John Morris
October 7, 2014 | | Student Success
After earning his associate degree in electrical engineering from Chattanooga State and a bachelor’s in information systems, John Morris spent years in preparation for his true calling: entrepreneurship. Gaining experience as well as learning how to, and not, to manage a business, John worked at TVA and Oak Ridge National Laboratory before making the decision to forge out on his own in a 3-person start up company called Consultec Scientific. He insists that family values and support are crucial when taking the big leap from corporate job security into the unknown. He says having a superior product, listening to customers and weighing each major decision carefully is the key to entrepreneurship. His most recent decision to step down as president and CEO of Oak Ridge-based Technology 2020 will steer him back to his first passion: pursuing other entrepreneurial interests.
Awards
Outstanding Entrepreneur of the Year: Innovation Valley Technology Business Association Navigator Award: October 2007 Federal Laboratory Consortium: Excellence in Technology Transfer – 2006 R&D 100 Award: Hybrid Solar Lighting - 2006