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There’s a difference between being a maverick and a leader. And in corporate culture, there’s the temptation to be a maverick, to be the rockstar, hoping to impress the boss.

Over his long and successful career as a biomedical engineer specializing in R&D and the commercialization of medical devices and in-vitro diagnostic instruments globally, Peman Montazemi EMBA ’22 learned what it takes to become a valuable changemaker within a company—there’s a difference, he says, between a rockstar and a true leader.

“My strongest advice is to know that the ego is the worst enemy of progress,” says Montazemi, currently chief technology officer at Bright Uro, Inc. in Aliso Viejo, California, a position he assumed in January 2022. “Because once you think you know it all, that’s when you commit your biggest mistakes. Thinking you’ve saturated your knowledge and not allowing yourself to learn more is extremely dangerous behavior.”

Montazemi took his own advice to heart two years ago when he made the decision to earn an Executive MBA degree at the UCI Paul Merage School of Business. His previous schooling and work credentials would not have suggested he needed to learn more: He holds a Bachelor of Science and Master of Science in electromechanical engineering from the Polytechnic School at the Université Libre de Bruxelles, a Master of Science in mechanical and aerospace engineering from the University of Virginia, a Master of Science in biomedical engineering from the University of Southern California and attended UCLA’s Extension Program for general business studies. For more than 20 years, he has steadily expanded his career within the medical device industry, including director of R&D and engineering roles, at several top-flight companies.

Earning an education and gaining a valuable network

However, as Montazemi’s career was headed to the C-suite, he knew he had more to learn: “As a CTO, there was a mental shift that was necessary in my career,” he says. “Being an executive is an opportunity to serve, and I realized that I had enough engineering skills, but I wanted to advance my business, executive and leadership skills.”

Of course, over the last two decades, he developed leadership techniques on the job, he adds, “but I always lacked the scientific background to explain why I would make a specific decision. And the EMBA program at the Merage School had the answers I was looking for.”

At UCI, he says, “I was inspired by and interacted with some of the most intelligent people in Southern California,” and through this Merage network, he connected with Bright Uro. Montazemi is not shy in crediting the Merage School community with the support he needed to transition to the executive level, including one-on-one executive coaching, the coursework and consulting with Fortune’s 100 Best Companies for group projects. “What Assistant Dean Jon Kaplan says is true: ‘It takes a village,’ because my transition to this new position may not have been a reality without all these people working in the background to make it happen.”

An ascendant biomedical career

When he was a student at University of Virginia, Montazemi took an electrophysiology class. “I realized that the human body’s nervous system is basically a highly advanced electrochemical system, which can be modeled using electrical engineering theory,” he says. He combined his knowledge in both electromechanical and biomedical engineering to create a career immersed in medical device R&D and contributed to a number of innovations helping patients worldwide.

At Bright Uro, he’s in charge of all R&D and operations in addition to setting the technological vision for the company. “We’re working on cutting-edge urodynamics systems that will change the lives of millions of patients with lower urinary tract symptoms,” he says.

Montazemi has a deep appreciation for the responsibilities within his current role. “Given that we are living in a digital world, the CTO must answer this question: ‘What technologies should be selected to meet the business needs while providing internal and external efficiencies for all stakeholders?’ The challenging part is that every technological decision ends at this position—there is no one else to make that call for you,” he says.

“The most interesting part is that I get to study various technologies and cherry-pick the most efficient ones to create agility and reduce time to market.”

Leader vs. rockstar

Montazemi’s personal experience underscores the wisdom of providing both value and leadership within a company. Keeping your ego in check and realizing there is always more to learn goes hand in hand with supporting the company’s vision along with your CEO’s expectations and priorities.

“Along the way, I seized every opportunity offered to me, and I took the biggest risks. In some cases, it landed me a very steady, stable job, and in other cases, it landed me in the most challenging work environment to thrive in,” he says.

“There is always a lesson to be learned and an opportunity to make a difference if we keep our eyes open and adopt a can-do attitude.”

Clearly, creating long-term value for a company is not a solo gig. “If you attack the biggest problems in the company, you can’t do it all by yourself,” he says. “Do your part and support the other team members. By providing them with your skill sets, you help lift them up, and together, you’ll lift the company up as a whole.

“Yes, some team members may be rockstars, but everybody else also needs to get credit for the team’s achievements, and helping your peers actually makes your job easier. If you lift everyone across the division, not only will you excel, but you may eventually be fortunate enough to be recognized as a leader among the rest.”