Paul J. Myer’s career spans 50 years of experience in the political, labor movement, global business and academic fields. He has lived and worked in the United States, Europe, China and Japan and has visited more than 28 different countries for the conduct of business and special assignments. Paul and his spouse, Keiko Fujikawa Myer, reside in Tokyo Japan.
Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Maine Technology Institute (MTI), Brunswick, ME 2014 – 2018 MTI is a public funded nonprofit corporation that offers early-stage capital and commercialization assistance. Myer manages a team of four experienced entrepreneurs who work with MTI portfolio companies. He is focused on the areas of business strategy, marketing and selling, and other commercialization challenges and opportunities.
Executive-in-Residence, University of Maine, Maine Business School, Orono, ME 2007 – 2015 A full-time faculty member presenting innovative and popular marketing, sales, management and international business courses. Teaching and research is focused on helping students understand and appreciate the business challenges and opportunities they will face here and abroad as a result of globalization, rapid technological change, and the empowerment of consumers and business customers.
Adjunct Professor, University of Maine, Maine Business School, Orono, ME 2004 – 2007 Presented courses in management, marketing, advertising and international business.
Director, Cameo Marketing, New Gloucester ME 2005 – 2007 Focused on business development and assistance with the three major national clients – Jack Daniels, Carhartt, and U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company.
Director, McLean Marketing, Portland ME and New York, NY 2002 – 2005 Provided strategic marketing assistance to variety of existing clients, including LL Bean. Conducted marketing research study and developed marketing plan for the Portland Pirates, AHL hockey team.
Acting Chief Marketing Officer/VP, Marketing, Avaya, Inc., Basking Ridge, NJ 2000 – 2002 Created a full-service marketing organization and drove a global branding strategy focused on major business customers. Played a key role in Avaya’s public launch as a full-service provider of integrated voice-data solutions, shifting its image to the status of major competitor vs. initial perceptions of the company as a likely-to-fail spin-off with outmoded product. Negotiated and lead team responsible for implementing Avaya’s sponsorship of 2002 and 2006 FIFA World Cups.
Lucent Technologies, Warren, NJ 1996 – 2000
VP, Marketing, Optical Networking Group, Nuremberg, Germany, 1998 – 2000 Established a network of technology development centers as cross-discipline experiential marketing and customer service organizations that dominated the emergent optical networking market in Europe and Asia with leading-edge interactive technology and marketing initiatives. Recruited and managed a multicultural staff with proficiency in over 10 languages.
VP, Executive Marketing Programs/Sales Support, Global Service Providers, 1996 – 98 Helped positioned Lucent’s largest business unit as a competitive force in the worldwide market. Led clarification of the division’s competitive strengths and desired market image; drove a global business unit branding strategy to differentiate Lucent by emphasizing creative responses to customers’ business needs. Overhauled sales support, training, and compensation programs, shifting the mindset and skills of the sales and support staff.
Principal, Symphony Communications, Nashville, TN 1994 – 1996 Provided strategic communication and public affairs counsel to multinational enterprises.
NORTEL, Washington, DC and Nashville, TN 1988 – 1994
VP, Integrated Marketing Communications, 1991 – 94 Led development of an integrated marketing and communications strategy, with consistent branding across all products and business lines; centralized and consolidated staff and operations. Created critical customer relationship-building opportunities and experiential marketing programs; managed relationships with media and industry analysts.
VP, Public Affairs, 1988 – 91 Developed US government support allowing Nortel to become recognized as a U.S. telecommunications supplier, despite intense industry opposition, assisting the company to enter new global markets and greatly expand its international trade.
VP, Government Relations, Capital Cities/ABC, Washington, DC 1977 – 1988 Expanded the company’s Federal legislative presence, influencing revisions to telecommunications and copyright laws and effectively representing ABC’s interests in challenges from government agencies, cable companies, the film industry and public interest groups.
Associate Director, Domestic Council, The White House, Washington, DC 1975 – 1977 Effectively represented the President to the Congress and public interest groups, leading the Administration’s efforts in Washington DC and through grass-roots activities to secure critical Congressional action to extend the General Revenue Sharing Act of 1969 in the face of significant political opposition.
Executive Assistance, U.S. Representative Herman Badillo (D-NY), Washington, DC 1974-1975 Managed Capitol office personnel, legislative and constituent services activities, and staffed member’s interests on the House Judiciary Committee including extension of the Voting Rights Act, copyright and patent law and FBI oversight.
Assistant to President and Director, Legislative Affairs, AFSCME, AFL/CIO, Washington, DC 1969 – 1974 Served as executive aide to the union’s president. Developed the foundation for a powerful political and government relation function, contributing significantly to AFSCME’s emergence as a major presence in the labor movement.
Robert F. Kennedy Presidential Campaign, Washington, DC 1968
Assistant Director, Washington Office, National Board of the YMCA, Washington, DC 1966-1969
Assistant to the Director, U.S. Employment Service, US Department of Labor, Washington, DC 1966
University of Maine Activities and Recognition
- Maine Business School Excellence-in-Teaching Award, 2013
- Faculty Advisor, University of Maine NCAA Women’s Soccer Team, 2012-2014
- Elected Representative, University of Maine Faculty Senate, 2012-2014 – Member of the Financial & Institutional Planning Committee.
- Graduate Faculty Mentor Award, 2010 – Presented by the Graduate Student Association, an honor bestowed by a committee of graduate students across disciplines. The students select honorees from a competitive pool of nominees as graduate faculty members who go above and beyond in their dedication to professionally preparing graduate students for future career success.
- Participant, Harvard Business School Seminar, The Art and Craft of Discussion Leadership, 2011
- Faculty Consultant, Knowledge Transfer Alliance (KTA), 2010-2012 – Through KTA, a federally-funded University project, assist a wide variety of Maine companies, including early-stage start-ups, with business and marketing strategy development..
- AFUM Executive Committee, 2013-2015
- Guest Lecturer, University of Maine Foster Student Innovation Center, 2009-2013
- Faculty Advisor, University of Maine Graduate Business Association, 2009-2010
- Coach, Molson International MBA Business Case Competition, 2008-2011
Related Business Accomplishments
Marketing Strategy
- History of bold, comprehensive branding and marketing initiatives grounded in market assessment.
- Quickly positioned Avaya, Lucent, and Nortel as major forces in extremely competitive markets.
- Introduced customer and competitive analysis to technically- and sales-focused leadership teams as a basis for business planning; created mechanisms for bringing the customer’s voice into product and marketing strategy.
- Initiated and led aggressive advertising campaigns with novel and engaging concepts, focusing on key differentiators.
- Pioneered high-technology experiential marketing, with leading-edge, interactive customer centers, trade show exhibits, and events; excel at building environments that foster creative collaboration. The center in Nuremberg won prestigious international awards and drew multinational customers to Germany.
- Personally represented companies in international markets and developed excellent customer, industry and government relationships in many countries, with particular success in Germany, Hungary, former Czech Republic, China, South Korea and Japan.
- Developed multicultural and multilingual staff competence as a differentiator for Lucent and Avaya in global markets.
Public Affairs and Government Relations
- Built political and legislative networks and support, often with little to no pre-existing infrastructure. Accomplished legislative agendas for Nortel and ABC by developing managers and affiliates as advocates at all levels of government, as well as building and managing coalitions and relationships with Members of Congress.
- Extremely conversant with legal issues and legislative processes; adept at influencing the drafting and adoption of legislative provisions and report language.
- Commended by clients and U.S. Presidents, Senators and Congressmen for exceptional contributions. Career history of unusually diverse bi-partisan and cross-industry relationships, based on ability to assess stakes and interests, genuinely appreciate diversity, and develop common ground. Excel at identifying and pursuing proactive remedies. For example, at ABC, initiated an industry-wide focus on social contribution: worked to improve the quality of children’s TV and gain adoption of “closed captioning” technology.
Project Management
- Planned and led high-impact cross-discipline projects with budgets of up to $300M. The 2002 FIFA World Cup™ project for example involved design, construction and management of a complex network at 20 venues in 2 countries and an associated global branding program involving a staff of 200 technical and professional people from around the world.
- Managed NorTel’s sponsorship of a PGA Tour event and the John Denver Celebrity-ProAm in Tucson, Arizona, including complex relationships with the local sponsor and PGA Tour officials. Credited with creating a successful customer relationship event with documented positive business and sale revenue impact
Organization & Staff Leadership
- Career history of developing high-performing organizations, building esprit, collaboration, and competence.
- Built effective matrix organizations in Europe and China for Lucent’s Optical Networking Group that integrated technical marketing, customer support, service and training, product development, and R & D.
- Centralized and restructured the Nortel and Avaya marketing organizations.
Teaching and Public Speaking
- History of engaging, educating, inspiring, and entertaining a broad range of audiences.
- Enhanced Lucent’s and Avaya’s global presence as a much-demanded speaker at international business and professional conferences.
- Presented extremely popular marketing and management courses using a Socratic methodology and case studies.
- Presented guest lectures on Avaya, “The Sixties,” civil rights movement, Martin Luther King, Voting Rights Act of 1965, 18-Year Old Vote, the labor movement, President Ford, doing business in China, Japanese culture, and “Personal Insights on Effective Consultant Branding and Selling: Work is Theater and Every Business a Stage.”.
Selected Community Service
- Active in many business organizations, served on the President’s Committee for the Employment of the Handicapped, Board of Directors of the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA), the Board of Governors of the Electronics Industry Association (EIA), and the Executive Committee of the Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA) and was a member of the Business-Government Relations Council.
- Served on the board of the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA).
- Myer was the founder and chairman of the Youth Citizenship Fund and the Youth Franchise Coalition – organizations credited with helping to secure the right to vote for 18 year olds.
- In Maine, former member of the Greater Portland Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Maine International Trade Association, and the Maine Public Relations Council.
- Former member of the Industry Advisory Board, Loeb-Sullivan Business School, Maine Maritime Academy, and the Advisory Board of the Pineland Farms YMCA.
- Professional and educator member of the American Marketing Association.
Other Interests
- Active in physical well-being and sports activities. A runner and finisher of five marathons, including the Mount Desert Island Marathon in 208, Tokyo Marathon in 2010 and U.S. Marine Corps Marathon in 2011/12, and numerous 10K races, including the Beach-to-Beacon..
- Serious interest in golf as a competitive sport and social activity.
- Enjoys photography, reading, and many outdoor activities.
- The building and operation of high performance remote control vehicles and boats is a special interest.
Education
- BA, History, Kean University, Union, NJ – 1966
- Extensive executive management training at universities in the United States and Europe