‘age Four
When this 25-year-old researcher
wanted to investigate a possible cancer treatment,
we gave him the go-ahead.
At Kodak, it’s not unusual for a 25-year-old like Jim
Carroll to win the title of senior research physicist. Like any
company involved in a lot of basic research, Kodak has felt
the pressure of modern, technology and the need for young,
fresh thinking. So we hire the best talent we possibly can,
and then give them as much responsibility as they can han
dle. Whatever their age.
We have departments and divisions, like any company.
What we don’t have are preconceived ideas about how an
expert scientist’s time should be spent. So when we received
a request from the medical community for assistance in ex
perimenting with lasers as a possible cancer treatment, we
turned to 25-year-old Jim Carroll, who is deep in laser tech-
We also gave him the right to fail.
Behrend Col legian
nology, and gave him the go-ahead. He built two half-billion
watt laser systems, one of which Kodak has donated to the
National Institute of Health.
The lasers proved unsuccessful in treating cancer, but
we’d make the same decision all over again. We entered laser
technology because we have a stake in business. We let a
young researcher help the medical community look for a
means of cancer treatment because we have a stake in the
future of mankind.
To put it another way, we’re in business to make a
profit. But in furthering our own needs, we have often fur
thered society’s. After all, our business depends on our soci
ety. So we care what happens to it.
Kodak
More than a business.
October 1