and, in the process, save an enormous amount of energy, reduce chemical pollution and improve productivity.

We’ve been funded by two local venture capital firms. We’re hiring local engineers, manufacturing, and marketing/sales personnel, and we are looking to establish relationships with local universities to explore new applications for our technology. So we’re taking advantage of the resources in our state and hopefully will create jobs, improve the environment, and help other Massachusetts companies to be more productive and competitive.