Profile of Success
Robert Schaefer
Cheif Executive Officer
Apple Medical Corporation
BS Biology 1976, Purdue
"If I knew what was going on and how to run it, why then was I working
for someone else," remarks Robert Schaefer. The idea of going into business
for himself was very appealing. "I could make all of the critical decisions,
I could set the tone of the company, I could choose the strategic and tactical
direction to be taken," he states. Knowing he could always go back to
working for someone else if he did not succeed, Robert opened Apple Medical
Corporation in 1989. Today he remains President of the business, and Apple
Medical has become a significant medical device company.
In 1982 Robert began working in the area of minimally invasive therapeutic procedures, primarily focusing on the angioplasty market. "I found then and continue to find now a great interest on how several varied technologies can be brought together to improve patient care and treatment," he says. Until 1989 he worked for three high-tech companies and was exposed to sales, marketing, and business development as he held titles such as Vice President of Business Development and Vice President of Marketing. "Seven years spent working for other companies in increasingly important management positions gave me the breadth of experience to appreciate that I knew the many critical functions of a fully integrated company," he comments.
Robert continues to work in the area of Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS) through Apple Medical Corporation, manufacturing and marketing disposable surgical devices used in gynecology. "MIS utilizes technology (miniaturized cameras/video/telescopes and miniaturized instruments) to access the abdominal/pelvic cavity from outside the body," explains Robert. Gynecologists often need to intervene with the progression of diseases that can lead to such problems as infertility, cyst formation on the ovaries, and the treatment and excision of cancerous lesions. Apple Medical designs and manufactures products that assist the gynecologist with treatments. Today the company is one of the largest suppliers of Cannula/Trocans, which are instruments used in laparoscopic surgery to form the passageway for the camera and instruments. The corporation also manufactures some of the instruments that are used in these procedures. "Minimally invasive procedures are the leading edge of surgery," explains Robert. "We work with MDs to make things happen faster, easier, and better while shortening trauma caused by the treatment and by reducing recovery times."
As CEO of Apple Medical Corporation, Robert is faced with a wide range of responsibilities. "The president or chief executive officer's role in a company is direction, tone, control, sometimes vision," he explains. The CEO must also stay in tune with the financial aspects of the corporation, verifying that profits are being made and budgeted dollars are not being exceeded. "The CEO is the face of the company to all vendors, to all customers, to other companies," states Robert. "It really is a position in which one has to lead by example. The actions I take are learned and mimicked by other managers."
According to Robert, his education from Purdue provided him "with the necessary building blocks for a very successful career," and prepared him to take on the presidency of a medical device company. In addition to what he learned in his biology courses, he also received a solid foundation in areas such as math, computer programming, chemistry, and physics. This knowledge has proven to be extremely valuable. "I can communicate with engineers, asking them to develop a certain product, because I know what they can and cannot achieve," states Robert. "I speak to surgeons and understand the disease process a patient is undergoing and have an appreciation for the available technologies that can be brought to bear on the problem."
Giving back to Purdue, Robert has been a guest lecturer for a course that introduces students to the various career possibilities for biology majors. Offering advice to current students, he cautions them about confining themselves to their work area when they join a company. "A student needs to understand and appreciate that all the work accomplished in the lab is just a link in the chain to a successful event," he explains. "The knowledge gained in the lab has to be applied or shared with others to be of any importance." For this reason, Robert advises new graduates to "get out of the lab" and learn about the other functional parts of a company, such as sales, customer service, quality, and finance. Finally, offering words of encouragement to students, Robert tells them, "Purdue is demanding, the courses are tough, but what you learn at this great university isn't fluff. Your education will provide you with the needed intellectual competence to succeed in business!"
