When Bill Bayless says he’s been in his industry all his life, he’s not exaggerating to make a point.

Bayless is president and CEO of American Campus Communities (ACC). ACC provides student housing communities and services ranging from modern student apartments to traditional full-service residence halls to colleges and universities. ACC is also the first student-housing company to go public.

Bayless didn’t start out in the company mailroom but his roots are equally humble. While attending West Virginia University he worked as a resident assistant for Allen & O'Hara, the company that ran his residence hall.  After graduating, he continued to work for Allen & O’Hara until 1988, when he joined Cardinal Industries as director business development and marketing over their student housing division. In 1991 he was recruited by Houston's Century Development, which was starting a student housing division; he worked there until 1993.

In 1993, a meeting at a picnic in Austin's Zilker Park with Joseph Domberger, founder of Domberger International Group, and Wayne Senecal, head of Domberger's U.S. operations, led to the foundation of American Campus Communities. Domberger was looking for someone to a manager of the Dobie Center on the University of Texas campus. Bayless joined Domberger as VP of development in August of that year and in October, American Campus Lifestyles -- that later became American Campus Communities - was formed.

In August, ACC became the first student-housing company to go public, issuing 12.1 million shares of common stock and raising gross proceeds of $212 million at the IPO, Bayless said. With the exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment for an additional 515,000 shares on Sept. 15, 2004 ACC raised an additional $9 million, for total gross proceeds of $221 million. The IPO stock price was $17.50 and recently closed at $20.75. The company's total enterprise value is currently in the area of $470 million.

"If I were to point to an accomplishment, it would be this one, " he said of the IPO. "There had never been another student-housing company go public, so we introduced a new business sector to campus markets.”

One element of ACC's success, Bayless said, is the company's sole focus on student housing. "It's all we do." The depth of their bench helps, too. "Six of the people here who are at the vice-president level began as RA's in college."

Bayless said the potential for growth in the student-housing industry is phenomenal. "On the demand side there is a growing base of students - the 'Baby Boomer echo.’ That's coupled with the fact that most universities have tight budgets, and much of the existing housing on their campuses is aging - it was built for Baby Boomers. These factors are really driving the opportunities for our industry."

A drive to excel and the smarts to surround himself with driven individuals have been key to his success, he said.

"My management philosophy is geared around a couple of things, and it permeates the organization. As a manager, I cannot motivate another human being; I believe that all motivation is self-motivation. So what I do is create an environment where motivation flourishes.”

Allowing employees to think for themselves and take initiative is another key to his success and that of ACC. “Two things I tell every employee: assume responsibility until someone tells you to stop, and never be afraid to assume responsibility or increase your areas of responsibility.” This allows employees to fulfill their potential, free from being confined by a job description or a task list.

The result, he said, is “an environment in which entrepreneurship flows at every level. I think one reason I am even being considered for this honor is that I'm smart enough to let those who work for me let their own entrepreneurial spirit flow; I just reap the benefits.”

Bayless said that the free flow of information and opinions is good for everyone and good for the company. Employees may not agree with every decision but they at least know the rationale behind the decisions. On the other hand, Bayless benefits from views from the trenches.

Another benefit of open discussions is that, regardless of the outcome, everyone involved has had a say, which reduces animosity later. And once a decision has been made, Bayless said, everyone pulls together to implement that decision.

If I will take credit for anything, it's for creating an environment in which everyone's entrepreneurship is maximized and can flourish.

Bayless cites three people who have shaped his professional life – his mother, his father and his high school football coach. He described his mother, Lucille, as “the typical Catholic Italian mom, always worried about her kids. “ Bayless said that any time ACC is making a presentation for a transaction, “we call mom, and she goes to church and lights a candle and says a rosary.”

His father, Bill Bayless, was a steelworker “My dad was my best friend, and he always pounded into me that a job worth doing was worth doing well.” That blue-collar work ethic has served Bayless well. “That drive and that ambition in this type of environment is a key for success.

His football coach, Paul Billiard, taught him lessons that have served him well beyond the football field. “He took a bunch of ordinary kids and drove them to succeed.” In the process of building a football dynasty, he taught lessons that have stuck with Bayless. “I will never forget, during three-a-days we'd be on the brink of passing out from the exertion. He'd yell, ‘Boys, don't you get it? This isn't about football Ð it's about life.’ He emphasized that life was about setting goals and achieving them, and his lessons have followed me throughout my career.“

Three personality traits lend themselves to success as an entrepreneur, Bayless said. “A logical thought process, communication skills and leadership. And leadership doesn’t always mean leading. “Leadership also mean knowing when to follow,” he said. “Great leadership is when you understand that other people need to lead and you need to be part of the team. When you're comfortable with that, that’s the greatest level of leadership.

So far, Bayless has spent his entire career in one field. If he has his way, he’ll spend the rest of it with ACC. “I would like to see this company become the franchise name in the student housing industry; that when people think of student housing, they think of ACC.”