Vision and persistence sustain a new business model
Michael Dubyak is chairman of WEX, one of Maine’s biggest business success stories with 2018 revenue of $1.49 billion and 4,700 employees worldwide – about 1,500 of whom work in Maine. He reflects on his entrepreneurial career, involvement in a new digital science and innovation center, and work to expand education.
How did you get your start in Maine?
When I started out in business, I was hungry to learn and grow professionally. But after a few years it became clear that I wanted to be creative and innovative in pursuing career choices, and, if possible, have an ownership position.
The beauty of Maine and the people attracted me to move here and build a new career. I developed three opportunities to pursue a more entrepreneurial path and chose the most innovative and cutting-edge option: Wright Express (today WEX, Inc.).
Wright Express was in a different place when you joined the company in 1985 and spent $23 million before it turned its first profit in 1993. What sustained you as it persevered and prospered?
Most new companies plowing new territory find many challenges to overcome. We went through eight years of losing money and reset the business model, pivoting from the original vision. This new direction was actually more exciting and energized me to find the key to unlock a tremendously game-changing market.
Any entrepreneur must believe in a vision for their own motivation and find others who get caught up in that relentless pursuit. Without persistence most entrepreneurs will fail, because the roadblocks are many and daunting. This may mean 70- to 80-hour work weeks for years, which provides personal challenges; you can’t and shouldn’t maintain this level of time commitment for too long or you will lose your footing in your personal life.
Why is Maine a good place for entrepreneurial businesses?
Maine people are not afraid to work hard, but more importantly they have depth of character. That makes it easier to bond together and push through the challenges with people you trust who aren’t afraid to put in the time to achieve the vision. Maine offers a great environment for entrepreneurs who want to make their culture a strategic advantage.
You were Educate Maine’s first chair and are co-founder and co-chair of FocusMaine, which has a 10-year plan to create 20,000 new jobs in agriculture, aquaculture, and biopharmaceuticals. What does Maine need to grow its economy?
When I retired as CEO of WEX I made a commitment to give back to Maine because it has been good to me and my career. Because of my experience leading WEX, I became a strong advocate of education. In my work to help launch Project>Login (a resource for the computing and IT field), I realized that the entire educational pipeline must be strong, from early childhood to higher education. Fortifying this pipeline is fundamental to Maine’s success. We can provide world-class education in a vacuum, but if we don’t provide professional opportunities our young best and brightest will leave the state. Back in the 1980s the K-12 student population was approximately 275,000; today it is about 175,000. Our success will help keep young people here as they raise families and the K-12 population should grow and hopefully reverse the declining student population.
Tell us about the new Michael E. Dubyak Center for Digital Science & Innovation at the University of Southern Maine that you supported with a $1 million gift.
This unique program will bring high school students to the center, and Project>Login will help formulate programs. WEX will have a seat at the table to help jumpstart this experiential learning that could be valuable to other companies in Maine. The program also will have a role in all career paths at USM, which will require digital learning in their curricula.
