Gutierrez Names Carl J. Schramm Chair of Commerce Department's Advisory Committee to Measure Innovation

Business Wire, Feb 15, 2007

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Commerce Department Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez today announced that one of America's leading thinkers on entrepreneurship, Carl J. Schramm, Ph.D., has been named chairman of the advisory committee of business and academic leaders that will seek ways to measure the effects of innovation on the economy.

"Innovation has propelled America forward, raising our standard of living and improving people's lives with better products and services. We need to better understand innovation's role in the U.S. economy. This is why the Commerce Department has formed an advisory committee to see if we can develop ways to measure innovation," said Gutierrez. "Today, I'm pleased to announce that Carl Schramm will work with the Commerce Department to develop innovation metrics and capture its contribution to our rapidly changing economy."

The Measuring Innovation in the 21st Century Economy Advisory Committee is comprised of 10 CEOs and five academics. Schramm will assume chairmanship of the Advisory Committee at its first meeting on February 22 at 2:00 p.m. at the Wyndham Washington Hotel, 1400 M Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. The meeting will be open to the public and registration is available online at www.innovationmetrics.gov.

"I'm honored to lead this distinguished group of individuals as we explore how the Department of Commerce can document the transformation of knowledge into products, services, and processes that improve the way we live and work," said Schramm. "The need to identify and replicate what's working in America's innovation process has never been more important to our nation's long-term economic prosperity."

Schramm is president and chief executive officer of the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, the largest foundation in the world to focus on advancing entrepreneurship. Regarded as one of the country's preeminent thinkers on America's entrepreneurial economy, he is an economist, entrepreneur, lawyer and expert in health care finance, regulation and insurance. Schramm is the author of The Entrepreneurial Imperative (HarperCollins, October 2006) and coauthor of Good Capitalism, Bad Capitalism (Yale Press, May 2007).

"Carl Schramm has the practical and analytical background to help us make great progress," said Secretary Gutierrez. "He has thought and written about innovation and understands well the economic contributions of large, mature businesses and young, entrepreneurial firms."

A complete list of the 15-member panel follows:

BUSINESS LEADERS:

Steve Ballmer, CEO, Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, Wash. Under Mr. Ballmer's leadership, the company has continued to grow into the world's leading company for software, personal and business computing. Mr. Ballmer is focused on continuing Microsoft's innovation across the company's seven businesses.

David L. Bernd, CEO, Sentara Healthcare, Norfolk, Va. Under Mr. Bernd's leadership, Sentara has been a consistent leader in healthcare innovation, particularly through the use of technology to enhance clinical outcomes. Mr. Bernd is a former chairman of the American Hospital Association.

James Blanchard, Retired Chairman of the Board and CEO, Synovus Financial Corp, Columbus, Ga. In his 36-year tenure at Synovus, Mr. Blanchard has taken Synovus from a $100 million community bank to a $31 billion diversified financial services company and played a key role in the creation of TSYS, one of the world's largest payment services companies.

George Buckley, Chairman, President and CEO, 3M, St. Paul, Minn. For more than a century, 3M has exemplified what it means to succeed through innovation. The company has set the standard for innovation by applying leading-edge technologies such as microreplication, nanotechnology, light management, and fuel cell research, to create products that transform industries. 3M's products are found in a variety of places including: homes, offices, hospitals, dental offices, cars, aircraft, traffic signs, LCD displays and electronic devices.

Art Collins, Chairman and CEO, Medtronic, Minneapolis, Minn. Medtronic is the global leader in medical technology, and is the largest and most diversified medical device company in the world. Mr. Collins served as chairman of the Advanced Medical Technology Association and is a recognized national speaker on patient access to new medical technology, better health, investment, competitiveness and growth.

Michael Eskew, Chairman and CEO, UPS, Atlanta, Ga. UPS is the world's largest package delivery company and a global leader in supply chain services. Under Mr. Eskew's direction, UPS is deploying new technologies and expanding its capabilities into additional lines of business that complement the company's global delivery operations.

Luther Hodges, Jr., owner-manager of Santa Fe Hospitality and the Hotel Santa Fe, as well as investment partnerships, Chapel Hill, N.C. Mr. Hodges has served in financial services banking posts for 27 years and was the first Deputy Secretary of Commerce.

John Menzer, Vice Chairman, Wal-Mart Stores, Bentonville, Ark. Mr. Menzer has led six major global acquisitions. Prior to his current position, he was president and CEO of Wal-Mart International with full operating responsibilities for the company's international operations in 15 countries outside the United States and the 3,200 U.S. stores.