Welcome StringCan’s New Director of Service Operations

Background:

How would you describe your personality in 5 words or less?

Driven, strategic, collaborative, adaptable, thoughtful

‍

Tell us a little about yourself! Where are you from and what’s your story?

• I’m a native of Phoenix and have never moved to another state or city. I went to elementary school at North Ranch Elementary, middle school at Desert Shadows, high school at Horizon High, and College at ASU

‍

• My first job was at my Uncle’s company Sprinkler World where my Dad and Aunt also worked (family biz). It’s now one of the ONLY independently owned B2B2C sprinkler companies left. I was fired from that job because I was too much of a liability (I injured myself a lot and cost too much in workers comp. A lot of my scars are from that job :D). My next job I worked at for 10 years as a watchmaker. I repaired and took apart watches and also fixed jewelry which I think helped me become so detail-oriented. I was diamond certified which means I can grade the color and clarity of a diamond.

‍

• I graduated from ASU with a Bachelor of Engineering in Computer Science degree where I gained my coding background. My first coding job was with AmberAlert.com. We developed some of the technology and platforms used by multiple states and local law enforcement to issue and distribute amber alerts.

‍

• My brother and I started our own company named “The Creative Chemist”. He was a graphic designer and I was the developer. It was here that I learned my passion for Project Management and Operations. My brother still owns and works under The Creative Chemist today. You can check our website and some of the work we did here: https://thecreativechemist.com/

‍

How did you get your first name?

My parents told me they came up with two options for my name: Eric (my dad’s middle name) and Ryan (which they found in a baby-name book. They said the name “Ryan” meant “Little King”). They chose the latter and I will forever be confused with “Brian” whenever I say my name 😀.

‍

What can we find you doing outside of the office? What are your passions? 

• Being a father is a very large part of my identity. I love being a dad and I take it very seriously. I understand that I will eventually do something that will be the source of some trauma in the future but with all of my being to learn and teach them things that will prepare them to be individuals that understand self-worth and allow them to think about their emotions and talk about them. Every day is a learning moment for me with them. I love them SO much.

‍

• Before my knees started giving me issues, I was an avid hiker and adventurer. Both of these semi-recent trips had AMAZING views

‍

• In 2022 I hiked the original Inca trail to Machu Picchu (26 mi long and steep trail, we hiked over four days at an elevation nearing 13,828 feet)

‍

• 2019 we hiked Glacier National Park in MT (I think we hiked about 36 miles in two days for that adventure). 

‍

• I LOVE to kayak and camp. I’m actively trying to do it much more these days. There is nothing better than getting out on a lake or river and kayaking then laying in a hammock the rest of the day in a cool forest!

‍

• I also LOVE movies, they evoke so much emotion and I tend to quote movies in everyday events ALL THE TIME. And usually, my quote is from an obscure part of the movie literally no one remembers or quotes often.

‍

• Friendships and relationships are very important to me. I would currently say I have 3 best friends and I work hard to talk with them as often as I can. 2 of them live in other states (MN, and NY) and I try to go visit them one a year minimum. 

‍

• My BFF Tom and I are both really into Marvel Comics and I’m currently creating my own Marvel Mystery letter writing activity where I write him a letter each month from a Marvel character. Each letter has a puzzle in it that he needs to solve to tell him a key location that is tied to this Marvel character in New York (where he lives) and who the next letter is coming from. At the end of the 12-letter series, it will reveal a final location that you can only get by solving all the other puzzles and riddles. By the end he’ll have 12 locations he can visit and know their marvel history. I’m excited about sending his first letter in the next couple of months. 

‍

‍

Fun:

‍

If you could choose anyone, who would you pick as your mentor?

‍

• Simon Sinek - I eat up everything he says from finding the “why” to how to treat team members and people. It would be amazing to learn from him. I follow him on Instagram and intently listen to everything that man says

‍

• Drew McLellan - I was privileged to hear Drew’s keynote speech at the last BABA Conference and was blown away by his storytelling. I’ve listed to his podcast for years and it’s helped me immensely in my career to help me talk in “agency owner” or “business owner” talk (meaning to talk about my motivations and goals and how they align with their motivations and needs)

‍

What are your plans for this holiday/weekend?

• For this upcoming weekend my daughter has horseback riding lessons that I’ll be attending and then Tina (their Mom) and I talked about heading up north or to Tucson for a day trip maybe kayak or hike. 

‍

If you were reincarnated as an animal/drink/ice cream flavor, what would it be?

‍

• Animal: Sloth

I think already lived such a fast-paced life with lots of responsibilities. I think it would be nice to live things SLOW for a change.

‍

• Drink: Iced Tea - My family is a family of tea drinkers (we always had 2 gallons of tea in the fridge at all times). I asked ChatGPT to give me a life-iced-tea analogy and I liked what it came up with for me:

Being reincarnated as iced tea is like starting fresh in life, but with the perfect blend of past experiences and new circumstances. Imagine:

You were once hot, vibrant, and steeping with energy—like freshly brewed tea. Life was full of intense moments, bubbling challenges, and heated passions. Over time, things cool down, you adapt, and take on new forms. As iced tea, you’re still the same essence, but now you’re more refreshing, chilled, and in harmony with the world around you. You’ve evolved, keeping your core while becoming something more mellow, yet satisfying in a completely different way.

Just as iced tea is a mixture of old and new—a balance of sweetness, coolness, and tradition—reincarnation is about carrying the essence of who you are into new experiences, adapting to new environments, and finding harmony in a new form.

‍

• Ice Cream: Mint Brownie

I love love love this flavor and with the chewy yummy brownies vs. hard crunchy chocolate chips…I’d be delicious! :). 

‍

If you could travel anywhere in the world right now where would you go and what would you do?

There are a few locations on my bucket list: Japan, Australia, and Camino de Santiago. I haven’t planned them out but I’ve heard amazing things about visiting Japan, and despite the enormous amount of large bugs and spiders in Australia, it’s somewhere I’ve always wanted to visit. The Camino de Santiago came to my list after watching the movie “The Way” with Martin Sheen. It’s a trek that takes about 30 days and covers over 500 miles. It seems like a transformative experience I want to take. 

‍

You just won a million dollars, what is the most irresponsible purchase you’re going to make?

A personal chef so I don’t need to answer the “What am I going to eat” ever again

‍

What’s your latest streaming video binge?

It was “House of the Dragon” but the season just ended very disappointingly and the next season I think they said will take 2 years to see.

‍

What’s your favorite YouTube video and why?

‍

• If you ever hear me say “I am Le Tired” this is the video I’m referencing: End of the World

• This was is old but a good one and will get stuck in your head. It just never fails to make me laugh: "SEAGULLS! (Stop It Now)" -- A Bad Lip Reading of The Empire Strikes Back

‍

• This one also just saw it’s one year anniversary in my feed and it still makes me laugh: This Kid Sounds Like Iron Man!

‍

‍

Business:

‍

What are you most looking forward to by working at StringCan?

Growth! If I’m not learning I’m dying. I’m excited by the transparency in which I’ve observed the company works and the structure for goal setting and growth that’s in place. 

‍

What will clients enjoy most about working with you?

‍

Strategic Mindset:

‍My ability to analyze situations, develop long-term solutions, and create actionable plans will provide clients with confidence that I can lead projects to success while keeping the big picture in mind.

‍

Collaborative Leadership:

Clients will appreciate my knack for building strong relationships and fostering teamwork, both internally and with external partners, ensuring smooth communication and alignment throughout any project.

‍

Results-Driven Focus:

‍My track record of optimizing operations and driving efficiency ensures that clients will see measurable improvements and tangible results in their projects, making them feel their investments are well-managed.

‍

Adaptability:

‍My flexibility and ability to pivot when challenges arise will reassure clients that I can handle complex issues with ease and adjust strategies when necessary to keep things on track.

‍

Clear and Transparent Communication:

‍Clients will enjoy how I make sure expectations are clear from the outset, with ongoing updates that help them feel in control and informed throughout the project lifecycle. I also have worked hard to explain complex technical things in ways that are easy to understand.

‍

How do you plan on making a difference for StringCan and for our clients?

‍

Process Optimization & Efficiency

I’ll focus on streamlining internal service-related processes at StringCan, making service operations more efficient and effective. By identifying bottlenecks, implementing best practices, and integrating new technologies, I’ll help the team work smarter, not harder. This will free up more time for teams to deliver high-value services to clients.

‍

Client-Centric Solutions

I’ll work closely with the AM team and clients to truly understand their needs, using my ability to combine business goals with technical execution. By aligning the team's efforts with client expectations, I’ll ensure that every project delivers tangible results and positive outcomes, strengthening client satisfaction and long-term partnerships.

‍

 Driving Innovation

With my innovative mindset, you’ll introduce fresh approaches, whether it's leveraging new tools, exploring emerging trends, or enhancing current service offerings. I’ll challenge myself to keep a pulse on emerging technologies and trends.

‍

Team Development & Leadership

I’ll foster a strong, collaborative culture within the team and with our contractors at StringCan. By mentoring team members, providing growth opportunities, and creating a space for open communication, I’ll elevate the overall service level, making sure that every interaction with clients reflects excellence.

‍

Measurable Results & Accountability

I plan to ensure that every project has clear KPIs and measurable goals. For StringCan and its clients, this means a focus on delivering ROI, staying accountable to agreed-upon outcomes, and consistently refining strategies to meet and exceed those objectives. I based decisions based on numbers and trends 9/10 times vs. my gut. 

‍

What do results mean to you?

EVERYTHING - I’m an extremely results-driven person and strive to think about how we’ll measure the success of anything we’re tasked to do. 

‍

What is your proudest accomplishment and why?

‍

My proudest accomplishment was taking 4 individual teams within a company org and making them a highly successful unified team under my leadership and direction. Highnoon had a vision for a unified team for their teams that surrounded websites (Development, UX/UI, SEO, and Analytics) but had not been able to find someone to lead this team. I took on the challenge. The most developed team ironically was the web development team of the 4. During the 2 years I lead this team I:

‍

• Developed a process to deliver all analytics reports to clients within their deadlines (from 0% success rate to 100% success rate) and redesigned our reports in a way that told a story to clients from how visitors got to the site and what behavior they had when they got there for improved insights.

‍

• Created a Wordpress design and development system and boilerplate to speed up our development process and provide an intuitive CRM page builder that was fast and utilized native Wordpress functionality and features within their page editor Gutenberg, to provide clients with a 1-to-1 editing experience. This effort led to Highnoon’s first profitable website project which was delivered earlier than projected (Oreganos website). 

‍

• Created our SEO strategy and process from scratch which led to one of our first productized services which meant pricing structure, project process and hours, staff requirements, and deliverable/presentation templates were all created and completed to give the agency reliable work estimates and outcomes. 

‍

• Our team was also the only team to hit all of our internal performance goals and KPIs while under my management (i.e., time-entry, process development, documentation, and training). 

‍

Leading that team and structuring it to build trust and groom team leads was a huge undertaking but extremely rewarding.

‍