Profiles of Outstanding CEOs.

Getting to Know Some of Colorado's Big Names in Regional Business

Jim Miller

PRESIDENT, COCHLEAR AMERICAS

Jim Miller, president Cochlear Americas, recently spent time with the parents of children who have the Nucleus[R] cochlear implant his company produces. "It was so rewarding to have them tell me about what a difference having a Nucleus implant has made in their lives. It is thrilling to be a part of something that they think is giving their children an opportunity to fulfill their potential," said Miller.

With this enthusiasm, Miller is ready to take Cochlear Corporation to the next level. Cochlear manufactures and markets Nucleus cochlear implants that are placed in the inner ear. The implant provides useful hearing and improved communication abilities for profoundly deaf or severely hearing-impaired people. The company has been highly successful since the North and South American headquarters opened in Englewood in 1984.

In 2000, Cochlear experienced a 20 percent increase in revenues. Last year, after two of its products were approved by the FDA, the company sales jumped up 42 percent in the first five months of 2001. Miller came on board as president in March 2001 with a more than optimistic outlook. "This is a dynamic growth area of the medical business. The technology and the benefits that the patients can derive are extraordinary," said Miller.

Miller has clear goals and views his role as defining a vision and motivating individuals to come together to make it a reality. Of the nearly 700,000 in America who could benefit from Cochlear's technology, only about 15,000 have the Nucleus implant.

Much of Miller's vision includes moving into the more than 90 percent of the market that is not currently penetrated. "There's a lot of potential to help many, many patients out there," said Miller. He has defined a strategy to do just that.

First, Cochlear will continue to develop and improve the technology in order to better serve their patients. Miller also sees increasing awareness about the product and its uses as a priority. "It is still surprising that many people who could benefit from it are not aware and many of the professionals are not aware of how well the technology works to restore hearing," said Miller.

Finally, he plans to work to make the technology more accessible to those who can benefit from it. "We really want to make it a standard of care for the patients who can benefit and make it available to them," said Miller. He points out that with any new medical technology, reimbursement becomes an issue. He plans to work with insurance companies, Medicare, and Medicaid to ensure that the technology is affordable to patients.

Miller also seeks to foster and support strong, cooperative relationships within the company. "We stress teamwork and people being empowered to really make a difference through all different levels of the organization," he said. Ultimately, Miller and his employees share a vision for making a difference. "We are very passionate about what we do and the great things our products can provide these patients. It is very rewarding," said Miller.

Bob Boswell

CHAIRMAN, CEO FOREST OIL CORP.

Bob Boswell, Chairman and CEO, Forest Oil Corporation has drawn on his extensive knowledge and experience in the industry to lead the company to success. When he was in college, Boswell started roughnecking and working in the oil fields. Since then, he has been exposed to virtually every aspect of the business.

This experience contributed to Boswell's ability to grow Forest Oil into one of the ten largest independent energy companies in the nation. "It makes me sensitive to the realities of the business. I've got an appreciation of what our guys do and what's involved to mobilize the appropriate resources for success," said Boswell.

His ability to do just that is quite impressive. When Boswell joined the company in 1990, the outlook was somewhat grim. "The company, as many oil and gas producers were, was under financial duress. The page of deregulation had changed the economics of the business," said Boswell.

As vice president of finance, Boswell spent his first five years financially restructuring the company to adapt to the new environment in the industry. Once a new system was in place, the acquisition of capital was a major factor in being able to turn the company around.

"Our business is a capital-intensive business. We generally reinvest between two-thirds to 100 percent of our cash flow to try to grow our reserves and production," said Boswell. In 1995, Phil Anschutz made an equity investment that enabled the company to embark upon a growth strategy for the first time since 1982 and has become a primary catalyst in the implementation of the company's business strategy.

In the mid-nineties, one of Boswell's strengths had been his ability to foresee opportunities and develop strategies and processes to take advantage of them. "I focus on putting the company in the best position based on what the data tells us the future holds and designing a management organization that causes our people to focus on those aspects of the business that are most important for success," said Boswell.

The results have been phenomenal. Forest Oil is now a $2 billion company with estimated proved reserves of 1.4 trillion cubic feet of natural gas equivalents. Last year, Forest doubled the size of the company through a merger with Forcenergy.

Boswell credits Forest Oil employees with the company's success. "We've been able to attract top-quality personnel to Denver and have built an exploration portfolio that is top-drawer," said Boswell.

Motivating his employees is one of Boswell's priorities. "One thing I try to do is recruit top quality people and then bring the best out in them," said Boswell. In order to do so, Boswell coalesces different technical views and seeks to create an organization that is pro-active and disciplined.

While looking to his past six years as the leader of Forest Oil, Boswell can't help but be optimistic about the company's future.

"We have tremendous opportunities in front of us. We think those opportunities are important to the nation and our energy policy and energy supply. We're on the precipice of great things and the best is yet to come," said Boswell.

Ralph Christie

MERRICK & COMPANY

Palph Christie, chairman, president, and CEO of Merrick & Company is a man who is passionate about his profession, his clients, and his employees. "I am very proud of the profession and the company that my employees represent. Our professional service firm plans and builds facilities and infrastructure so that everybody has a better life and lives in a better world," said Christie.

Christie joined Merrick, an employee-owned firm that focuses on engineering, architecture, information systems and design-build for private and public sector clients, in 1992. January 2002 will mark his fifth anniversary as CEO.

Merrick has experienced considerable growth since Christie took over, with roughly...