An executive leaves corporate security for the Thrill of Adventure

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An MD&DI September 1998 Column

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Sometimes a career path is stumbled onto by accident—albeit a fortuitous one. John F. Maroney, trained as a mechanical engineer, initially joined the Dow Chemical Company and worked at one of its plants in California. When Dow embarked on a joint venture with a company that made artificial kidneys, Maroney was tapped to work in process development engineering.

"It was my first exposure to medical devices," he says. "I found the job to be rewarding and interesting, both from the perspective of the technical challenge and because of the role the products ultimately played in people's lives. I felt like I had found my home."

John F. Maroney prefers working with a small company's big picture to specializing in one aspect of a major corporation.

If Maroney's entry into the field was, as he says, "a little bit serendipitous," his rise through the ranks reflects more than pure chance. Last December, Maroney became president and CEO of EndoTex Interventional Systems, Inc. (Cupertino, CA), a three-year-old company that does not yet have products on the market. He sees this position as a perfect opportunity for using the skills he developed and honed at both start-ups and at large companies.

In the early 1980s, Maroney was director of manufacturing for Oxymetrics, a start-up that produced IV pumps and a system that measures dissolved oxygen in the pulmonary arteries. The company was eventually acquired by Abbott Laboratories. From there he became vice president of operations for Cardiovascular Imaging Systems, Inc. (CVIS), a specialist in catheter-based intravascular ultrasound. When Maroney joined CVIS, the company had 12 employees. Seven years later, when it was acquired by Boston Scientific Corp. (BSC), it had grown to 80 employees and about $20 million in sales.

Maroney stayed on as general manager of BSC's San Jose operations and as president of EP Technologies, a division acquired in 1996 that manufactures cardiac electrophysiology products. There he had responsibility for the growth of established markets as well as the development of new technology.

Of his recent move to EndoTex, Maroney explains that "it was time to get back into the entrepreneurial ranks and do another early-stage deal." The company is in the early clinical feasibility phase for two stent products. "This is one of the most exciting times to be with a company," he says. "Every day critical decisions get made, not just about where the technology goes but how to grow and position a company in new, evolving markets. Every day means breathing life into a new venture."

Having worked for both small start-ups and large corporations, Maroney can appreciate their differences. "What's universal is the attention to the clinical needs of the patients and the collaboration with the physicians who are helping guide the development activities," he observes. But in a venture-backed start-up, he believes, "there is perhaps less internal consensus and a greater sense of urgency—a feeling of 'we've got to move forward quickly'—because a lot of progress is being managed with limited resources. And there's heightened attention to the bank account, which is always running low!"

EndoTex, which has not received any grants from the National Institutes of Health or other government body, relies on private and corporate investors for cash infusions. That means Maroney often spends his days either drumming up capital or communicating with investors to keep them involved.

Soon, Maroney realizes, his role will change again, as it did at the other start-ups. "The focus now is intense product development and clinical research. As products are close to being marketed, sales, marketing, and manufacturing issues take on a bigger role.

"The key is to keep the focus on the clinicians and their patients," he continues. "The sales and marketing team should provide another avenue of communicating with those constituents. It's a matter of growing the team and adapting to the new functions that they bring."

Perhaps that's easier said than done. Maroney believes that the key to a successful entrepreneurial venture is flexibility among the employees, because they will need to adapt to changing roles. "In the early days of a start-up, you have to be willing to wear many hats," he notes. "But as a company matures and grows, specialization typically occurs. Then you have to be willing to give something up!" In his own career, Maroney started at CVIS in operations and soon began handling intellectual preperty matters so his colleagues could remain focused on development. But as the company grew, his responsibilities narrowed.

The founders of EndoTex have emphasized a particular mind-set among their employees that Maroney says keeps the whole team inspired and clicking: Do what's right for the patients and the technology.

Sandra R. Sabo is a freelance contributor to MD&DI. She is based in Mendota Heights, MN.

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