Two events — both occurring far from his birthplace in Ghana — sparked Victor Lawrence's interest in science while in high school. And they both inspired him to become a top innovator in communications, too.
Back in 1962, Lawrence and his classmates listened to President John F. Kennedy's "We choose to go to the Moon" speech on their shortwave radio. "We asked ourselves could this be possible?" said Lawrence, now senior research scientist and director of the Center for Intelligent Networked Systems at Stevens Institute of Technology. "We did not know if the moon had a surface a man could stand on."
And then their minds were blown when they learned astronaut John Glenn circled the Earth.
"These two events motivated me to try to understand how we could do this and led me to start working as a student scientist in the U.K., where I did my undergraduate and master's and doctorate degrees," Lawrence told Investor's Business Daily.
Set The Stage Like Victor Lawrence
Lawrence shot for the moon himself to achieve a career filled with groundbreaking accomplishments.
He started his pioneering work in 1974 at Bell Labs (then part of AT&T), as a member of the technical staff. He progressed to become the vice president for Advanced Communications Technology. That's where the magic happened.
While at Bell Labs, Lawrence led the development of technologies for worldwide communications networks. And he managed an R&D staff of over 500 scientists and engineers and a budget of about $100 million annually.
"The inventions from Bell Labs created the telecommunications industry," said Lawrence, now 79.
Break New Ground
Lawrence's innovations in voice, data and video technologies transformed how we connect and communicate. And they ushered in a new era in the quality and choices of entertainment in the digital age.
Lawrence's research provided major contributions to gigabit photonic and wireless networking, signal processing, modem technology, digital techniques, ATM and IP switching and protocols. His innovations in digital signal processing led to the transition from analog to digital networks and to the development of technologies for the early access to the internet.
His teams also built the first studio encoder and receiver chipset for the Sirius Radio Satellite system. The National Inventors Hall Of Fame inducted him in 2016.
In addition to his achievements in technology, Lawrence is an entrepreneur and scholar. He cofounded four successful venture companies and cowrote five books. He holds 53 U.S. and international patents and has published over 100 papers in referenced journals and conference proceedings.
Change The Game
How did he achieve his game-changing breakthroughs? Lawrence says Bell Labs' environment helped develop his leadership style and contributed to his success. There, engineers and scientists continually updated their skills and kept abreast of technologies, new inventions and innovations, says Lawrence.
Lawrence carried those lessons with him. "My formula for success is to carefully listen to people and be able to encourage them," he said. "I never discouraged anyone for the ideas they had. I encouraged them to explore knowing they may make mistakes and learn from their mistakes to make a better system, and sometimes this could lead to disruptive technologies."
Lawrence: Expand Your Vision
Lawrence quickly saw how failure breeds eventual success — sometimes several times over.
"Following up on my Ph.D. thesis, Bell Labs encouraged me to build a digital filter," said Lawrence. "My first attempt was not successful, resulting in an oscillator rather than a filter. But I ... corrected my mistakes and developed a very good digital filter that was used to convert analog systems to digital systems."
Then came his second application. It was using digital signal processing in the design of modems. The third application used digital signal processing in the design of secure voice terminals. And the fourth application was to use digital signal processing in the design of digital TV.
All these innovations transformed the world of entertainment, video messaging and video communications. And none would have happened if he gave up.
Keep Pushing For More Innovation
Lawrence didn't let borders contain him. "I asked myself, 'Let's see what (I) can do about communication to Africa.' And (I) looked at submarine cables," he said.
Lawrence then developed the systems architecture of a first of its kind fiber optic cable ring around Africa for AT&T. And he says it took thinking like an entrepreneur to tackle such an enormous and costly undertaking. It also means forgetting past limitations.
He's on a constant quest to fulfill his vision of the future. "I always moved from the past to the future," Lawrence said.
Know Your Key Qualities
Lawrence's key to success as a scientist and engineer is "seeing the big picture of the possibilities," said Paul Wilford, senior research director at Nokia Bell Labs. Wilford worked for Lawrence at Bell Labs for 25 years as a research director when Lawrence was vice president of the lab. He's known Lawrence for 35 years.
"His work in the technology of ... broadband was something people (possibly) didn't imagine. But he had a vision for what could be. And he was interested in how people were going to use the things we all created as scientists," Wilford said.
He motivated his team to achieve success by "having consensus and agreeing 'this is something we can work on. This is new and we haven't tried it,'" Lawrence said. "This makes them feel like entrepreneurs looking at things differently and moving things forward."
Focus On Leadership
Lawrence knew how to spark ideas from his team.
He is a "very affirming leader, who believes great ideas come from the team," said Nokia Bell Labs' Wilford. "He has a way to make people think deeply and take responsibility for their own thoughts and ideas. He's a good reflective listener."
Lawrence also aimed high. "I failed many times, but I did not let my failure overcome my hopes, desires and aspirations for the future," Lawrence said. He emphasized thinking positively until he found the solution.
Find Your Role As A Mentor Like Lawrence
Mentoring is also important to him. "In life you have to stand on someone's shoulders to see far. I hope my shoulders are strong enough for the next generation to stand on," Lawrence said.
Lawrence retired from Bell Labs as vice president of Advanced Communications Technology. He joined Stevens Institute of Technology in 2005. Lawrence personally saw how important a mentor can be.
He was 9 years old when his father passed away. His single mother urged him and his sister to be exceptional. "Being creative and upholding integrity with unwavering dedication is still valued by me," he said.
After high school Lawrence accepted a scholarship program to study engineering in the U.K. The scholarship only provided for tuition. He worked for his room and board to support himself through college. He took any job he could find, including dishwasher. But Lawrence persevered. He went on to receive a B.Sc., DIC (Diploma of the Imperial College), and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from the University of London.
Lawrence offers this advice: "Never say something can't be done. And challenge people to try to discover things and ask why and invent things around it to make it better."
Victor Lawrence's Keys
- Pioneer in a number of communications technologies while vice president for Advanced Communications Technology at AT&T's Bell Labs.
- Overcame: Challenges of research and funding involved in developing new technologies, gaining government approval and building market acceptance.
- Lesson: "The main thing is to be loyal to your organization and to be loyal to people you work with. Once loyalty is there, you're building a camaraderie that helps in building success."
