“I feel most satisfied when I achieve something inspiring or when I guide a piece of research that leads to innovation. So, the most important contribution I can make is guiding research in directions that bear fruit for the whole imec community and beyond.”
Paul Heremans has undoubtedly made significant contributions to imec in the way of bearing fruit. Among many other career accomplishments, he has received two coveted ERC grants, and was instrumental in creating the first III-V LEDs with unprecedented efficiencies. And while he says accomplishments like these are certainly gratifying, the real success is having grown the insight needed to identify research topics and create proposals that create impact. “When you receive funding, what you get is money in advance, entrusted to you. It is an expression of trust in the fact that you have demonstrated that you know how to guide the research.” Paul also considers it an achievement that he’s been able to change research subjects during his career. He says that switching topics has enabled his success by allowing him to acquire a broader background, which has been critical to putting more things into perspective.
Finding, guiding, and mentoring innovation
Paul says he is most passionate about coaching others to find meaningful, high-potential innovation subjects that fit the mission, scope, and the tooling of imec. “There are still many innovations to discover,” he said. “Creating new innovations around the foundation that we already have, with a line of sight to applications, is a strong driver for me. These days, my role is to help guide and shape these, sponsor them, and be a mentor for them.”
Fusing science and leadership
“The most important role for us as fellows is to combine science and leadership,” Paul says. “What imec aims to do is advance industry-ready technology, and that goes over the steps of research and innovation. Research is the basis. Innovation is when you bring research to the level where it’s applicable in an industry context or an application. A fellow should think of research and innovation together.”
Most important aren’t things, but people
Paul says that although many people have influenced him for diverse reasons, one of the most profound things he learned from one of his mentors is that talent is amongst the most valuable legacies that a leader can leave behind. “When we hire people, we need to hire for quality, even if the domain of expertise is a little bit off. First, we must pay attention to the quality of the hire. That is particularly important at imec, because our collective brainpower fuels our potential for research and innovation. Therefore, the potential which is intrinsic inside of people is one of the most important criteria. I learned that from a key influencer in my life. When you look around today, many of our leaders were first spotted by this person. So there, we can see the importance of this legacy.”
Innovative ideas: a collective effort
According to Paul, the ability to make links, connections, and see the similarities between ideas generated by many people just a little earlier than others, is the key to real innovative ideation. “Of course, your own experience is essential, but good ideas come especially from listening to lots of ideas that come from inside and outside the organization. You don’t just come up with a genius idea that is disconnected from the world. I have never seen it work like that. Talking to others allows you to see trends, patterns, and evolutions, he says. “You collect a great deal of information and then try to extrapolate. There’s a certain amount of extrapolation and imagination involved in innovation, but it’s always based on a lot of solid data provided by a lot of internal and external people.” Paul adds that part of why these coronavirus times are so difficult is that we miss the external component. “We don’t talk, we don’t go to conferences or reach out, and I think that is a risk that could cause innovation to dry up.”
Advice to junior researchers
The most critical advice Paul has for up-and-comers is that collaboration is vital. “Don’t try to innovate on your own,” he said. “Use the possibilities that imec offers. Teamwork is natural in imec at all levels. By collaboration, you multiply your own creativity because you have people around you to bounce your ideas around. We have these possibilities, so use them.”
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Published on:
26 February 2021
