Doug Fieldhouse '77
Wednesday, October 03, 2007
 “Discovery consists of seeing what everyone has seen, but thinking what no one else has thought.” Doug Fieldhouse ’77 remembers this quote by Noble Laureate Albert Szent Gorgyi well—it graced his senior page in the Maret yearbook. He explains, “To this day I remember and try to act out my high school senior quote. I would encourage readers to be willing to take chances and to innovate.” Doug’s whole career has been about challenging the status quo and thinking outside of the box.
Doug is the president and CEO of Vesta Corp., a high-growth, innovative company that manages and indemnifies virtual or electronic payments for some of the largest telecommunication companies in the world. Vesta has been consistently ranked among the fastest growing technology companies in the U.S. The brainchild behind this venture, Doug proudly describes himself as a “serial entrepreneur.” Although Doug has been working with Vesta for the past 10 years, he was involved with other start-up companies before that, including international nonprofits, an environmental law firm, and other high tech enterprises.
Doug is quick to point out that being a “serial entrepreneur means I have always opted to start, build, and run my own companies instead of working for others—though much more risky, it has been, I think, much more fun and has always allowed me to do things I really wanted to do, including taking risks, being innovative, working internationally, and working with really smart people.” Doug has been recognized for this leadership and innovation in Computerworld, Fast Company, and Inc. magazines. He also holds two U.S. patents. Since Doug’s ventures have taken him all around the world, with special focus in Asia and Africa, he recognizes the importance of being fluent in other languages and cultures.
Vesta is currently entrenched in the mobile commerce industry in China, which seems to have unlimited potential. Doug notes, “Doing business in China is completely unpredictable, extremely fluid and fast moving and a real rush. I am quite sure that most businesses will have to involve a China strategy soon and it is energizing to be involved so deeply now. Both my kids are studying Chinese, and I think Chinese is the most important language for students to be studying today.” Maret has recognized that fact too and is excited about its new Chinese language program launched this year.
Doug attributes a lot of his critical thinking skills and international interests to his time at Maret. He believes the individual attention he received at Maret and the strong writing background he acquired helped propel his career forward. He explains that even his choice of college, Antioch College, where he received his B.A. in international relations, was a natural outcome of his desire to be independent, while still valuing a small atmosphere. He remembers: “Another very important aspect of my Maret experience was team sports. Due to the School’s size, I was able to play a variety of varsity sports where I had to make up for my lack of innate ability through hard work. Indeed, it was on the sports field at Maret where I learned to never give up and never quit—and that has been a key driver for my success.”
He reflects fondly on his teachers at Maret, including Peter Sturtevant, Sr., John Peterson, and Nick Markoff, and notes that they all had a role in shaping who he is today. In fact, Doug points out, he recalls his teachers at Maret more vividly than his college professors. He remembers fondly another very special teacher—his mother, Clare Fieldhouse, who was his eighth or ninth grade math teacher at Maret. Doug’s siblings, Richard, Susan, and Lucy, also attended Maret. Richard’s wife, Ann Fieldhouse, currently teaches science at Maret and their son, Andrew ’04, graduated from Maret.
As Doug looks ahead, his current success has given him some latitude to choose his next endeavors. He explains, “Within the next five years, Vesta will either go public or be sold, and in either scenario I would anticipate exiting gracefully. Once that occurs I plan to mentor, teach, travel, and eventually maybe even start another business. I currently sit on a number of boards for early stage companies and I anticipate continuing and expanding those efforts. I also plan to expand my occasional foray into teaching at one of the local universities where I am a guest lecturer to MBA and undergraduate business students.”
In any case, we know Doug will be busy and creative in whatever he does. He gives this sage advice, “When I look to hire folks to join my team, there are three attributes I look for—I want folks who are smart, hungry, and humble. I would encourage students to keep those qualities in mind for they will, I am sure, serve them well.” They have certainly served Doug well.
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