Jeff Lawrence (entrepreneur)
Encyclopedia
Jeff Lawrence is an entrepreneur
, technologist
and philanthropist
.
and his mother was Grace Lawrence. He lived in New York, New York briefly and grew up in Van Nuys, California and Studio City, California. He was very interested in science and technology as a child. Jeff received a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering
from the University of California, Los Angeles, in 1979.
's Communications Systems Division in 1980. Amdahl had just finished acquiring the privately-held company Tran Telecommunications which became its Communications Systems Division. At Amdahl, Jeff developed software for high performance packet switching systems
designed for large enterprise
and public data network
infrastructures. Amdahl's circuit and packet switching systems were sold to PTT's and enterprises around the world. Some customers for the circuit and packet switching systems included Pacific Bell
, SAPO
, the Trans-Canada Telephone System and AT&T
. The systems were used to build the Pacific Bell, Datapac
and SAPONET public data networks as well as portions of AT&T's enterprise network. Jeff left Amdahl just before it moved its Communications Systems Division from Marina Del Rey, California to Richardson, Texas
and went to Doelz Networks in 1985.
At Doelz, Jeff developed software and systems for high availability Local Area Network
and Wide Area Network
products for large enterprise network infrastructures. After the 1987 stock market crash, Doelz Networks experienced financial difficulties and Jeff was laid off in 1988.
Jeff co-founded, with Larisa Chistyakov, Trillium Digital Systems
in 1988 and served as its President & CEO until its acquisition by Intel Corporation
in 2000. Jeff continued at Intel as the Chief Technology Officer for its Communications Group and left Intel in 2002. Trillium Digital Systems developed and licensed communications software to communications equipment manufacturers building the wireless
, Internet
, broadband
and telephone
infrastructure.
Jeff and his wife founded The Lawrence Foundation
in 2000 after Trillium's acquisition by Intel. The Lawrence Foundation is a family foundation that makes grants to non-profit environmental, human services, and other causes.
Jeff co-founded, with Lori Mitchell, the Common Grant Application in 2006 and continues to serve as its President. The Common Grant Application offers a Web-based service
that serves as a common application to non-profit grantseekers and a grant management system to non-profit grantmakers.
Jeff joined the board of Guidance Software, a provider of computer forensic
, eDiscovery and cybersecurity software in 2008 and continues to serve as one of its directors.
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
, technologist
Technologist
An engineering technologist, is a specialist devoted to the implementation of existing technology within a field of engineering. Technologists often work with engineers in a wide variety of projects by applying basic engineering principles and technical skills...
and philanthropist
Philanthropist
A philanthropist is someone who engages in philanthropy; that is, someone who donates his or her time, money, and/or reputation to charitable causes...
.
Early life
Jeff was born in Cleveland, Ohio. His father was Ray LawrenceRay Lawrence (record industry)
Ray Lawrence is a former bandleader, record company executive, record producer and personal manager.-Biography:Ray's father was born in Wickhaven, Pennsylvania and his mother was born in Uzhorod, Bohemia. Ray's grandfather died in the Darr Mine Disaster of 1907 in Wickhaven. After the disaster...
and his mother was Grace Lawrence. He lived in New York, New York briefly and grew up in Van Nuys, California and Studio City, California. He was very interested in science and technology as a child. Jeff received a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering
Electrical engineering
Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...
from the University of California, Los Angeles, in 1979.
Business
After graduating from UCLA Jeff joined Amdahl CorporationAmdahl Corporation
Amdahl Corporation is an information technology company which specializes in IBM mainframe-compatible computer products. Founded in 1970 by Dr. Gene Amdahl, a former IBM employee, it has been a wholly owned subsidiary of Fujitsu since 1997...
's Communications Systems Division in 1980. Amdahl had just finished acquiring the privately-held company Tran Telecommunications which became its Communications Systems Division. At Amdahl, Jeff developed software for high performance packet switching systems
Packet switch
A packet switch is a node in a network which uses the packet switching paradigm for data communication. Packet switches can operate at a number of different levels in a protocol suite; although the exact technical details differ, fundamentally they all perform the same function: they store and...
designed for large enterprise
Enterprise Private Network
An enterprise private network is a computer network built by a business to interconnect its various company sites in order to share computer resources.-History:...
and public data network
Public Data Network
A public data network is a network established and operated by a telecommunications administration, or a recognized private operating agency, for the specific purpose of providing data transmission services for the public....
infrastructures. Amdahl's circuit and packet switching systems were sold to PTT's and enterprises around the world. Some customers for the circuit and packet switching systems included Pacific Bell
Pacific Bell
The Pacific Telephone and Telegraph Company was the name of the Bell System's telephone operations in California. It gained in size by acquiring smaller telephone companies along the Pacific coast, such as Sunset Telephone & Telegraph in 1917...
, SAPO
South African Post Office
South African Post Office or SAPO is the national postal service of South Africa and is owned by the South African government. It employs over 17,000 people and operates more than 2,400 postal outlets throughout the country.-History:...
, the Trans-Canada Telephone System and AT&T
AT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...
. The systems were used to build the Pacific Bell, Datapac
DATAPAC
DATAPAC was Canada's packet switched X.25-equivalent data network. Operated first by Trans-Canada Telephone System, then Telecom Canada, then the Stentor Alliance, it finally reverted to Bell Canada when the Stentor Alliance was dissolved.-Use:...
and SAPONET public data networks as well as portions of AT&T's enterprise network. Jeff left Amdahl just before it moved its Communications Systems Division from Marina Del Rey, California to Richardson, Texas
Richardson, Texas
Richardson is a city in Dallas and Collin Counties in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 99,223. In 2011 the population was estimated to be 107,684. Richardson is an affluent inner suburb of Dallas and home of the Telecom Corridor with a high...
and went to Doelz Networks in 1985.
At Doelz, Jeff developed software and systems for high availability Local Area Network
Local area network
A local area network is a computer network that interconnects computers in a limited area such as a home, school, computer laboratory, or office building...
and Wide Area Network
Wide area network
A wide area network is a telecommunication network that covers a broad area . Business and government entities utilize WANs to relay data among employees, clients, buyers, and suppliers from various geographical locations...
products for large enterprise network infrastructures. After the 1987 stock market crash, Doelz Networks experienced financial difficulties and Jeff was laid off in 1988.
Jeff co-founded, with Larisa Chistyakov, Trillium Digital Systems
Trillium digital systems
Trillium Digital Systems, developed and licensed standards-based communications source code software to telecommunications equipment manufacturers for the wireless, broadband, Internet and telephone network infrastructure. Trillium became one of the early pioneers to license source code...
in 1988 and served as its President & CEO until its acquisition by Intel Corporation
Intel Corporation
Intel Corporation is an American multinational semiconductor chip maker corporation headquartered in Santa Clara, California, United States and the world's largest semiconductor chip maker, based on revenue. It is the inventor of the x86 series of microprocessors, the processors found in most...
in 2000. Jeff continued at Intel as the Chief Technology Officer for its Communications Group and left Intel in 2002. Trillium Digital Systems developed and licensed communications software to communications equipment manufacturers building the wireless
Wireless
Wireless telecommunications is the transfer of information between two or more points that are not physically connected. Distances can be short, such as a few meters for television remote control, or as far as thousands or even millions of kilometers for deep-space radio communications...
, Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
, broadband
Broadband
The term broadband refers to a telecommunications signal or device of greater bandwidth, in some sense, than another standard or usual signal or device . Different criteria for "broad" have been applied in different contexts and at different times...
and telephone
Telephony
In telecommunications, telephony encompasses the general use of equipment to provide communication over distances, specifically by connecting telephones to each other....
infrastructure.
Jeff and his wife founded The Lawrence Foundation
The Lawrence Foundation
The Lawrence Foundation is a private family foundation in the United States focused on making grants to support environmental, education, human services and other causes. It makes both program and operating grants and does not have any geographical restrictions...
in 2000 after Trillium's acquisition by Intel. The Lawrence Foundation is a family foundation that makes grants to non-profit environmental, human services, and other causes.
Jeff co-founded, with Lori Mitchell, the Common Grant Application in 2006 and continues to serve as its President. The Common Grant Application offers a Web-based service
Software as a Service
Software as a service , sometimes referred to as "on-demand software," is a software delivery model in which software and its associated data are hosted centrally and are typically accessed by users using a thin client, normally using a web browser over the Internet.SaaS has become a common...
that serves as a common application to non-profit grantseekers and a grant management system to non-profit grantmakers.
Jeff joined the board of Guidance Software, a provider of computer forensic
Computer forensics
Computer forensics is a branch of digital forensic science pertaining to legal evidence found in computers and digital storage media...
, eDiscovery and cybersecurity software in 2008 and continues to serve as one of its directors.
Selected articles, publications and presentations
- "Why be an Entrepreneur? What It Takes to Succeed". Keynote. Caltech/MIT Enterprise Forum, October 2003.
- "From Techie to Tycoon: You don't need an MBA to develop leading edge technology for the marketplace". Panelist. Caltech/MIT Enterprise Forum, October 2004.
- "Nanotechnology: Science, Innovation, and Opportunity" - Chapter 10. Edited by Lynn Foster. Prentice Hall, 2006.
- "Successful Entrepreneurial Leaders: From Scrappy Founders to Polished Professional Managers". Panelist. Caltech/MIT Enterprise Forum, October 2009. (Video)
Achievements
- 1997, 1998 - Trillium listed in Inc. 500 for its fast growth as a private company http://www.inc.com/inc5000/2009/search_results.html?showrank=on&b_rank=1&e_rank=5000&showstate=on&state=all&showname=on&name=trillium&b_growth=20&e_growth=316000®ion=all&industry=all&b_revenue=1000000&e_revenue=6000000000&showyear=on&b_year=1997&e_year=1998&b_employees=1&e_employees=30200&b_founded=1790&e_founded=2004&submit=Filter+the+List
- 1997 – Co-recipient of the Greater Los Angeles Area Entrepreneur of the Year award http://eoyhof.ey.com/
- 2005 – Recipient of the UCLA School of Engineering’s Professional Achievement award http://www.engineer.ucla.edu/newsroom/featured-news/archive/2005/november/ucla-engineering-celebrates-60-years-honors-contributions-at-annual-awards-dinner
Further reading
- "Roadmap to Entrepreneurial Success". Robert W. Price, AMACOM, 2004.
- "How You Can Become Ma Bell". Karen Kaplan. Los Angeles Times, March 25, 1996.
- "Growing Lean". Douglas Young. Los Angeles Business Journal, December 2, 1996.
- "Network Broker". Communications News. October 1998.
- "Preparation Counts More Than Luck". Juan Hovey. Los Angeles Times, October 6, 1999.
- "It's a Do-It-Yourself Era for Budding Benefactors". Scott Martelle. The Los Angeles Times, April 8, 2002.