MS CSC 2003

Will Pagán is a nationally recognized Patent Attorney and award-winning engineer, tech-industry veteran, IBM Master Inventor, valedictorian, pro-bono volunteer, and private pilot.

After nearly 15 years developing patentable technologies for IBM (resulting in over 130 patent applications), Mr. Pagán graduated summa cum laude (highest honors) as valedictorian of the evening program at NCCU School of Law. Indeed, Mr. Pagán's aptitude for invention was so profound that he was separately appointed the title of Master Inventor by two independent IBM business units, and was named the Inventor of the Year of their Research Triangle site in 2010. Now a Senior Patent Attorney at Coats & Bennett, Mr. Pagán leverages his software development and hardware engineering background to prepare and prosecute high-value patent applications for clients around the world. He is highly sought-after by clients for his prolific aptitude for invention, which he leverages to advise clients on how best to develop their patent portfolios, and to mentor inventors of all levels.

As the only Senior Patent Attorney at Coats & Bennett, Will demonstrates professional leadership in numerous ways.  Among other things, he manages relations with, and work performed for, clients that collectively generate more than $1 billion in annual revenue.  He is also the firm’s preeminent authority on patent subject matter eligibility, and leads numerous internal business and operational initiatives relating to, e.g., strategic marketing, technology adoption, recruiting, and university outreach. In 2016, he was recognized by North Carolina Lawyers Weekly as a North Carolina “Leader in the Law.”

Mr. Pagán was also a professional leader during his time at IBM. In particular, Mr. Pagán was mostly entrenched in IBM's server business, leading software development teams across multiple companies and geographies in the development of software to interface with the embedded software and micro-controllers in IBM's Intel x86/64 and Power PC-based server architectures. His leadership work on IBM’s Intel-based Thurley platforms in particular won him an Outstanding Technical Achievement Award from IBM in 2010.

Mr. Pagán was also a professional leader in the industry standards space. As Chairman of the Systems Management Forum at the Distributed Management Task Force (DMTF), Will set the technical and business direction for establishing certification programs for the server development industry to use in demonstrating systems management standards conformance. For his contributions to the DMTF, he was awarded their STAR award in 2007.

Mr. Pagán’s contributions to his field also garnered him national recognition. In 2007, he received a Luminary Award at the Hispanic Engineering National Achievement
Awards Conference.

Community and/or Public Service
Will also demonstrates leadership serving his community as a decorated Legal Officer of the North Carolina Wing of the Civil Air Patrol (CAP), United States Air Force Auxiliary.  To assist CAP in fulfilling its congressionally-chartered mission of providing emergency services (e.g., air/ground search and rescue, disaster relief), aerospace education, and youth programs, Will volunteers as the statewide head of the NC legal team, which advises on legal implications of CAP programs and activities (e.g., with respect to laws, regulations, contracts, insurance, real estate, taxation, investigations, and relations with local agencies).  Among other things, he also assists and advises state-level command staff in conducting investigations and resolving complaints to ensure cadet protection, and to avoid waste, fraud, and abuse within the organization.

For his leadership service to his community, Will has been inducted into the 2017 NC Pro Bono Honor Society.  He was also honored by North Carolina Central University in 2018 as one of their Top Forty Under Forty in view of his noteworthy contributions to both his profession and to the school.  Will has also been decorated for his service to CAP, which has appointed him the grade of Captain, and has awarded him (among other things) two Wing Commander’s Commendations.  He also received the Air Force Organizational Excellence Award for his service to CAP. He also received a Certificate of Achievement from the NC Bar Association and North Carolina Central University School of Law for his Pro Bono service as a Case Manager for the Innocence Project while in Law School.

He is also a Life Member and supporter of the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, as well as the North Carolina Society of Hispanic Professionals.
Service to the Computer Science Discipline

Mr. Pagán has made significant contributions to the Computer Science Discipline. While many Patent Attorneys are also inventors, Pagán has distinguished himself as one of IBM's most prolific, with over 130 patent applications filed in the U.S. alone, approximately 85 of which have been granted thus far, with many still pending.
The advancements represented by his patent portfolio include ways to reduce memory faults, prevent invalid device insertions, dynamically balance computing workload, ensure proper cabling of server clusters, perform server power management, perform server configuration management, and more. During his time at IBM, he even developed a multi-dimensional crossfader.

In recognition of these numerous advancements, IBM’s Systems and Technology Group appointed him as a “Master Inventor” in 2006. IBM then named him their “RTP Inventor of the Year” in 2010. IBM Corporate Headquarters then appointed him as a “Master Inventor” in 2011.

Mr. Pagán’s portfolio of issued patents may be found at http://www.willpagan.com/masterinventor/patents-granted

Other professional awards and recognition have been discussed above or are shown in the attached resume.