William F. Austin

William Franklin "Bill" Austin (born 1942) is an American billionaire businessman, philanthropist, and founder, principal owner, chairman and CEO of Starkey Hearing Technologies, a global hearing aid manufacturer and the largest in the United States.[2]

Bill Austin
Born
William Franklin Austin

1942 (age 77–78)
Nixa, Missouri, US
NationalityAmerican
OccupationBusinessman, philanthropist
Net worthUS$2.4 billion (November 2018)[1]
TitleCEO, Starkey Hearing Technologies
Spouse(s)Tani Austin

Early life

Austin was born in Nixa, Missouri in February 1942. His father, J. E. “Dutch” Austin, worked as a lumber trader for Georgia-Pacific, while his mother, Zola, worked in a factory. To supplement the family's income, Austin and his mother would take walks and collect bottles for recycling. During the summer, they picked blackberries and harvested foxgloves and cascara chittem bark for medicinal purposes. As he grew older, he took on a paper route and a host of other part-time jobs.[3]

In 1961, at age 19, following an offer from an uncle to work part-time at his hearing aid shop and inspired by medical breakthroughs, Austin attended the University of Minnesota with the intent to become a doctor and one day serve the needs of the poor in the developing world. His college career was cut short, however, after one particular customer changed his life. As Austin tells it, a kind elderly gentleman bemoaned that the feedback from his hearing aid was so loud that it actually worsened his hearing, and that no one had been able to repair it. Austin was able to fashion a new earpiece and helped the man to hear again. The man was exceptionally grateful, and his face beamed with gratitude, an image that stuck with Austin. After only a few weeks in college, Austin quit school and poured his time and energy into hearing devices. “As a doctor, I could help maybe 20, 25 people a day,” Austin said. “I felt that if I did the hearing-aid business that I would be able to impact more people.”[1]

Career

In 1970, Austin paid $13,000 for Starkey Labs, which at the time was a hearing aid parts shop. He merged it with his business and under his leadership, the business thrived, owing to a dedicated commitment to innovate and provide high-quality service. Starkey offered the market's first custom, in-the-ear hearing aid, which is the product for which the company is still best known. Later, Starkey became the first hearing device manufacturer to utilize both nano and digital technology. Austin also instituted strong customer service policies, including a 90-day free-trial period.[1] Then, in September 1983, the company's fortunes soared after one of the world's best known figures, U.S. President Ronald Reagan, was photographed wearing Starkey hearing aids. Reagan's acknowledgement that he used hearing devices led to much greater acceptance globally of hearing aid technology. That he was fitted with Starkey hearing aids caused sales to quadruple in just a few weeks.[4]

Over time, Austin's company began expanding, both in the United States and overseas. Even as his company grew, his determination to help the poor never abated, and he began traveling to developing nations on charitable trips. At times, his trips have been without fanfare; other times, to raise awareness of the imperative for hearing solutions needed in the developing world, he has teamed with notable figures from all walks of life and all political parties. For example, in 2013, he joined former President Bill Clinton on a mission to Africa to give customized hearing devices to nearly 400 people in Zambia and Rwanda; that same year, he traveled with former President George W. Bush to provide hearing devices to more than 200 people in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.[5]

During his career, Austin has served five U.S. presidents, two popes and numerous humanitarians and luminaries including Mother Teresa, Walter Cronkite, Arnold Palmer, Billy Graham and many others. As of November 2019, his company had more than 6,000 employees working in 25 facilities, doing business in more than 100 markets worldwide.[6]

Personal life and philanthropic activities

In addition to his roles within Starkey Hearing Technologies, Austin spends much of his time—as much as 25 days a month—working on behalf of his nonprofit Starkey Hearing Foundation, founded in 1984 by Austin and his wife, Tani. Together, they have handed out more than one million hearing aids to the poor.[7] His philanthropic work has been recognized globally, and he has received numerous honors and awards:

Austin and wife Tani currently live in Brownsville, Texas.[22]

See also

References
  1. "Forbes 400". Forbes. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
  2. "William F. (Franklin) Austin biography". Starkey Hearing Technologies Austin biography. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  3. "William F. (Franklin) Austin". Minnesota Science and Technology Hall of Fame. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
  4. 30 Years Later, Ronald Reagan's Hearing Aid Fitting Still Reverberates Around the World, Audiology Online, 27 September 2013, retrieved 4 December 2019
  5. 30 Years Later, Ronald Reagan's Hearing Aid Fitting Still Reverberates Around the World, Audiology Online, 27 September 2013, retrieved 4 December 2019
  6. The Korea Times, 7 November 2019, retrieved 7 November 2019
  7. Forbes 400 2019, Real Time Net Worth, retrieved 6 November 2019
  8. HOBY, Albert Schweitzer Leadership Award, retrieved 7 November 2019
  9. Hearing Review, 2002, retrieved 7 November 2019
  10. The Hearing Journal, September 2002, retrieved 7 November 2019
  11. Caring Institute awardees website, retrieved 7 November 2019
  12. Minnesota Science and Technology Hall of Fame, retrieved 7 December 2019
  13. Variety International Humanitarian Awards, retrieved 7 November 2019
  14. “He Gives the Gift of Hearing to Poor Kids Around the World," People Magazine, March 12, 2007, retrieved 7 December 2019
  15. Minnesota Science and Technology Hall of Fame website, retrieved 7 December 2019
  16. 2008 Horatio Alger Award, retrieved 7 November 2019
  17. Starkey CEO Inducted into Minnesota Science & Technology Hall of Fame, Hearing Review, 30 October 2009, retrieved 7 December 2019
  18. Starkey website, retrieved 7 November 2019
  19. Jefferson Awards, past recipients, retrieved 7 November 2019
  20. Hearing Review, "United Nations-affiliated Organization Names Starkey Founder Bill Austin Goodwill Global Ambassador, 16 September 2017, retrieved 7 November 2019
  21. Hearing Review, 4 December 2018, retrieved 7 November 2019
  22. "Many happy returns to Bill Austin". Audiology Worldnews. 24 February 2017. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
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