By Barbara L. Micale

Virginia Tech Board of Visitors benefits from George Nolen's business and leadership acumen, serves on Finance and Audit Committee

What do New York City, northern Virginia, and Blacksburg have in common?

They are all considered home to Board of Visitors member George Nolen. And for good reason.

As president and chief executive officer of Siemens Corporation, Nolen divides his time between New York City and Reston, Virginia. But, he says, there is a third place where he always feels at home and that is Blacksburg. "Blacksburg and Virginia Tech provide a strong centerpiece for my family," Nolen says.

Nolen, one of seven children, grew up in the Washington D.C. area. His was the first generation of the Nolen family to attend college and, like three of his brothers and sisters, Virginia Tech was his college of choice. In 1978, he and his wife, Michele, graduated from the Pamplin School of Business. The next generation of Nolens chose to attend their parents' alma mater. Jenny graduated from Tech last year and Brian is currently enrolled in his junior year. Nolen says that, in total, about 21 of his family members are Virginia Tech graduates, and some of them have made Blacksburg their "home away from home."

"So Blacksburg often serves as the perfect place for the extended family to meet, whether it's just to get together and catch up, to celebrate a special family occasion, or to huddle together at a tailgate party before a Hokies football game," Nolen says. In addition to family, he says he finds himself drawn to southwest Virginia because "nothing can compare to the beautiful trees and mountains there."

Over the past 25 years, Nolen has risen through the ranks of Siemens to become the first American to run the U.S. arm of the Munich-based company. The $25+ billion corporation employs 70,000 people, operates in all 50 states, and represents nearly 20 percent of the company's global revenues. Siemens is a leader in healthcare, infrastructure, and energy.

Since assuming the role of CEO in 2004, Nolen's leadership has included 12 straight quarters of double-digit growth and $18 billion in new acquisitions. It was someone with this type of corporate acumen that Mark Warner was looking to bring to Tech when he appointed Nolen to a four-year term on the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors in summer 2005.

He is a member of the Board's Finance and Audit Committee, and is serving a concurrent term as chairman of the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute (VBI), a Virginia Tech research institute dedicated to the study of the biological sciences.

"Research is extremely important in growing the university because it attracts the greatest minds and creates a greater opportunity for economic development," Nolen says. "Its economic value will not only benefit the campus as a greater number of students and faculty flock to its doors, but will extend to the state by creating jobs and new streams of revenue."

Nolen says that Virginia Tech is "clearly establishing itself as a world class research institution. This will be extremely important if Virginia wants to establish itself as a new technology capital -- much like MIT and Harvard did in the Boston area and the University of California at Berkeley did in Silicon Valley."

He says that the National Capital Region will continue to have a major impact in securing monies for research because of its proximity to Washington D.C. and the opportunities for federal government funding. "Organizations like the National Science Foundation are very aggressive and seem to prefer research partners that are close by," he says.

In addition to his commitments at Virginia Tech, Nolen is a member of the Business Roundtable, where he serves on the Energy Task Force and the Partnership for Disaster Response, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, both in Washington D.C. He also sits on the board of the New York Hall of Science and represents Siemens in the Partnership for New York City.

A proponent of community service, he and his wife actively support a number of children's organizations. Although leisure time is at a minimum, golfing, boating, and skiing are favorite pastimes for Nolen.

Nolen says that serving on his alma mater's Board of Visitors is a rewarding experience for him. "What I really admire most about the board is that, as busy as we all are, we are committed to working as a team," says Nolen. "The university administration has to be given credit for doing a superb job helping us share information and insights from one committee to another. This has made it easier for us, and has allowed us to be more effective in our role of governing the university."

Posted October 25, 2007