Tim Daugherty graduated in 2003 and started working in industry for research and development company Millar, Inc. Sixteen years later, he’s now the president and CEO.
“I was looking for a job in Houston, wanted to go into industry and just started applying to different companies,” Daugherty said. “A job offer on an A&M BME listserv came up for technical support and sales engineering at Millar. I started here right after school.”
While in technical sales, Daugherty said he was exposed to end users and customers a lot. He said he was fortunate to have opportunities to advance as positions would open up. He moved through the ranks at Millar from product and then sales manager, director of cardiology products and then sales and marketing to finally being named president and CEO.
“It’s been really interesting,” Daugherty said. “I didn’t come to this company with the goal of running it. I did want to run a company at some point, but not the first I started with.
Since taking on the role of CEO, Daugherty said the company has drastically changed the strategic direction of the company by narrowing their focus around Millar’s core capability of Micro-ElectroMechanical Systems (MEMS) pressure sensor integration. Top line revenue has increased 15% over 2014-15 averages.
“My primary goal when I assumed this role is basically the same goal that has kept me at Millar since the start of my career: To see the company realize its latent potential to become a significant contributor in the clinical medical device space.”
When he chose to study biomedical engineering, Daugherty said his goal to go to med school. However, by the time he graduated with his bachelor’s degree he was ready to enter the job force. He said he was excited to find a good job, as the market was unique when he graduated in 2003.
“When I was a freshman, I remember the seniors all talking about how good the economy was, and all the job offers they were receiving,” Daugherty said. “When I graduated, about a third of students were going to med school, a third were going into industry and a third were continuing on in master’s or Ph.D.”
He said he encourages biomedical engineering students to also take business-related courses or activities while in school, especially if they want to go into management.
It’s been 16 years since Daugherty graduated, and he said he’s worked to find ways over time to help students and biomedical engineering overall. He has recruited biomedical engineers at Texas A&M and has hired four over the years to start their careers at Millar.
“What I find interesting is how many of these engineering students whose internships have co-ops which gives them industry experience,” Daugherty said. “That’s something that’s changed for the better since I was there.”
He also serves on the industrial advisory board for the biomedical engineering program at the University of Houston.
Overall, Daugherty said his message for current students is to never stop learning.
“You’ve got to be ready to keep going. Strategy never stops,” Daugherty said. “Stay ahead of the curve and continue to expect a continuous learning experience.”