We were lucky to catch up with Kevin MacRitchie recently and have shared our conversation below.

Kevin, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you share a story with us from back when you were an intern or apprentice? Maybe it’s a story that illustrates an important lesson you learned or maybe it’s a just a story that makes you laugh (or cry)?

My college professor came to me one day and said “Hey Kev, I have placed you in an internship as it will be the launch of your career”. I thought he was crazy, but admired him greatly and took the internship with reservations. It did truly launch my career. I learned about the practical application of technology, the importance of positive change and how it can affect the lives of many, quality improvement and quality focus, how to be a leader, and how to succeed and fail and learn from both. My first manager taught me countless lesson focused more on business protocol, how to win for all, how to never take the easy way out, rather the best way forward, and how to treat people in all facets I would face in the future as a leader, mentor, employee, and a person. I survived a corporate buy-out and dismantling of of a major division, the building of a new residual headquarters, and significant lay-off as a follow-on to the new company finding its’ way, and implemented the latest in technology no one wanted because it wasn’t IBM and it caused fear in the entrenched establishment. I learned how to educate the skeptics and court the nay sayers through collaboration and determination to help them rather than fight them. I struggled with managers that where micro in their approach and team mates who felt the production line could just wait for them. I learned to navigate all this in my following 8 years with the company before joining a fledging company of 330 employees by the name of Cisco Systems where I took all of this, learned far more, and grew into the senior most ranks before retiring and seeking to take new teams to new levels they could never have though possible. In every future role in future companies, I have sought to create and provide the same level of opportunity and education I was provided in my first internship… the gateway to a wonderful and enjoyable career filled with great people and a lifetime worth f learning.

Kevin, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am a simple person; a horse and buffalo rancher, a law enforcement officer, and a corporate leader, some may call executive, I prefer leader. I have spent my career taking struggling teams and/or companies, and growing them into models of success and servitude to others. I live to learn and experience life, and help others succeed. I seek wildly different kinds of people to build a full 360 degree view as leadership teams so we see the issues from all angles and ensure no one sits around looking at our success, rather, someone is always driving us to do more. I am a planner and evaluator of the plan, consulting with many, but always driving forward. I seek to ensure the success of others, which makes me the happiest man on the team each time we succeed. Their is no greater joy in life than to be an active participant coach who leads by example, helping others build a lifetime of success.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

I do not believe we should be managing anything, rather, we should always be leading team members to the success they desire, and to the success they help define as a team with their peers in concert with an organizations mission and purpose, along with any other focus area of their organizational culture. Sue, there are times when it may feel like managing issues, however, these are the best opportunities to learn, coach, problem solve collaboratively, and seek new ways to create team success. Including the team and the entire organization, is crucial as buy-in is not just a nice thing to have, it is an imperative element of organizational success. I am a Tipping Point Leader, long before I ever knew what it was. I seek people at every level to help in planning, direction, influence, and championing causes with their peers by engaging them to help their peers understand the broader perspective and what each goal and initiative means for the success of the team. Morale is derived from this. Without them both, it is always a show stopper.

Do you think you’d choose a different profession or specialty if you were starting now?

I don’t like the concept of regrets. Regrets are something one gets because they intentionally take the wrong path or one that is destructive or harmful to others. I tell all my team mates, make sure you are leading and acting in a legally, ethically, and morally correct manner with positive intent. If you are making the best decision with what you know and at the time you need to make a decision, then you should never have a regret. Regrets center around rushed decision making and/or intentionally and willfully harming others for personal ,or personal team, gain… there is no winning in that in the end. One can always say I should have dug deeper, checked one more thing before making that decision, and that shold be leveraged as a learning opportunity, not a regret. Again, regrets don’t happen if you are truly focused on the most positive outcome for the team with all that you can know at the time.