Profile: Michael Fulton

Name: Michael Fulton

Current Job: Associate Vice President, Technology Strategy & Innovation, Nationwide

Current City: Columbus

Hometown: Huber Heights

Q: What is it that you do at Nationwide? 
Nationwide is a Fortune 75 Financial Services giant offering a full suite of insurance and financial products across property & casualty, life, supplemental health, pet, retirement plans, annuities and voluntary benefits, with 35,000 employees across the country and over 230 Billion dollars in Assets under management.

My team researches new and emerging technologies, identifies the new what’s possibles those technologies create, educates the broader organization on what we have learned and experiments with technologies in the context of customer and business needs through the rapid development of prototypes. 

Q: What’s a problem that you are working to solve? 
Among other things, we are trying to answer the question of how can a financial services company leverage AR/VR to engage customers in new and different ways that enhance the overall experience and add real value. For example, we recently leveraged 360-Degree virtual reality technology to engage advisors and clients on investing in Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) funds. We are also exploring opportunities to partner with Ohio University’s GRID Lab to experiment with AR/VR in claims use cases. 

Q: What’s a lesson you’ve learned that has helped shaped your work? 
In order to deliver successful innovations to market, you must have an unmet customer need, a winning idea that can solve for that need, technology to effectively build the solution, a business model that make money and the unwavering support of both an executive sponsor and the broader organization. You may have an incredible idea, but without ALL of these pieces, your solution may not ever make it to market.   

Q: What’s a trend in technology or innovation that you believe doesn’t get enough attention? 
Technology gets a ton of attention already, but probably the one aspect that I believe is underrated is the important of technology convergence.  

It isn’t any one single technology that is going to fundamentally change the world. It is the intersection and convergence of multiple technologies (like AI, IoT, & Blockchain for example) together that introduces a step change in what’s possible.

Probably the best example here is the combination of IOT, Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, and AR/VR to create virtual copies of real world products, commonly called a digital twin. In fact, the most publicized example of this is the work that GE Aircraft, from right here in the great state of Ohio, did to create a digital twin of their aircraft engines, fundamentally changing GE’s business model.

Q: What’s one moonshot idea that could help make Ohio a world leader in technology and innovation?
I am an adjunct professor at Ohio State and my moonshot idea is that OSU’s Management Information Systems program in the Fisher College of Business can and should be a top ten program in the country.  

Technology is such an important field to the future of Ohio and with the incredible resources available in our state and our university, there is no reason why we can’t rank among the best of the best. Having our cornerstone university at the forefront in this field will lead to more talent for the region, which will attract more startups and established companies, which will attract more investment in the region, which will lead to benefits for the entire community. 

Q: What’s a recent book, podcast or news story that you found interesting? 
I believe that every person in technology needs to read The Phoenix Project. It is the seminal text for the DevOps movement and is foundational understanding for delivering technology in today’s digital world.  

DevOps is the application of Lean manufacturing methods, architecture, and ideology to the world of software development and operations. The Phoenix Project is relatable to people at all levels of experience in IT because of the parallels between IT and operations based jobs. Plus, as a business novel, it is an incredibly easy and enjoyable read.

Q: What's your favorite place in Ohio? 
Watching the band play and color guard twirl on Football Friday nights in the fall at Olentangy Orange high school in Columbus. With one in the band and one in the color guard, I am of course biased but watching how much fun our high schoolers are having as they celebrate this Ohio tradition is always a blast. 

Q: What makes Ohio special to you?  
Here in Columbus among the technology industry, there is such an incredible sense of community. It far exceeds anything I have ever seen in any city in the US and is amazing to be a part of. And I love how OhioX is trying to bring that same sense of community to the entire state.    

Connect with Michael on LinkedIn.