Scaling heights in business & for charity

Date Published: 24-May-2012

 John Power may have made headlines for his high-altitude charity climbs but he also scaled a few obstacles in the business world on his way to becoming CEO of the Galway-based Medical Technology company, Aerogen.

The local businessman has taken an active role in raising money for World Vision, Foundation Nepal, and Soul of Haiti. In addition to leading a team of Aerogen employees on a Dublin to Galway cycle, he also raised over €14,500 by climbing Mont Blanc in France and Kilimanjaro in Tanzania.

Although a reluctant interviewee, the father of five believes that charity work is a good way to help others while setting an example for his family and encouraging others to get involved. His son was the inspiration behind the Kilimanjaro climb.

“Kilimanjaro was an interesting one,” John recalled.

“My son Patrick got this notion about climbing Kilimanjaro so we went out there. We were the worst-equipped people ever going out! We had rugby jerseys, woolly jumpers and rain macs. That was an experience all right.”

The trip did give them the chance to meet two Tanzanian children they sponsored through World Vision, and to present them with Galway GAA jerseys!

“It was interesting. It was close to where the boys we were sponsoring at the time for World Vision actually lived. So we made our way to the lads. I had never expected that we would ever see the boys we actually sponsored.

“We got to meet them and their family out in the bush. We flew in this tiny little plane out to a strip they had cleared out in the middle of the bush. There are no airports and no roads. They use the riverbeds to drive on during the dry season. That was an eye opener.”

Scaling Kilimanjaro proved less strenuous than Mont Blanc.

“I did Mount Blanc a few years ago with a friend from the States. That was a tough climb. I like going up mountains and hillwalking and stuff but that was a proper climb. You had all the gear and what not.”

John runs on a regular basis and believes that maintaining an active lifestyle helps when it comes to doing charity challenges.

Although he grew up in Wimbledon, London, he has lived in Galway for 22 years. His mother was originally from Killannin and his father hailed from Oughterard so much of his youth was spent in Ireland.

“We came back to Ireland every summer and we used to spend the whole summer between the farm out in Killannin and Power’s pub, as it was then, in Oughterard, where my father’s family were from,” John explained.

“So I knew Galway better than I knew London. I used to go to all the old fairs with my uncle years ago in the small villages.”

Galway in those days provided a great escape from London life.

“They were great times. I can remember when there were no tractors back around that way at all. Everything was done by horse. It was great fun bringing in the hay and what have you. Great times.”

“Coming from London, it was a big difference. You’d be back in London with the Underground and everything so it was two extremes that you lived in. It was a great experience though.”

When the opportunity to set up a joint venture in Knock airport came up, John decided to relocate back to Galway with his wife and their first three children. However, trouble in the aerospace industry led to that project being shelved after they had made the move.

“We had to pull the plug on that one so I was kind of caught. I had three young kids and the project I was involved in was gone. It was tough times, really.

“I ended up getting a project out in Libya, designing pump irrigation systems for Colonel Gadaffi’s man-made river. I used to always say it was designing tanks for Colonel Gadaffi because they were water tanks! Basically, I had to do that one on a “no foal, no fee” basis. We designed this pump irrigation system, got it built by IDT in Spiddal, shipped out to Tripoli, and got it approved. Just when we had not a penny left in the house, a cheque came through the door and that got me back on my feet again.”

John has previously set up new start-ups but he has been involved with Aerogen for 12 years and the company now employs over 50 people.

“I’ve been involved in several start-ups, always technology-based companies – robotics automation systems, aerospace, I worked in petrachems – so I’ve always been involved in high technology.”

Aerogen, a medical device and drug delivery company has become a global leader in its field and it sells to 60 countries around the world. It has garnered international recognition and received a number of prestigious awards in Ireland, Europe and the United States.

“As a company, we have a principal of trying to do it first,” John points out.

“We try and create new market space ourselves and not really bother about what the competition is. You create the space and create the demand and that is the way we do business.

“We put a huge amount of our resources into Research and Development. You get great wins but you get some failures as well. You’ve just got to accept that. It’s a high risk/high reward type business. We’ve done very well in that regard. We’ve won awards for our innovation all over the world now.”

The awards show the strides that Aerogen has made in the industry.

“It’s great, particularly for the staff. Everybody gets excited about it. We have a small company. It’s great for us to get international recognition for what we do.”

Although he has also received awards in his own right, including being a finalist in the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2009, John puts that success down to the team around him.

“You’re nothing really without your team, particularly in the business I’m in. It’s all around innovation and development. We’re got lots of young engineers and scientists working here and experienced guys who’ve come in from big multi-nationals and left them to join us. We have a great team and you can’t do any of these things on your own.”