Chief Executive Officer, VORAGO Technologies
C-Level Chat: Team Building With Bernd Lienhard, CEO Of Vorago Technologies
Tab Schadt, CEO of DoubleHorn, sits down with Bernd Lienhard, CEO at Vorago Technologies to talk about Vorago's patented ...
About Bernd Lienhard
Bernd Lienhard, CEO of Vorago Technologies, discussed the company's radiation-hardening solutions for aerospace and defense in a 2021 interview. He stated that the company's technology platform can be deployed on existing semiconductor nodes as well as advanced finfet nodes, allowing commercially used, non-radiation-resistant systems to become radiation hardened. Lienhard noted that the industry is "extremely conservative" when it comes to adopting new technology due to mission criticality and human lives at stake, and said his biggest lesson learned was underestimating how long it would take for disruptive technology to find its way into new missions, despite the company doubling in size every year. In a 2019 interview, Lienhard described his approach to strategy as focusing on the "emotional state" of customers, identifying their pain points and finding solutions to address them. He acknowledged that brand awareness is a challenge for a smaller company entering a market dominated by established players. Lienhard stated that Vorago has a plan to significantly grow the company, citing an "enormous amount of satellites going up every single month," and expressed a goal to exit the company with significantly increased value.
Transcript (23 segments)
I
Interviewer0:08
Hi, I'm Tab Shot, CEO of Double Horn. Today I'm joined by Bernd Lienhard, CEO of VORAGO Technologies. How are you doing?
B
Bernd Lienhard0:17
Good, thank you for having me. Thank you for being here.
I
Interviewer0:19
That's fun. We're gonna talk a little bit about leadership at VORAGO, but before we jump in, let's talk about how you ended up as CEO of VORAGO Technologies and kind of that journey. Walk us through – you got an impressive general manager, vice-president path and definitely lots of industry experience. Kind of take us through the journey of how you ended up with VORAGO.
B
Bernd Lienhard0:36
Good point. It feels like I started working yesterday, but it's actually 31 years now. 27 of them as an executive and engineer in the semiconductor space. My career is fairly split between 15-16 years in Europe, in Germany, and the remainder in the US. So I bring a balanced view. I knew at 15 I wanted to do electrical engineering, studied in Munich. After university, I worked three years for a big conglomerate as an engineer in the military space, then moved into semiconductors.
I
Interviewer1:08
Yeah, and so you attended it was at Munich? So what was that – what were the companies that got you to VORAGO? The last three or four?
B
Bernd Lienhard2:03
The biggest one was Siemens. Siemens had a semiconductor division, and in the late 90s I spun it off – it became Infineon Technologies. Altogether, I spent about 18 years there. The first 10 years I went through ranks: technical marketing, product marketing, sales, before getting my first executive role. I was one of the youngest executives at Infineon.
I
Interviewer2:53
So let's talk a little bit about VORAGO. You've been there now three years roughly? A bit over three? Yes, four years coming up. This is a very interesting market, moves a little bit slower. So we talked a little bit before we started today about the decisions you had to make to really take the commercial path. Can you talk a little bit about that?
B
Bernd Lienhard3:16
The company was founded in 2004 by a small technical team. The first decade was really R&D – working on technology but never having a product in the market. There was no structure or business plan. I had to reboot the entire company, change the team from an R&D mindset to a commercial mindset. It's hard to turn researchers into market-focused people. So I had to bring in new people with different expertise to commercialize and monetize.
I
Interviewer5:10
Well, let's talk about what's the biggest differentiators in a very complex space. We look at semiconductors and say wow, they're involved in so much. So what's the differentiator when you look at VORAGO?
B
Bernd Lienhard5:27
Think about modern electronics. If you expose them to radiation – in space or from nuclear events – they stop working. Traditional techniques exist, but VORAGO's approach is significantly faster and cheaper. We use a technology called Hartzell, which is our IP. It sits in the manufacturing process so chips come out and withstand radiation and heat. For example, in orbit, unprotected electronics die in days or weeks. We alter components so they keep working for years and decades.
I
Interviewer8:06
And do you have – and I might be corrected if this was early on – is there currently a strategic partnership in place with TI? Is that right?
B
Bernd Lienhard8:12
We do. We have licensed our technology to Texas Instruments in the US. They manufacture components for the same market. It's a great customer. Our traditional customers are government entities: NASA is our strongest partner, also Air Force, missile defense, Navy. There are also new space startups and universities. We serve both traditional military and new space.
I
Interviewer9:30
Let's shift into leadership and strategy. So you've got a complex product, a licensing model, a direct sell model, and distributor relationships. How do you go about rolling out strategy and vision for a company you come into and take over? You established a new executive team. What are some philosophies or best practices you could share?
B
Bernd Lienhard10:01
It's not an easy answer. I think about the emotional state of customers – their pain points. I find solutions to alleviate that pain. For example, in a previous role, our processor solution was complicated; small companies took weeks to get started. Our mission was to shorten that cycle. For VORAGO, the market lacks choices because radiation-hardened products are scarce. So we decided to bring choice to a market that never had choice. You always need to find that emotional state of your customers and partners.
I
Interviewer13:09
So along with vision, strategy, and alignment, let's talk about team building. I find it fascinating that you came in and had to make tough decisions, switch out the human capital. You did it well. How do you get new folks in line and motivated when they come from different backgrounds?
B
Bernd Lienhard13:40
Multiple ways. First, I look at capabilities, not just knowledge. I bring people who complement what I'm missing. The stage of the company matters – in a slow-moving market, you need seniority and expertise. So I bring in people with experience who fit right in. There's no one-size-fits-all; leadership has flavors because you are dealing with different individuals.
I
Interviewer15:54
Let's talk about VORAGO going forward in the future and goals. Have you stated the goals, are they clearly stated for 2020 and on?
B
Bernd Lienhard16:05
There is a plan for significant growth. The market has many satellites going up, space exploration is pulling demand. The government also has pull. We expect to harvest that growth. The second goal is to exit the company with significantly higher value – combining growth with a perspective for exit, because investors want a return.
I
Interviewer17:22
What about challenges? What do you perceive as some of the biggest challenges as you try to accomplish that?
B
Bernd Lienhard17:30
The biggest challenge is entering a conservative market that has had the same players since the 50s. We are the only real newcomer. We have to overcome resistance to change. Also, brand awareness is a challenge – for a small company, it's harder to get recognition, especially with government and big players.
I
Interviewer18:55
Well, thank you. We're going to stop there. There's no doubt you'll accomplish it. You're a fascinating guy. We're rooting for VORAGO. Thank you.
B
Bernd Lienhard19:04
Alright, thank you. Thanks for having me.
I
Interviewer19:06
Yeah, thank you. My pleasure.