{"273281":{"#nid":"273281","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Returning Favor Led Trujillo Back to Tech","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EImagine Al Trujillo\u2019s surprise when, as a Georgia Tech student, he received a congratulatory letter (and a hefty check) stating he\u2019d been awarded a scholarship \u2014 that he didn\u2019t apply for.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cDr. Ducoffe was head of Aerospace Engineering when I was an undergrad in the late 70s and early 80s,\u201d said Trujillo, who is now president and chief operating officer of The Georgia Tech Foundation. \u201cHe was always pushing me to do more, to the point that I wondered if he really liked me.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBut Trujillo was wrong. Ducoffe was the one who had nominated him for the scholarship.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI remember telling him how surprised and honored I was that he\u2019d done this,\u201d Trujillo said. \u201cHe looked at me and said, \u2018I surprised you \u2026 maybe you\u2019ll surprise me someday.\u2019\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EYears later, Trujillo was sitting in his office overlooking Sydney Harbor in Australia when he received another letter from Tech \u2014 this time asking for help in establishing an endowed chair position in Ducoffe\u2019s name.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI hadn\u2019t been a regularly involved alumnus, but this was a turning point,\u201d Trujillo said. \u201cI reconnected with the Institute as a volunteer with the Alumni Association, a path that led to where I am now.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EPractical Guy vs. Adventurer\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ETrujillo assumed his role at The Foundation in July 2013 after a colorful career leading companies that handled everything from waste to documents. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWhen it comes to making career decisions, I\u2019ve always had a practical guy sitting on one shoulder telling me to analyze my choices carefully \u2014 and another guy on the other shoulder telling me to lighten up and be adventurous,\u201d he said. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAs a teenager, Trujillo learned how to fly airplanes, which resulted in him graduating from Tech with a bachelor\u2019s degree from the School of Aerospace Engineering.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAfter college, Trujillo dabbled in designing rocket motors for Lockheed and realized how much he enjoyed managing others. He headed to Stanford University, where Trujillo earned an MBA. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESince then, he has lead companies from the United States to Australia, eventually ending up in Norcross. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cAlthough it was the letter I received in Australia that prompted my re-involvement with Tech, moving to Norcross enabled me to be a more active participant, first through the Alumni Association as a trustee and then chairman, and later as a trustee to The Foundation,\u201d he added.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ESpreading the Word\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cSo what does The Foundation do?\u201d This is the No. 1 question that Trujillo has heard since stepping into his new role.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe Foundation has three main duties:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EReceive and manage funds.\u003C\/strong\u003E The Foundation has approximately $1.7 billion in assets, with $1.4 billion of it in investments. (The unit has its own in-house investment team to assist in the decision-making process.) \u201cIt\u2019s income from this $1.4 billion that helps pay for scholarships, faculty chairs, and institute infrastructure,\u201d Trujillo added.\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003EFollow donors\u2019 wishes. \u201cIt\u2019s our job to ensure that money is distributed in a way that is consistent with our donors\u2019 wishes,\u201d he said. \u201cSometimes their directions aren\u2019t the most convenient, but we need to follow them.\u201d\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003EManage the giving database. The Foundation oversees the major database that everyone on campus \u2014 from the Office of Development to Athletics \u2014 uses to identify and work with donors.\u003C\/li\u003E\u003C\/ul\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EA Day on the Job\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOne of the most satisfying parts of Trujillo\u2019s job is being around students \u2014 something that wasn\u2019t a fact of life in other leadership positions he\u2019s served in. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWorking in a higher education environment was one of the things that appealed most to me about this role,\u201d Trujillo said. \u201cWhether it\u2019s getting to guest lecture for a class or meeting with a student I\u2019ve mentored to help him mull over job options, I love these opportunities.\u201d \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn addition to meeting with students, Trujillo spends his days reviewing the investment results for The Foundation and serving on a number of Institute committees, such as those for the Alumni Association, Athletics, Arts Council, and Facilities. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI joined a well-run organization, but there are always opportunities for improvement,\u0026nbsp; and I will be looking for ways to run The Foundation even more efficiently,\u201d he said. \u201cI also look forward to finding new ways to leverage The Foundation\u2019s resources in support of Georgia Tech and am always open to suggestions from the campus community. So, if you have feedback, please don\u2019t hesitate to let me know.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EImagine Al Trujillo\u2019s surprise when, as a Georgia Tech student, he received a congratulatory letter (and a hefty check) stating he\u2019d been awarded a scholarship \u2014 that he didn\u2019t apply for.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Imagine Al Trujillo\u2019s surprise when, as a Georgia Tech student, he received a congratulatory letter (and a hefty check) stating he\u2019d been awarded a scholarship \u2014 that he didn\u2019t apply for."}],"uid":"27445","created_gmt":"2014-02-04 10:59:19","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:15:47","author":"Amelia Pavlik","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2014-02-03T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2014-02-03T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"273201":{"id":"273201","type":"image","title":"Al Trujillo","body":null,"created":"1449244112","gmt_created":"2015-12-04 15:48:32","changed":"1475894964","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:49:24","alt":"Al Trujillo","file":{"fid":"198691","name":"al.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/al_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/al_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":403752,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/al_0.jpg?itok=HasWvUOm"}}},"media_ids":["273201"],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/www.gtf.gatech.edu\/","title":"Georgia Tech Foundation"}],"groups":[{"id":"1259","name":"Whistle"}],"categories":[{"id":"129","name":"Institute and Campus"}],"keywords":[{"id":"85611","name":"Al Trujillo"},{"id":"167589","name":"School of Aerospace Engineering"},{"id":"85621","name":"The Georgia Tech Foundation"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71871","name":"Campus and Community"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:amelia.pavlik@comm.gatech.edu\u0022\u003EAmelia Pavlik\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EInstitute Communications\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}