A Q&A with Michael Ziering, Donor

Our department had the recent pleasure of sitting down and chatting with Michael Ziering. He and his wife Diane have been donating to UCSB and our Certificate program for many years. Read his full interview to learn more about his background, what he loves the most about collaborating with Technology Management, his advice for other donors, and more! 

Find Michael at his LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-ziering-a326541b/

Tell me a little bit about yourself. 

Q: What is your background and where are you now?   

A: I'm currently based in Pacific Palisades, California. We moved to California from Boston when I was 12, and I went to middle school and high school in Beverly Hills. I attended UCSB in the Class of ‘78, graduating in political science. I then went to work on a senate campaign in South Carolina after I graduated, working for a Democrat who ran against Strom Thurmond, who had been in the Senate since the 1940’s. I was in South Carolina for six months until we lost the election. Then, I came back to Los Angeles and started working and I thought, “I don't really like this.” All my friends were either in law school or graduate school, so I applied to law school and graduated in 1982. I passed the BAR exam and served as a public defender from January of 1983 through 1986. 

So the segue now is: how did I get involved in the sciences? Well, my parents were basically the founders of a blood testing company—they were brought on early, and bought out the founder when there were only around ten employees. So, I worked there over the summers. By the time 1986 rolled around, we’d had our first child. At the time, I was a public defender in Orange County, and the company had grown to about 250 people and they didn't have any legal in-house. So I made the switch from being a public defender to being an in-house corporate lawyer for them. As I climbed the ladder there, I eventually became vice president of administration. Then, in 1994, I became president and in 2000, my father passed away and I became CEO and chairman for the company, which was by then a New York Stock Exchange company. We sold to Siemens in 2006, and I've been retired ever since. 

Other details about me: I've been on a number of nonprofit boards. I've also been on the advisory board at UCSB, although I’m not really sure if that counts in the same category! And I have three grown children, along with one 11-month-old grandchild, who is the love of my life. 

Q: What would people be surprised to know about you?

A: Even as a UCSB student, the only time I was ever over on the science half of the campus was for a survey film class that was held at the Chemistry main lecture hall. That was the only hall that had enough space for the size of the class; it was so popular. Until I became involved in the advisory group, I’d never gotten to really see that side of the campus. 

Tell me about your relationship/connection with the Department.

Q: How did you first hear about the department of Technology Management?

A: So, as I mentioned, our company made blood tests and instruments. We had cancer tests, blood allergy tests, fertility tests, thyroid tests—over a hundred different tests. Because we were a medical device company and a lot of students in the sciences would be interested in working for us, we would hold job fairs and I would usually introduce the company and speak for about five minutes. Anytime there were Santa Barbara students, I got excited and made a big deal about them. So, when a faculty member from UCSB introduced herself and asked me to speak at one of your annual events, I agreed. 

And that's how I got started. I’ve worked with a lot of people with science backgrounds at our company who didn't really know a lot about business, so when I became aware of the Technology Management Certificate Program, I was happy to serve on the advisory committee. I’ve been involved with the program and with the engineering department ever since. 

Q: What got you excited about the department? 

A: I appreciated that it was open to any undergraduate student. I know the program had a lot of engineering and science students, but there were students from other disciplines in it as well and I thought it really served the need to give people a business background when they got out of school. This is something I didn’t get when I was at UCSB. I always took liberal arts classes and never learned how to read a balance sheet or understand how a company works. That's what excited me, coming from the legal side and having to learn about business as I went at the company. I thought that if I had an opportunity like this one, it would've been great.

Q: What are some of the key priorities you’d like to help the department achieve?

A: I would love to see the Certificate program eventually expand into a full undergraduate degree program. 

Q: What continues to bring you back to our department? 

A: I like to be involved in the school. I had a very positive four-year experience at UCSB, and when the opportunity arose where I could come up twice a year, learn more about the university, and participate with other advisory board members, I couldn’t let it pass. I think it has really enriched me.

Q: If you could give advice to students just entering the business/legal world today, what would you say? 

A: Relax more. I think younger people today are more goal-oriented earlier, and don't take the time to smell the roses. When my classmates and I were juniors and seniors in high school, the topic of what university we were going to never really came up. A lot of them are very high achievers, but no one was that worried about getting into the most prestigious school, or what job they would have when they graduated. 

Q: If you could give any advice to other donors/potential donors, what would you say? 

A: I would say I love the fact that our donations go directly to the students. There used to be a lunch each year where I would meet some of the recipients, and they were always so grateful about the grants they received. They would tell me that our money enabled them to buy books, or that they wouldn’t have to work for a quarter, and a number of other things. In addition, every year, I would get a packet of thank you letters where students told me more about themselves and their experience with the program. 

Q: What do you wish everyone knew about our department?

A: It’s available to all undergraduates. I think it's very important for science-focused students to get a broad experience while they’re at UCSB. I think taking offerings outside of your major provides you with the opportunity to be a well-rounded person. 

Q: Any other comments? 

A: I hope I conveyed that we really enjoy giving to the students at UCSB. We're involved in a number of different philanthropic causes, but this one is very enjoyable because I have direct contact with the students and the university.