When John Battles was just 13, he met a friend who, like him, lived with a physical disability. One afternoon, he invited the boy to explore the woods behind his house. They never made it past the doorstep. Hovering with fear, the boy’s mother panicked, terrified he might get hurt. “That was the last time I was ever invited over,” Battles recalls. “His parents didn’t want him to achieve anything because they were afraid he’d be hurt.”
That moment crystallized something for Battles that would shape his personal and professional life: the belief that limitations, whether physical, emotional, or societal, should never define potential.
Today, as the founder of Battles Data Analysis (BDA), a consulting firm that has successfully worked with a wide range of small and mid-sized companies, from those developing medical laboratory tests, HVAC companies, fast food chains, and companies focused on charitable services. BDA has helped a wide range of organizations gain control over their data, drive sales, optimize operations, and make critical decisions around purchases and hiring. Through the success of BDA and his professional career, Battles exemplifies what it means to defy expectations, not just for himself, but for anyone told to ‘play it safe’ because of what others can see on the outside.
Battles’ journey began in the world of science. He was on track to earn a PhD when a vascular malformation, his lifelong, visible apparent disorder, led to serious health complications. “But I did end up earning a Master’s degree in biochemistry,” he says.
But in that detour, he found his calling.
“I quickly learned I preferred analyzing data over generating it,” says Battles. It was the late 1990s, and he joined a biotechnology company just as a project on the human genome was gaining momentum. “I was part of a team building software to manage and analyze massive amounts of genetic information. That’s where I got into bioinformatics.”
He would go on to spend the next two decades immersed in scientific software development and bioinformatics, building analysis platforms and using data to drive research on everything from genomics to drug development. Whether working on laboratory-developed tests or guiding decisions around mental health medications, Battles thrived at the intersection of biology, data science, and software.
In 2019, Battles took another leap; this time into entrepreneurship. “I realized the skills I had developed in bioinformatics could easily be applied in business,” he says. He launched Battles Data Analysis to help companies make better decisions by leveraging data they already had.
His work now focuses on building data management infrastructures, creating actionable reports and dashboards, and conducting data analyses to help drive a company’s success. The former is to integrate information across platforms like cloud-based software, service logs, and internal operations to create unified dashboards, while the latter is especially for small and mid-sized companies without dedicated IT teams. He’s also recently partnered with Atiba, a full-spectrum tech consulting firm, to provide clients with seamless end-to-end service. Battles himself helps set up sustainable systems so clients can continue using data.
“It’s not just about building software,” he explains. “It’s about creating visual dashboards that track performance, spot trends, and guide strategic decisions in a way that’s accessible to executives and teams alike.”
Battles is also preparing to release his first book, “Gain Control of Your Data: Transform Your Business,” a hybrid of personal memoir and practical guide for entrepreneurs. “A lot of business owners are intimidated by data,” he shares. “The book is designed to be both accessible and technical. It walks leaders through how to think about their data, what tools to use, and how to make cost-effective decisions.”
But it’s more than just a how-to.
“The third underlying reason I wrote this book, he says, “is to show people that whatever challenges you’re facing, whether inside or outside, you can still take control of your life. You can still achieve something significant.”
Born with a vascular malformation, Battles’ condition has been visible since birth. It has required multiple surgeries and caused physical pain over the years. At one point, his mother even moved him to an institutional setting as she believed it was better suited for his needs.
“She did what she thought was best,” he says, without resentment. “But I met a lot of kids in that place who had simply been given up on, by their parents or by themselves.”
That early experience of being underestimated stayed with him. “There were people who were completely mentally capable,” he says, “but because they had cerebral palsy or muscular dystrophy, they were treated as if they were broken. That was wrong.”
Today, his success as a technologist and entrepreneur is a quiet rebuke to the assumption that physical difference equals diminished capacity. And it’s exactly the kind of story he hopes to pass on.
He hopes to spread the message to the current youth with similar issues, struggling with identity, limitations, or family fears: “Don’t focus on the illness. Focus on your dreams. Think about what you want from life, and then get to work. Yes, it’s going to be hard. You’ll have to work harder than others. But that’s not a reason to stop.”
