"We live in an age of acceleration and disruption and this is never going to change."
Dr. John Wensveen is Chief Innovation Officer at Nova Southeastern University and Executive Director of the Alan B. Levan | NSU Broward Center of Innovation responsible for overseeing a multimillion-dollar public-private partnership to support the growing entrepreneurial ecosystem by attracting and retaining industry-leading entrepreneurs, technology, sources of investment capital, and supporting resources to create a premier innovation center and technology hub.
Prior to this role, John served as the Vice Provost of Academic Schools at Miami Dade College providing direct leadership and direction for the College’s professional education programs. He was responsible for creating corporate relationships with local, regional, national, and international boards and organizations and with leaders of foreign governments, businesses, and non-governmental organizations.
John has extensive academic leadership experience including Professor and Head of the School of Aviation & Transportation Technology at Purdue University, Dean of the School of Aviation at Dowling College, and Professor of Airline Management at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
John has held a variety of industry leadership positions including Partner/EVP at Mango Aviation Partners, Global Head of Airline Advisory Services at Radixx International, President of Airline Visions, Executive Consultant at InterVISTAS, Senior Director at Marriott Vacation Club International, Vice President of International Affairs at MAXjet Airways, Director of Strategy and Communications at Corporate Visions, and Manager of Pacific Rim Flight Operations & Passenger Services at Canada 3000 Airlines.
John is a TEDx speaker, an External Instructor at the International Air Transport Association (IATA), a Certified Instructor at the Turkish Aviation Academy (Turkish Airlines), a frequent contributor to the media, provides expert witness testimony, and is author of two leading industry books including a “best-seller” (Air Transportation: A Management Perspective and Wheels Up: Airline Business Plan Development).
John earned Masters and Ph.D. degrees in International Air Transport and Business from Cardiff University (United Kingdom) and a B.A. in Geography and Transportation Land Use Planning from the University of Victoria (Canada). Currently, he is working toward the U.S. Coast Guard, Masters Upgrade (100 Gross ton license) certification.
In his free time, John is an avid boater, scuba diver, recreational pilot, and enjoys hitting the open road in the RV.
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Table of Contents
We are thrilled to have you join us today, welcome to ValiantCEO Magazine’s exclusive interview! Let’s start off with a little introduction. Tell our readers a bit about yourself and your company.
John Wensveen: I was born and raised in Vancouver, Canada and from an early age, I was very inquisitive with a passion for adventure and I am very thankful that my personal and professional life has taken me all over the world. In terms of professional career, I have been fortunate to have been an entrepreneur as well as work in public and private sectors including higher education and industry. My journey led to my current role as Chief Innovation Officer at Nova Southeastern University (NSU) and Executive Director of the Alan B. Levan | NSU Broward Center of Innovation (Levan Center). NSU is the largest private university in Florida and today, I oversee a multi-million dollar public-private partnership. The Levan Center is the world’s first “theme park” for entrepreneurs acting as an economic development engine colliding entrepreneurs with academia, industry, government, funders, professional networks, and wraparound service providers.
The Levan Center links the South Florida innovation ecosystem as one to support the Founder’s Journey from birth of an idea through successful exit or global expansion. Our three themes are innovation, technology, and entrepreneurship and our four pillars, ideate, incubate, accelerate, and post-accelerate provide customized programming for entrepreneurs seeking to startup and scale their business. Imagine a 54,000 sq. ft. purpose-built facility equipped with program and event space, co-working space, pitch room, cybersecurity training and intelligence range, technology makerspace outfitted with 3D printers and scanners, robots, drones, AR/VR/MR technologies, Artificial Intelligence labs, media production studio, volumetric capture studio, digital grab-and-go cafe, commercial kitchen, and more.
The Levan Center has figured out how to reverse engineer the Founders Journey by defining success at the start of the journey, creating the steps needed to be successful, and providing access to customized infrastructure and networks. We call this Innovation Center 2.0 and the results will be breakthrough ideation, new technologies, talent skills pipeline to support emerging technologies, company formation, job creation, and scaling of businesses. Innovation Center 2.0 will become the new standard for innovation centers around the world and the Levan Center is leading the charge. It is only a matter of time before South Florida becomes a nationally-ranked, designated tech hub and the Levan Center will be the catalyst that makes this happen.
2020 and 2021 threw a lot of curve balls into business on a global scale. Based on the experience gleaned in the past couple years, how can businesses thrive in 2022? What lessons have you learned?
John Wensveen: Whenever a major global event occurs like a terrorist attack, global pandemic, or act of God as examples, I have noticed there are four recurring themes and 2020/2021 is no different. Survive. Adapt. Recover, Rethink. If businesses are to survive, they must understand what transpires at each stage of the four themes presented. Additionally, flexibility is key and businesses must focus on mission and vision while making sure strategies can be implemented supported by contingency plans. Unfortunately, many businesses do not think about contingency planning and I cannot over emphasize the need to have multiple strategic plans in order to have a sustainable enterprise.
The pandemic seems to keep on disrupting the economy, what should businesses focus on in 2022? What advice would you share?
John Wensveen: The global pandemic is not over but on a positive note, the world is moving in a much better direction despite some of the current and upcoming challenges associated with the economy. In 2022, businesses should focus on what I mentioned earlier in this interview around survive, adapt, recover, and rethink. We are now in the recover and rethink phases.
The best advice I can provide for a business whether it be a small business or a multinational, is to concentrate on the short-term while developing new strategies that allow for long-term sustainability. The world is in for some rough times ahead and cash is king. Although it is an overwhelming challenge, another piece of advice I can offer is to bank cash reserves instead of spending on frills. In many cases, businesses have an opportunity to reduce or eliminate the need for brick and mortar operations and resources like the Levan Center can assist by providing satellite offices or even establishment of a virtual headquarters.
How has the pandemic changed your industry and how have you adapted?
John Wensveen: We live in an age of acceleration and disruption and this is never going to change. The world in which we live will continue to evolve around these the two themes and continue to take on different sets of challenges and opportunities. In my industry, which is truly focused on innovation, technology, and entrepreneurship, trends have been accelerated as a result of the global pandemic. Everything is happening more quickly and we have to adapt as quickly or even faster. Two and a half years ago, our team set out to design and build the the Levan Center and we were able to make it happen on time and on budget during a global pandemic.
When other industries were losing businesses, we were creating a new one which led to reinventing the design of physical infrastructure, adaptation of new technologies that connect the world, and the role of employees. Thankfully, flexibility is part of our DNA and we have been able to adapt to the changing world around us and continue to do so now that we are in full operation. We have a strategic plan that is not set in stone allowing our team to fluctuate no matter what internal and external forces are thrown at us. After all, “innovation” is in our name and we have one rule around the innovation mindset. There are no rules and when you are not confined by boundaries, industry can do anything it sets out to do.
What advice do you wish you received when the pandemic started and what do you intend on improving in 2022?
John Wensveen: I started my new role at NSU a couple of months before the pandemic and when most of the world went virtual, I went in the opposite direction and was at the office every day. In fact, I was at the office six days per week in many cases. It was a very challenging time to meet with people in person outside of the design and constructions crews I collaborated with on a daily basis. The virtual meetings worked fairly well but there were challenges along the way. In terms of advice, I wish there was guidance related to the changing nature of the employee and expectations of working remotely versus in person.
I think the global pandemic has changed the nature of how employers recruit and retain talent forever more and I am uncertain if some of the current trends we are experiencing on a global basis will be here for the long term or not. In terms of improving in 2022, I believe our employees are the number one asset and I am going to work diligently with our team and stakeholders to make sure each person is successful. We as individuals, teams, employers, and communities are measured on success metrics and I am looking forward to establishing metrics for our team that put the Levan Center on the map as the number one innovation center in the nation.
Online business surged higher than ever, B2B, B2C, online shopping, virtual meetings, remote work, Zoom medical consultations, what are your expectations for 2022?
John Wensveen: This is a very challenging question to answer as the global pandemic is evidence that predictability is not predictable if that makes sense. If you look back to 2019, no on was able to predict what 2020, 2021, and 2022 would be like. Historical data is often the best forecasting tool to predict the future and the events of 9/11 and the COVID-19 global pandemic have resulted in the need to forecast using different techniques.
My personal and professional opinion is that scenario based simulation will become the primary way of predicting the future. My expectation for the remainder of 2022 is that the world will pivot in a new direction and along the pathway, there will be global economic and political challenges along with new opportunities that will ultimately strengthen humankind. People are resilient and the pandemic has more than proven this. I believe 2023 and 2024 will also be full of challenges and my hope and expectation is that 2025 brings the start of a new era that is more positively focused. My dream is economic prosperity for all.
How many hours a day do you spend in front of a screen?
John Wensveen: No two days are ever the same as my schedule is completely dependent on internal and external forces. A typical work day is 12 to 14 hours and on average, I spend at least six hours per day in front of a screen which is never enough time. Effective time management is very important for my team and I encourage every employee to block Fridays off for “desk time” with no meetings. As great as technology is, it has made our daily lives more challenging with increased dependency on e-mail and text communications. Additionally, as a result of the COVID-19 global pandemic, people have become more reliant on digital technology including working outside of business hours because of scheduling flexibility permitted by employers. Many of my employees and colleagues have reported the need for increased screen time compared to pre-pandemic.
The majority of executives use stories to persuade and communicate in the workplace. Can you share with our readers examples of how you implement that in your business to communicate effectively with your team?
John Wensveen: Storytelling is a very powerful tool if applied strategically and the storyteller can be even more powerful if the audience is engaged. Growing up and attending school, undergraduate, and postgraduate studies, I learned that theory can be taught from a text book but real life examples are better taught with stories and by those who experienced them personally.
Over the years, I have learned that everyone has a different style in terms of how to communicate and receive information meaning one must be aware of the audience. Every day, I incorporate storytelling into casual and professional conversations and do so with excitement and passion. My immediate team has been developing over the last two years and I am fascinated to watch the maturing of this growth as we continue to expand by hiring new talent. We are building a very unique culture and climate that is focused on fueling innovation. Every member of the Levan Center team has an innovation mindset and more and more stories are told all the time because of the different experiences we all bring to the table.
Business is all about overcoming obstacles and creating opportunities for growth. What do you see as the real challenge right now?
John Wensveen: The biggest challenge I see is the need to identify, recruit, and retain skilled talent. Currently, there is an abundance of talent in the nation but a lack of skilled talent meaning there is a gap between industry needs and demand. In my role, I collaborate with the public and private sectors on a worldwide basis and have numerous opportunities to participate on global panels focused on this subject. The two most common themes reported by C-suite executives in terms of what keeps one up at night is access to skilled talent and the other is cybersecurity.
The real challenge is a short, medium, and long-term issue and if industry, academia, and training providers do not co-invest to create collaborative strategic partnerships, the skills gap will continue to widen. Industry must identify talent needs and provide funding and infrastructure to support. Academic institutions must sunset programs that are no longer relevant and develop new programs based on industry needs including new types of accelerated degrees and industry certifications. Training providers must develop “zero to hero” programs reducing the barriers of entry for participants.
In 2022, what are you most interested in learning about? Crypto, NFTs, online marketing, or any other skill sets? Please share your motivations.
John Wensveen: I am most interested in learning more about future economies and emerging technologies that are the driving force behind the trends, challenges, opportunities, and strategies the world is facing. I am most interested in the themes of innovation, technology, and entrepreneurship which includes additional education on what we currently know and things we do not know…yet. There are a lot of new buzz words out there including innovation, crypto, and metaverse as examples.
Unfortunately, such buzz words are not fully defined or understood by the majority of the population and this is causing mass confusion. With this said, this motivates me to assist creating awareness and educational messages and the Levan Center provides an amazing platform to link the world with valuable resources. The Levan Center is at the forefront of emerging tech and is quickly becoming a “go to” resource for the communities served with local, regional, national, and international impact.
A record 4.4 million Americans left their jobs in September in 2021, accelerating a trend that has become known as the Great Resignation. 47% of people plan to leave their job during 2022. Most are leaving because of their boss or their company culture. 82% of people feel unheard, undervalued and misunderstood in the workplace. Do you think leaders see the data and think “that’s not me – I’m not that boss they don’t want to work for? What changes do you think need to happen?
John Wensveen: This data is interesting I have to push back and disagree that people are leaving because of a boss or company culture. It is true that evidence supports this theory but the great majority are leaving for a diversified set of reasons that goes beyond these two factors. The pandemic has forced people of all ages to think differently including how one lives and works.
Why are we on this Earth? What kind of social impact can I have? Do we work to live or live to work? These are the types of questions I hear everyday and as an employer, I do frequently address what changes need to happen. From my perspective, employers need to be more flexible and support a true work life balance program that goes beyond a list of words that fall under the category of core values. Notice I inserted the word program which leads to action. Too many employers define core values but do not live them and from my perspective, this is an opportunity to influence change. It’s time to revisit core values, define them based on a new environment, and support them with a call to action.
On a lighter note, if you had the ability to pick any business superpower, what would it be and how would you put it into practice?
John Wensveen: If I could pick one superpower, it would be the ability to have a crystal ball that allows me to see the future. In terms of practice, I will use the superpower to identify challenges and develop strategies to make the world better. From a business perspective, the Levan Center’s mission is to assist businesses with scale up and acceleration opportunities and this super power will assist the entrepreneurs we serve to grow sustainable businesses.
What does “success” in 2022 mean to you? It could be on a personal or business level, please share your vision.
John Wensveen: On a personal note, success in 2022 is measured in my own growth meaning, I plan to acquire and build on new skills and a mindset that will have a positive impact on the world. I am using my time to always strive and be a better person and I have now reached a point where I am positioned to give back to my community. Many of your readers have heard the term pay it forward and that is exactly what I am doing in 2022 and beyond. If I can use the wisdom acquired to date and pass that along to others including the ability to support various organizations through funding or volunteer engagement, then I am doing my job.
On a professional note, I hope to continue growing in my career by trying new things that break boundaries and building on new skills. My ultimate career dream is no longer a dark endless road. It is a well lit highway with multiple exits meaning one can accomplish anything they put their mind to. I am every excited about the remainder of 2022 as there still a number of deliverables to achieve and as we approach 2023, a new set of goals will be defined. Every year, I set out a set of goals and do my best to achieve them. If I fail, I use that experience to learn and if I succeed, I also use that experience to learn more. I am very optimistic about the future!
Jed Morley, VIP Contributor to ValiantCEO and the host of this interview would like to thank John Wensveen for taking the time to do this interview and share his knowledge and experience with our readers.
If you would like to get in touch with John Wensveen or his company, you can do it through his – Linkedin Page
Disclaimer: The ValiantCEO Community welcomes voices from many spheres on our open platform. We publish pieces as written by outside contributors with a wide range of opinions, which don’t necessarily reflect our own. Community stories are not commissioned by our editorial team and must meet our guidelines prior to being published.
